|
|
|
|
| Dec 08: It's Santa time again, which puts us in a lethargo-reflective mood, eating arepas while finishing slutty songbird Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas" ditty. Topping our female alter ego's imaginary wish list is a psychedelic paisley dress from Dries Van Noten's standout fall '08 collection. But for now, as arepa crumbs snow down on our keyboard, we'll settle for the Belgian's website. Sometimes all you want from a fashion website is an important collection and the perfect soundtrack; Van Noten's immersive site satisfies both. Said fall collection, along with its counterpart for men, are the site's current centerpieces—and it's silly to ask for more. One could spend hours taking in the luxuriant details of the 58 women's looks, with their tiny flowers, blue-dyed fox and bangle necklaces. A friend described the collection as "Cavalli-esque, in the best possible way," and while we didn't think we'd ever use that word as a compliment (or use it at all), it's a good summation. Like those of the flashy Italian designer, Van Noten's clothes this season are a riot of rich color and exuberant print—only different. Besides the fashion, the site's most memorable feature is its music, especially the dreamy piano sounds on the homepage and a heartache-y string melody scoring the men's slideshow. Don't log off before reading Van Noten's bio, one of the more interesting designer profiles we've come across. Here you'll find surprising nuggets involving a family of tailors, a Jesuit school and the unusual financing of his line. With such richly woven fabrics, who needs another Christmas tale?
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Oct 08: Hint's resident Links reviewer has been waiting for a proper Prada website to write about since he auctioned off his nylon backpack on eBay—a very long time ago. Now, after endless placeholders and teasers, the Italian powerhouse has finally delivered. While there are those who might expect something a little more innovative from a house known for pushing boundaries in design, technology and even art patronage, the site does have a nice look and a few precious nuggets. As a somewhat scary welcome, Linda Evangelista—looking more than ever like a praying mantis—dominates the homepage in lacey looks from the current collection, reminding us who started the trendlet. But despite her virtuoso posing, the site's star turn is the 4-minute animation Fallen Shadows, scored by Antony Hegarty of Antony & the Johnsons and directed by James Lima, who was clearly in a Surrealist mindset, given the obvious echoes of artist De Chirico and the Dali-Disney collaboration Destino. Less enchanting but easily watchable are nine short films by young directors that challenge "the idea of a perfume for man" (there's something delicious about that phrase). And coming soon is a composite of the nine films by Oscar-winning film editor Pietro Scalia (he did Oliver Stone's JFK—one of the best-edited films of all time). The rest is what you might expect: collection footage (archival and new), party pics and an e-shop. There's also a link to the Fondazione Prada, which deserves its own story for the excellent work it does sponsoring contemporary art. We'll wait another age for them to update their website to tell you about it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Aug 08: At a time when Koons and Vezzoli are hotter than microwaved lava and even real estate brochures look like a MoMA catalog, an alarming number of fashion domains are trying to pass branding for art. In most cases, the flashy result hardly justifies the visual excess, so our current amour fou is Yves Saint Laurent, a sparkling property that engages mind, ear and eye. In fact, the website echoes the mutimedia-friendly stance the iconic Parisian house has taken of late, thanks to its creative director Stefano Pilati, who—while enormously gifted from the outset—seems to settle into his formidable post with more aplomb every day. Rather than staging a show, for instance, Pilati presented his men's spring collection in seven video vignettes created by London music video factory Colonel Blimp. Those short films are here, dreamlike—and in one case unsubtly vaginal—landscapes set to carefully chosen soundtracks, e.g. Laurie Anderson's eerie "O Superman." Another addictive little movie, this time a seven-minute triptych featuring LCD Soundsystem's "Sound of Silver," showcases the men's fall line. The presentation is a little more conventional on the women's side, but far from ordinary with appearances and contributions by Kate Moss, Nick Knight and Inez van Lamsweerde, not to mention those hotly debated drop-crotch pants Pilati unleashed on the world for fall. Sections devoted to the house's landmark designs and the obligatory portrait of its late, great founder round out our heady excursion into the world of YSL, now firmly in the hands of another master.
|
|
|
|
|
more Link reviews >>
|
|
|
|
|
