Sandra‘s Closet

«The centennial, for me, represents an opportunity to bear witness to Gucci’s eternal vitality that year after year, is reborn, it renews itself, reestablishing an unusual relationship with contemporaneity as a boy, forever young, observing the world with a powerful vision. I recognized the manifestation of its youth in its having intercepted and traversed, for one hundred years now, popular culture in all its forms. Above all, in music: the only medium, aside from fashion, more reactive to the times that mutate and mark the new, the today, the now», Alessandro Michele.

Conceived as a tribute to celebrate the centennial of the Maison, Gucci 100 manifests a deep connection between two universal languages, the language of clothing as an expression of personal identity and the language of music that recalls a collective memory.
It all begins with reflections on a number: 22,705. This is the extensive number of songs in which the word «Gucci» appears among the lyrics from 1921 to date according to Musixmatch, the Music Data Company that manages the world’s largest archive of music lyrics and that has collaborated with the Maison for this research.

«It isn’t a revisionist attempt to rummage through the past: if anything, mine is a ‘reverse’ revisionism of the House’s history, stitched back together by a piercing note, a melody, a refrain. Also because, if I were to depict Gucci, for me it would be an eternal teenager who hangs out at places where music is heard and played», continues Alessandro Michele.

Ready-to-wear and accessories feature the Gucci 100 logo or are adorned with verses from three songs chosen by Alessandro Michele from among the countless tracks that mention the brand: «Music is Mine Gucci Seats Reclined», from the song «The R» (1988) by Eric B. & Rakim, «This One’s Dedicated To All You Gucci Bag Carriers Out There It’s Called You Got Good Taste» from «You Got Good Taste» (1983) by rock band «The Cramps» and «And The Men Notice You With Your Gucci Bag Crew» from Amy Winehouse’s «Fuck Me Pumps» (2003). (© Sony Music Publishing)

The Campaign
Jazz, Psychedelic, Japanese Punk, Disco, Hip Hop, Afrobeat: these genres serve as the musical backdrops to a century-long journey in which a cast of characters moves through an evolution of sounds, harmonies, movements, tastes, and styles. Shot by Joshua Woods under the creative direction of Alessandro Michele, the campaign channels love for life itself, the pleasure of conviviality, the beauty of dance, the overwhelming energy of music, the thrill of performance. Images that manifest, through their «analogic» charm, Gucci’s desire to express optimism and the pleasure of getting dressed as a shared moment of joy and amusement.

The campaign’s finale reveals a scale model of the legendary «Seville by Gucci» Cadillac, a paradigmatic expression of the late ‘70s flair and a testament to the Maison’s forward thinking. Originally produced in a very limited edition starting in 1978, Gucci has collaborated with Mattel Creations to create its first official collectible with Hot Wheels, a 1:64th scale replica of the ’82 model of the Cadillac in a limited edition of 5,000 pieces worldwide.

Blending fashion and music – love it!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Gucci #Gucci100
Campaign credits: Creative Director: Alessandro Michele – Art Director: Christopher Simmonds – Photographer & Director: Joshua Woods – Make up: Diane Kendal – Hair: Paul Hanlon

Tiffany & Co. announced today that powerhouse couple Beyoncé and JAY-Z will star in its latest campaign celebrating modern love. This is how LVMH is bringing its playbook to its largest-ever acquisition and the advantages and challenges of marketing brands rooted in the 19th century in today’s world.

Synonymous with the world’s greatest love stories since 1837, Tiffany’s debut of «ABOUT LOVE» marks the latest evolution of the luxury jeweler’s new creative direction. The campaign is the result of a close collaboration and a shared vision between both the Carters and Tiffany & Co.

«Beyoncé and JAY-Z are the epitome of the modern love story. As a brand that has always stood for love, strength and self-expression, we could not think of a more iconic couple that better represents Tiffany’s values. We are honored to have the Carters as a part of the Tiffany family.» —Alexandre Arnault, Executive Vice President of Product & Communications

As the first time the couple has appeared in a campaign together, «ABOUT LOVE» is an exploration of connection and vulnerability. The Carters’ love story is illuminated by the iconic Tiffany Diamond and set against the backdrop of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Equals Pi (1982).*

As part of a private collection from its creation until now, this campaign marks the work of art’s first public appearance, propelling Tiffany’s long-standing tradition of working with New York creatives forward. Ushering in a new brand identity, this campaign embodies the beauty of love through time and all its diverse facets, forging a new vision of love today.

Worn in a campaign for the first time in history, the Tiffany Diamond weighs 128.54 carats and boasts an unprecedented 82 facets. Seen on Beyoncé throughout “ABOUT LOVE,” it is considered among the most important gemstone discoveries of the 19th century. Unearthed in 1877 in the Kimberley Mines of South Africa, founder Charles Lewis Tiffany purchased the rough diamond in 1878, solidifying the brand’s reputation as a diamond authority. House icons including designs from Jean Schlumberger and the Tiffany T collection are also featured throughout. Most notably, JAY-Z wears Jean Schlumberger’s legendary Bird on a Rock brooch, reconstructed as a pair of one-of-a-kind cuff links. Jean Schlumberger was best known for dressing high society’s elite in the 1960s and ’70s, so it is appropriate that his unmistakable designs live out his legacy on one of today’s greatest creative forces.

A film by acclaimed director Emmanuel Adjei has also been created and features a musical
performance of the classic song «Moon River.» Made famous in the 1961 film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, the iconic tune is reimagined with vocals by Beyoncé, captured by JAY-Z on a Super 8 camera. The couple selected the Orum House in Los Angeles to serve as the setting for the film, in which nostalgic flashbacks are interwoven with cinematic, dreamlike visuals. Basquiat’s Equals Pi appears once again as a common Tiffany Blue® thread throughout the narrative. The accompanying «ABOUT LOVE» print campaign was shot by Mason Poole and styled by June Ambrose and Marni Senofonte.

«ABOUT LOVE» reflects Tiffany’s continued support of underrepresented communities. As a part of
the house’s partnership with the Carters, Tiffany & Co. is proud to pledge a USD $2 million
commitment towards scholarship and internship programs for Historically Black Colleges and
Universities (HBCUs). Additional details on this initiative are forthcoming.
«ABOUT LOVE» launches globally in print on September 2. The accompanying film will launch on
Tiffany.com September 15 and will be amplified through global media activations. The campaign will further unfold later this year with additional films created by acclaimed director Dikayl Rimmasch and second unit director, Derek Milton.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Tiffany & Co. – @TIFFANYANDCO
*Partnership done in collaboration with Artestar, a global licensing agency and creative consultancy representing high-profile artists, photographers, designers and creatives.

Birkenstock continues its collaboration with Proenza Schouler, reimagining styles from the original collection in bold new colors.

Proenza Schouler, the New York ready-to-wear brand, founded by Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez in 2002, unite with Birkenstock by their common appreciation for form and functionality, the collection is inspired by a combination of utilitarian workwear and athletic footwear. Executed in a polished, specchio calf leather, the shoes feature a hook-and-loop closure in place of hardware buckles and are finished with industrial contrast topstitching to further refine the classic Birkenstock sandals, Arizona and Milano.

The collaboration showcases iconic Proenza Schouler palettes with vibrant cobalt blue, rustic luggage burgundy, and elevated neutrals in black and ecru; a transitional color range intended to carry the wearer from late summer to early fall.

«We are thrilled to expand on our collaboration with Birkenstock; Birkenstock and Proenza Schouler both share a common respect and admiration for the craftmanship and detailed work that is integral to all of our products. We are excited to pick-up where we left off and expand on the collection with fresh colorways that feel very in the moment and true to our brand.» – Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez

For this special re-issue, Birkenstock and Proenza Schouler have enlisted photographer Collier Schorr to capture King Princess as the face of the campaign. The New York native singer and songwriter emulates the artistic and unapologetic individualism that is heritage to both brand identities. The capsule collection will be available at 1774.com, proenzaschouler.com, select Birkenstock and Proenza Schouler retail locations, as well as select retailers worldwide from August 6th.

TO SHOP BIRKENSTOCK ONLINE, CLICK HERE PLEASE.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Birkenstock – © Collier Schorr 
@birkenstock1774 @proenzaschouler #birkenstockxproenzaschouler
DISCLOSURE: We may earn commission from links on this page, but I only recommend products I love. Promise.

 After a fashion show staged as a real fantasy – almost-impossibly presented in the landscape of Cortina d’Ampezzo in the Dolomites Alps – the F/W 2021 Miu Miu collection designed by Miuccia Prada returns to the context of fashion, itself another fantasy of realities, exploring the power of clothes as a conveyance of character, an expression of strength. 

As this collection champions the notion of bravery and intrepid exploration, the hero of this Miu Miu campaign is the actor Emma Corrin – whose courage in her abandonment, whole-heartedly, to every role, has boldly powered her to international prominence. Acting requires innate courage – emotional bravery, the baring of one’s soul, to bring fantasies to life. 

An actor’s craft is to lend fact to fiction, to embody people other than themselves. Corrin’s career has been marked by the power of her performances – her paradoxical bravery in showing her own vulnerability, the strength of character she can convey. Here, Corrin is captured in a direct and arresting series of studio portraits, her gaze in each an echo of female archetypes – joyful and reflective, serious or seductive – photographed by Steven Meisel with creative direction by M/M Paris. Her personality projects onto every image – staring boldly from the picture plane, framed in a new context. 

Miu Miu celebrates bravery, boldness – it is rooted in and inspired by communities of women, in the power of the collective. Here, Corrin shifts between different identities, different sense of self – playful or powerful, fragile but strong. Accompanying the print campaign, a series of five short films allow Corrin to reinvent herself once more – as different characters, within different personae. Corrin reads aloud a series of anecdotes, recollections, remembrances – recounting memories, true and imaginary, in her own voice and those of others. Again, lines are blurred: is Corrin acting, or actual – are these her words, or a script? 

Throughout, both films and imagery constantly interrogate our ideas and ideals of reality and fantasy, the courage needed to traverse between the two. As Corrin gives her characters strength, Miu Miu clothes its wearers for brave endeavours. 

The first episode of ‘A BRAVE HEART’ films is online at miumiu.com. Watch the trailer HERE.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Miu Miu CREDITS: Creative Direction: M/M (Paris) – Photographer: Steven Meisel – Videographer: Benn Northover – Styling: Lotta Volkova – Talent: Emma Corrin

Personally speaking, one of my favorite S/S 2021 collections is ZIMMERMANN titled «Wild Botanica». Inspired by Nicky Zimmermann‘s native flora and fauna of her home country, Australia, the designer translated these references into bold floral and bird prints and playful 3D flower and butterfly appliqués. Furthermore, she looked at the turn-of-the-century artwork of painter and explorer Ellis Rowan.

Inspiration behind the Zimmermann collection: Australian artist and botanical illustrator Ellis Rowan (1848 – 1922).

Favorite looks from the Zimmermann S/S 2021 runway.

Breezy dresses, stunning shorts and vibrant blouses set the scene for sunny romance. The long gowns with butterfly embroidery or the billowing floral waterfalls in the back stood out for their interesting textures for me.

On Mother’s Day I wore the amazing Botanica wattle-print linen-blend organza dress that was the first Zimmermann S/S 2021 runway look. The outfit post will be coming up tomorrow.

Liya Kebede stars in the S/S 2021 campaign. In front of Benny Horne‘s lens, she poses on location in St. Barths. A picturesque setting complements dreamy silhouettes as well as painterly prints.

You can shop the beautiful S/S 2021 collection at NET-À-PORTER, MATCHESFASHION and MYTHERESA.

Such beautiful butterfly applications on my Botanica floral linen-blend organza maxi dress. This outfit post will also coming up shortly.

Photos: Courtesy of Zimmermann, © Sandra Bauknecht, © David Biedert Photography
DISCLOSURE: We may earn commission from links on this page, but I only recommend products I love. Promise.

Street Diver, the latest addition to Louis Vuitton’s Tambour watch range is unveiled in an advertising campaign shot by renowned photographer Mario Sorrenti. Embodied by friends of the House – actors Tahar Rahim, Sophie Turner and Minho Lee – the Tambour Street Diver invites one to Journey Beyond the Surface, to take a metaphorical plunge into an urban odyssey.

British actor and House ambassador Sophie Turner sports the white and navy-blue, Pacific White Tambour Street Diver. With Golden Globe and Bafta nominations for his 2021 film «The Mauritanian», French actor Tahar Rahim wears gradients of blue across his wrist with the Skyline Blue colourway, while multi-award-winning South Korean actor Minho Lee models the Neon Black variation.

Crafted from a single block of metal and larger at the base than at the top, the unique shape of the Tambour was inspired by a drum. With applied horns that seamlessly integrate the case and strap, the position of the hours is indicated on the caseband by the 12 letters «L-O-U-I-S-V-U-I-T-T-O-N».

By looking beyond its stylish surface, the sportier aspects of the Tambour Street Diver are revealed. From the screw-down crowns and 100m of water resistance, to the generous coatings of Super-LumiNova on dial elements and inner rotating bezel, all bear witness to the utilitarian practicality of this Swiss-made timepiece.

Highly artisanal, multi-functional and creatively distinctive, the Tambour Street Diver brings together all the requirements of a traditional dive watch, while retaining the vibrant and unconventional style elements that have always been central to Louis Vuitton. This radical combination of design and purpose bridges the ever-flowing connections between craftmanship and technology, work and play, the lure of adventurous discoveries and everyday city living.

The campaign will be revealed in April 2021 issues of magazines worldwide.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Louis Vuitton / Mario Sorrenti

A cinematic context, a language of film, a mystery to be solved, a narrator reading words that the images bring to life – the Prada 2020 Holiday campaign «A Stranger Calls» is photographed by Steven Meisel and based on an original short story conceived and written for Prada by the best-selling author Candice Carty-Williams. It proposes perspectives – different angles, views and cuts around the protagonists of an unfolding narrative: Prada’s accessories, jewelry and leather goods. Each image, like movie stills, proposes a new panorama – like fragments of a story, about to unfold.

In the tradition of film noir, the campaign reconnects with early Prada moments pioneering the aesthetics of cinematic drama. A language then new for fashion, it now becomes layered with historical references – revisited through digital exchange with the audience.

Five characters, five faces cast from the universe of Prada – Freja Beha, Maty Fall, Mao Xiaoxing, Rudolfs Valbergs and Merlijne Schorren – populate an isolated villa in Italy, namely Villa Gnutti, made famous through a 1981 shoot by Helmut Newton. The stills are inspired by the moving, campaign imagery underscored by the esthetics of cinematic drama. Photographed in black-and-white, the fragments presented in the print campaign become the door to a living narrative that develops online. Jump shots from an imaginary film offer a sense of tension, sometimes of contradiction.

Cinema suggests shifting focus and points of emphasis: here, details of Prada accessories are pulled into macro-scale. Like plot-points, or clues to an unknown mystery, they dominate the frame, drawing attention – before Meisel’s lens, they become characters in themselves.

A focal point is the new Prada Cleo handbag, debuted in the Prada Multiple Views SS21 show and featured in the S/S 2021 womenswear collection. The Cleo line draws influence from archival Prada styles and traditional craft techniques, a synthesis of classicism and futurism. Precious jewels for her, in silver or gold with tourmaline, reinterpret the iconic lines of the Prada triangle, like facets of a gem abstracted, the emblem appearing as delicate chain necklaces, lariats and chandelier earrings. The Prada Galleria handbag, the Vanity compact-bags, Saffiano and nylon travel accessories and men’s jewelry all feature.

Heroes and heroines, protagonists and antagonists. A play between the still and the animated, this campaign – and these Prada accessories – explore emotion, intrigue, attraction and, ultimately, desire.

I love Newton, Meisel and Prada… a match made in heaven.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Prada

Louis Vuitton’s men’s ad campaign for F/W 2020 was shot by my favorite photographer on earth, Tim Walker. I adore his surrealistic approach to photography, transforming every photo in a piece of art. Below you can read about the inspiration behind the campaign and the collection imagined by the Maison’s Men’s Artistic Director Virgil Abloh.

Black Imagination: The transformative process of rethinking and overturning the inherited and often unconscious expectations tied to Black identities through history, and creating an encouraging Black consciousness for the present and the future.

The utopian idea of «Heaven on Earth» creates the framework for the Louis Vuitton F/W 2020 Men’s campaign. Photographed by Tim Walker, the images widen the collection’s surrealist lens through the metaphorical language of clouds. Applying his ongoing premise of Boyhood – seeing the world through the unspoiled eyes of a child, Virgil Abloh employs clouds as a symbol of freedom, unity and peace. Evading constraint, territory and possession, they are dreamlike bodies floating across a sky observed universally across borders and beliefs.

The title of the F/W 2020 collection, «Heaven on Earth» is an image of the core values embodied by Virgil Abloh at Louis Vuitton: a dream world that transcends prejudice as an objective to inspire inclusivity and unity-in-diversity through his work. It is underpinned by the overarching philosophy of Black Imagination and the continual imbuement of Black representation
within fashion, luxury and beyond. Shot in London, the campaign lends its platform to young creative talent from across the arts, featuring the likes of British actor Michael Ward and Ghanaian model Ottawa Kwami as part of its cast.

The collection studies the anthropology of the suit and the reprogramming of traditional dress codes. Virgil Abloh investigates the lifelong relationship formed by adolescent and young men with shirting and suiting in a material and figurative exercise in freedom, presented within the familiar constrictions of tailoring. The firm symbol of convention, trade and success, the tapered silhouette departs its corporate comfort zone. Twisted and turned, the dress codes of an old world are neutralised, re-appropriated and embraced for a progressive joie de vivre.

Isn’t it so impressive to explore how much work, inspiration and thought went into one picture.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Louis Vuitton
DISCLOSURE: This post is NOT sponsored. I just adore the photos.

Louis Vuitton reveals its F/W 2020 campaign directed and photographed by Nicolas Ghesquière, Artistic Director of Women’s Collections and I am loving the pieces.
Representing total creative investment in a very personal collection, the campaign expresses contemporary freedom and the pure pleasure of clothing that is open to all manner of audacity.

To photograph this campaign, Nicolas Ghesquière invited Louis Vuitton’s friends and family to his photography studio, a creative laboratory on the Quai Voltaire in Paris: among them were close friends whose personality inspires him, kindred spirits, and favourite faces. Celebrity friends, beloved models, astonishing artists and athletes include Léa Seydoux, Marina Foïs, Noémie Merlant, Akon Changkou, Stacy Martin, Dina Asher-Smith, Lous and the Yakuza and Sora Choi. In all, 20 personalities he wished to represent in their essence. The same holds true of the House’s iconic bags that accompany this stylistic exercise — the Capucines, the Twist, the Pont 9 and the Dauphine.

With the same candor, Nicolas Ghesquière incorporates the new line «SINCE 1854.»
A precious jacquard inscribed with a fundamental date, 1854, sprinkled among Monogram flowers in a nod to the year the House was created. Already iconic, this Monogram distills the Louis Vuitton spirit on timeless pieces such as the Dauphine, the Neverfull and the Petit Noé. The signature «SINCE 1854» also figures on a wardrobe of essentials and accessories.

Says Nicolas Ghesquière of the campaign, «I thought it would be interesting to extend my work to photography, to follow through to the end of the creative process and give the collection its final punctuation. In this portrait gallery, everyone is there for my own personal reasons, and I liked discovering new connections with people I knew already. I also wanted to bring unity to different aspects of the House, a circular vision of what happens here. To give a timeless aspect to creations that are very anchored in the season. For me, moving into photography came from a desire to reflect the feeling we share when we’re working on a collection.»

The campaign will be unveiled in September 2020 publications worldwide.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Louis Vuitton

Close is a collection of visual studies on the theme of proximity, in which each photographer has created a series of visual statements on the unique and intimate relationship they share with their subject. It highlights the significant role that personal distance plays in an image-maker’s treatment and understanding of what and who they are photographing.

As one of those models in the show, Gigi Hadid enjoyed the greatest access and freedom of movement in the backstage environment that any photographer could possibly have. Her work documents the experience of preparing a Miu Miu collection for the catwalk in an unprecedentedly honest and thorough way.

Lila Moss is photographed at home by Nikolai von Bismarck, imbuing the images with an affinity only achievable within a familial context; the Polaroid format highlights the informal candour of the setting. Kate Moss offers a personal perspective on the Miu Miu collection, styling the looks with Katie Grand.

With a particular focus on accessories, Steve Mackey shot London model Kasper Kapica wearing the collection on both film and Polaroid on location in a local public park. The Polaroids have been given a hand-painted treatment by Patrick Waugh, the signature of his brushstrokes evident in the texture of the paint.

Backstage at the show where the collection was presented, Liz Collins captured the character of the models in her close-up portraits, taken in private moments as they prepared to set forth on the catwalk.

For digital media, Amber Pinkerton photographed young Londoners on the day they reemerged to engage with the physical social space after a period of withdrawal, while Douglas Irvine was given exclusive access to Miu Miu’s F/W 2020 set, where he shot individual models dressed in the looks they wore for the show.

Finally, Anthony Turner, Luella Bartley, Silvia Prada and Chantal Stracey express their personal interpretations of both the mood and detail of the collection through distinctive hand-drawn illustrations and animations.

The result is a collective effort from a broad range of creatives working across various media. Their work has been assembled in collages using physical techniques of cut and paste – the touch of human hand at play in their production, proposing an intimacy that is all the more precious in a time of increased separation and isolation.

Everyone participating in this project is already a part of Miu Miu’s extended family. The participants’ familiarity both with their subjects and with the broader world of Miu Miu
gives Close a profoundly personal and proximate quality at a moment in history that has required us to reevaluate our understanding of personal distance.

LoL, Sandra

Photos: © Miu Miu