DIOR pre fall 2022

Every season I am amazed at how this woman interprets what she finds in the Dior archive; the extrapolation of product vs. her words is inconceivable. Okay, so I get the uniform thing, so then explain to me where galoshes and louis heeled high tops come into play with Greek sandal wrappings!

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We went from Olympians to waitresses to parochial school uniforms to bra tops and puffers. You read her inspirations and you look at the clothes and undoubtedly you shake your head and think WTF is she talking about!

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Mediocre, repetitive and joyless clothes, at best, with a story that makes no sense at stratospheric prices...it’s an oxymoron!

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So, an almost 70 look collection boiled down to maybe here and there are some wearable pieces but why would anyone need to buy them from Dior. I can’t even say it’s an H&M collection or a Zara as its basically boring and a nonsensical pile of basics from a storied house that was once known for originality, fantasy and glamour. Where is that .... not here!!

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If   I really had to explain it, maybe I’d call it fetish wear... the school girl experience ala Jeffrey Epstein and certainly not the what I think of when I think of   the pillars of feminism in the form of Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan.

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... and so that concludes still one more episode of The Emperor’s New Clothes by Signora Chiuri!

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PS...  now the logo tote looks like The Big Brown Bag from Bloomingdales!

Oscar de la Renta pre-fall 2022

Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia served up this season by reminding us all this is no longer your mother’s idea of the brand. I actually found quite a bit of it pretty and wearable albeit it is most definitely not aimed at our preconceived notion of who wears and buys this brand.

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What intrigued me most was that sort of degradé cum tie dye segment which I thought was beautiful and then here and there sprinkled with some stunners like the silver pieces and in particular one black suit with a slashed skirt and yes, the over-the-top ball gownish pieces. No, I don’t understand the square cut shorts paired with jackets or the crotch grazing lengths used on some of the dresses but as a whole I found the collection visually appealing on many levels.

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Let it be said that this duo did not totally eradicate the brand’s DNA; They have evolved and massaged it to appeal to a whole new generation of Oscar devotées. For whatever reason, I sense that these 2 designers actually understand and respect the namesake designer so much more than more who helm other marquee brands and present clothes that bear not one thread of mitochondrial DNA.

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Lastly, maybe I’m late to the party by saying that pre-fall which deliver at the start of summer season is no longer fallish in any way ... it has become a sort of bridge between spring summer and actual fall and given how shopping habits have so drastically changed, maybe that’s the logical way to go.

Balmain pre fall 2022

After just having looked at the slides for both Balmain and Balenciaga and having read both reviews, I realized, albeit maybe I wasn’t quick witted enough previously, to realize that these designers have nothing in common with the brands that they helm. It is strictly about them; they fool themselves and I’m sure many stupid followers who believe that they take into consideration the true DNA of the legendary brands they design under.

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Then it occurred to me that if the 2 collections would just be under their names and not the heritage names but then no one would have paid attention at the start. They speak of their output as in I want, I see I I I .... no mention of actual heritage that made these names forces of fashion.

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In other words, any pretense of the past is obliterated except for possibly a logo so if that what you really want then you got it. Rousteing is talented, there is no question about it but he now just designs clothes that suit his whim ...clothes for label whores and influencers and Kardashians... whoopee! Who dresses like this and where are they going in these clothes? My mind keeps going to that shoe with the heel that is pitched at the top of the arch which in my estimation will throw one’s body off balance and probably make you ache head to toe after wearing!

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These looks, if picked apart, there are jackets and skirts and even some dresses but he never of speaks to PIERRE BALMAIN, the reason he has a job, in any way ... and maybe that’s the point. One more time I will say designers talk too much these days as who cares about your personal journeys... this is a business of selling clothes and if not clothes then it is a business of accessories, scent, cosmetics, shoes and anything they hang the label on. It’s a waste of talent and waste of brand.

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As for Demna he just so full of himself and of hubris that it’s appalling in every way ... it is all about him and the almighty dollar... that’s it! It’s repellant and repulsive! No photos needed as there is nothing to see.

Chanel... métiers d'art PRE-FALL 2022

Let it be said I   don’t deal well with change but Virginie might have presented her best collection to date with her Chanel métiers d'art show for pre-fall. No, it does not smart of the glories of Karl but it is a polished and pared down modern take on the brand without focusing solely on the famous cardigan jacket.

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There are jackets galore, some close to the body, some short, some cabans and even some ankle length all in a variety of rigidly to soft tailoring. There were moments of Karl/Ines   flashbacks and yet there were also pieces that spoke to a more contemporary Chanel rather than what we were trained to expect from the master. There was polish there, the shoes, the jewelry, the handbags, the camelia and yes takes on that famous cardigan jacket.

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What didn’t work, in my opinion were the bulky knits, the bare midriffs and of course the denims but then again even Karl used denim but I must say that the coats in the short denim sequence looked pretty incredible. The logo pieces were mostly unnecessary as they were too forced and mostly on the thick side, there was one dress toward the end where the logo appeared under layers of tulle which looked modern and young and well thought out.

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Color palette was refreshing since it veered away from a strictly black and white color theme but of course the most effective were the black and white pieces or combinations thereof save for a few crimson pieces. I’m not big on pegged pants but for some unknown reason it is possible they didn’t disturb me due to the fact that my attention was drawn to everything else in each outfit.

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I suggest you see you it in motion and hope that Viard will continue on this path rather than the divergent path she had chosen in her previous unappealing collections.

meet Giorgio Torelli .. a man with more than just good looks

Once again let me sing the glories and wonders of the internet... this time of Instagram! That is where I “met” Giorgio and I would be lying if I said that my immediate attention wasn’t because of his beauty! As I have said so many times, you just never know who is really behind the image that you see and again I was so pleasantly surprised to find that this exquisite man has more to say than just posting images of his own perfection.

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As I have aged, I feel a compulsion and an admiration for those who are either expanding their careers, reinventing themselves or simply taking a divergent path... I have a weakness for them as I have certainly reinvented myself so many times during my varied careers. I’m endlessly amazed with the reception I receive from, basically strangers, who respond and will open up about their aspirations, inspirations and personal preferences .... simply said there is a real genuine human behind the photos I have seen. Once again, I remind you, I am a reader so hashtags tell me a story and that is why I struck up a “relationship” of sorts with Giorgio.

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His premier collection of jewelry is a total mix of what is and what was in terms of design .... from lavaliers to lapel pins and from diamonds to topaz. All the pieces are made in the USA and all from sustainable materials and ethically mined stones. He makes as much of a statement with his jewels as he does with his looks!

Well now it is his turn to share with us what lurks behind his incredible images... so in his own words (with very little editing from me) ... allow me to introduce to you Giorgio Torelli:

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Jeffrey Felner: Let’s talk about how you became “Giorgio Torelli” 2021... in other words a brief history of your personal and professional trajectory.

Giorgio Torelli: I use to play soccer semi professional in Italy and I finished my degree like dietician and nutrition.

All of this teaches me that work can make your dream came true. After I decide to move to Australia and here my love for photography born. I started modelling after I had been a scout from one agency. I worked for many brand and learnt a lot of new things. Then I decide that I wanted something more so I started my brand.

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 JF: What is your dream job and what would be your dream collaboration?

GT: Probably I don’t have a dream job, I just live to create and feeling free

I want to keep create things I love, discover new places and grow everyday like a person. I love dsquared so If I can chose my dream collaboration, it will be this...I wish one day I can model for them

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 JF: If you could invite any 5 people to dinner, who would they be and why?

GT: 5 people to spend dinner 

1-Megan fox : I think she is perfect  2-David Bechkam as he was my idol since I was a kid, 3:Stephen King I love his history, 4:  Steve Jobs because  I would like to learn from him and  Gandhi because I read a lot about him and want to know more.

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 JF: What inspires you to do what you do?  any mentors that you have followed or use a “road map” for your life?

GT: I love one jewellery brand NIALAYA by Janie Oleander 

He inspire me a lot with his brand and I follow Johnny Edling I met him in Bali and he is really good. 

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JF:Let’s not speak of Giorgio in the present but in the next 5 years... where do you hope to see yourself and how will get you there and why?

GT: I don’t know where I will be in 5 years but I’m sure that I’ ll live as much as I can torealise my dream, probably I will be in one island

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 follow Giorgio on Instagram under his name and torellijewelry for more...

www.torelli-jewelry.com/

VETEMENTS fall 2022

 “Today’s fashionable young people reject binaries in favor of plurality, and they seem uninterested in the old guard’s status markers—or maybe a better way of saying it is that they’ve assigned status to unfamiliar things.” ... word salad from the designer

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Guram Gvasalia gave me one memorable take away when he printed on a sweatshirt... I did nothing, I just got lucky!” as the photos show there is nothing here to write home about or to be considered new or even shocking other than this is considered to be fashion. The emperor's new clothes have arrived once more.

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From his perch in Geneva, this wannabe much hyped hack is laughing all the way to the bank because tasteless label whores, who have no idea what a designer really does, believe the crap that falls out of his mouth and onto the runway. How many people do you expect to see dressed in these looks save a few coats and oh gee another puffer!

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When the brothers started, they talked about getting rich and I’m quite sure they did off the backs of the unknowledgeable and incredibly over rated “influencers” and media who continue to pander to these brothers.

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They have successfully defamed one of the greatest names in fashion and created one big Vetements collection which is indecipherable from the once vaunted Balenciaga.

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Per chance if this was H&M, id have a different opinion although I highly doubt it but what I do know is that this is one more stain on the business of fashion!

GUCCI spring 2022

Attention all media elite, fawners and label whores... the circus has arrived.... Gucci on Hollywood Blvd... it was a sort of Norma Desmond collection which included 1001 ways to show a satin suit, what a nickel a blow job hooker might wear to pick up a quickie, some Myrna Loy or Ginger Rogers gowns and a whole of freakin ugly useless clothes that will come at a price not only to the consumer, if they are stupid enough to buy, as well as to Kering where the signs of the Gucci bubble bursting is already in progress.

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It’s just one more freak show backed up with his circular illogical nonsensical and faux intellectual blather that accompanies every collection. These are the clothes of whim, ego. hubris and fancy that have absolutely nothing to do with sell throughs or merchandising.  This is just one more pile of expensive crap to throw on top of the ever growing pile and further tarnish the brand that was once a silent signal of having arrived!

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There is no point to really get into it as the images speak for themselves and if reviews spend have their ink talking about Hollywood and barely mention the collection then you know there wasn’t much one can say and that they haven’t a clue as to what they saw.

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The lack of sophistication is palpable, his twisted conception of glamour is ignorant and pedestrian at best and who exactly wants to look like a freak and where exactly are they going in the era of COVID....  it’s not over yet... regardless of what this genius may think.

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meet the multi-talented BO PRESSLY

Sometimes the best laid plans go astray and this is one of those times so I decided to go ahead and introduce you to Bo Pressly who might just be a triple threat as dancer, model and choreographer.

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These interviews are difficult when the subject is a bit tight lipped but since I have found that the internet is a wonderful source of information as is my web of contacts so I took it upon myself to sort of fill in some of the blanks.

Bo is a country boy and a city boy who always seems to have a full agenda and no wonder when it is explained to you that it took several years to choreograph one of his short films and make it come to fruition. He has residences in NYC and upstate New York as well as a dwelling down south so you might say he is a man of the east coast.

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I do hope that your interest will be piqued and that you will research him even   further than I did... take a deep dive and meet Bo Pressly!

Jeffrey Felner: Can you give us a brief history as to how you arrived at this stage of your life/careers?

Bo Pressly: I’ve been dancing professionally since I was 18 and made my New York City debut as a dancer in 2012. Since then, I have danced with numerous companies and have created countless new works with choreographers and directors. In 2015 I made my first movement-based film and became totally captivated and enthralled with the medium. Modeling and photographic work was always secondary to concert dance. The two worlds seemed to collide when I stepped onto the modest set of Dance of the Neurons. There, for the first time rehearsed/codified movement met with the command of being in the now which is a film/ photography set. It was the first revelatory click in my career leaving me with a vision for not only myself as a dancer in the 21st Century but for the art form of dance itself. 

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 JF: Did you have any idols/mentors from any creative areas that influenced your development and why did you choose them?

BP: Jiří Kylián and his work has left an indelible mark on me. His innovation of dance and his vision for what concert dance can be is endlessly inspiring. His commitment to bringing the art form into the future along with other movement artists that create moments that have never been done before are most inspiring.  Hyonok Kim is absolutely a mentor of mine. She has unequivocally changed the trajectory of my career and has opened my eyes to the possibilities of what dance can be. Her commitment to dance as well to the innovation of the form helps inform my moves within the medium.

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 JF: If you could have a dinner party with any 5 people, who would they be and why?

BP: Oh, and the dinner party of five would consist of Jim Morrison, the Dalai Lama, Diana Princess of Wales, Amy Winehouse, and Franklin D. Roosevelt. I find each of them prolific in their own right. The conversation would be worldly, truly humanistic in nature and very informative.

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 JF: Do you have any dream project or collaboration; what or who it be with and why?

BP: Hard to pin down just one dream collaboration, but if anything, this existence has taught me it’s this: “the more specific you get with your dreams the more quickly they manifest.”  So here goes:  A full length film with a truly revolutionary vision. A world created; One enshrined in beauty, music, and movement. An elaborate narrative told without the use of dialogue. An innovative film that honors the past, informed by the past, yet completely abandons the past. A new vision created for today that inspires the audience for tomorrow.  If I could team up with say any team dead or alive it would be this Count Luchino Visconti to direct the film, Eiko Ishioka for costuming, J.S. Bach to compose the score and my friend Andre D. Kim for cinematography. All of these individuals have created work that is truly timeless and transcendent. My goal as a creator is to remove you from your current existence and surround you by a world of beauty, serenity, and connectivity to the universe. This team would and could undoubtedly create something galactic. 

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 JF: Where is your focus today and how do you see your trajectory for the future years?

BP: My focus today is a heavy task… processing the chaos that is our world and through its digestion creating beauty. I want to make every moment more beautiful than the last. With this set intention I see the trajectory of my career advancing in film, photography, innovative theatre, and tangible bits of transcendence I create through my object d’art. 

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https://www.instagram.com/bopressly/