ZOO MAGAZINE – AUGUST 2008

AUGUST 2008

ZOO MAGAZINE – AUGUST 2008</b>

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YOUR LAST WOMEN'S SHOW WAS VERY POWERFUL. IT MANAGED TO COMBINE EXTREME LUXURY WITH A BARBARIC EDGE. IN WHAT WAYS DID LEE BONTECOU'S WORK INSPIRE YOU? 

IT WASN'T TOO DEEP. WE'RE FROM THE SAME TONAL FAMILY OF COLORS. SHE JUST REMINDED ME TO USE DENIM. 

YOUR STYLE HAS OFTEN BEEN DESCRIBED AS 'EDGY' OR 'AVANT-GARDE' YET YOUR CLOTHES ARE INCREDIBLY SENSUAL AND EASY TO WEAR. HOW DO YOU STRIKE THAT BALANCE? 

I THINK THAT PLAYING WITH SHAPE INSTEAD OF SURFACE ORNAMENTATION IS SOMETIMES MISTAKEN FOR AVANT-GARDE. 

AND REGARDING WEARABILITY, I HAVE A HUGE PRACTICAL STREAK THAT I CAN'T SUPRESS AS MUCH AS I'D LIKE TO. 

YOUR COLLECTIONS ARE OFTEN ANDROGYNOUS AND HAVE AN AMBIGUOUS FEEL WHICH IS PART OF YOUR AESTHETIC. WHAT ROLE DOES SEXUALITY PLAY IN YOUR WORK? 

ABSOLUTELY EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE DESIRED. EVERYBODY. BY ANYONE. IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER. 

WHAT IS THE STARTING POINT FOR YOU WHEN YOU DESIGN? DO YOU HAVE ANY SPECIFIC RITUALS OR DOES INSPIRATION COME FROM UNEXPECTED SOURCES? 

I LOVE LOOKING AT ARCHITECTURE. IT'S ASPIRATIONAL BUT IMPOSSIBLE TO COMPARE TO MY LITTLE JOB, THUS NOT DISTURBING MY STUPID EGO OR VANITY. 

WHAT WAS YOUR DREAM JOB WHEN YOU WERE A CHILD? AND WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO GO INTO FASHION? 

I JUST WANTED TO BE BAD-ASS AND GLAMOROUS. 

YOU SET UP YOUR LABEL IN 1994 AND HAVE BEEN DESIGNING FOR ALMOST 15 YEARS. WHAT WERE THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF YOUR CAREER? 

I DON'T REMEMBER ANY SPECIFIC LOWS, JUST A DULL SENSE OF SCRAPING ALONG. LATER, I DO REMEMBER HEARING MY FAVORITE SISTERS OF MERCY SONG WHILE I WAS BEING DRIVEN TO MY FACTORY THROUGH THE FOGGY ITALIAN COUNTRYSIDE EARLY ONE MORNING AND FINDING MYSELF CRYING. I WAS HEARING THAT SONG UNDER SUCH DIFFERENT CONDITIONS THAN WHEN I FIRST USED TO HEAR IT IN MY YOUNGER DAYS. 

HOW DO YOU THINK FASHION HAS CHANGED SINCE YOU STARTED? HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THAT EVOLUTION? 

EVEN IN MY RELATIVELY SHORT EXPERIENCE IT'S ACCELERATED. AND EVERY COMPANY'S STRATEGIES AND MACHINATIONS ARE COMPLETELY EXPOSED. EVERY CONSUMER IS COMPLETELY AWARE OF EVERY MEASURE BEING TAKEN TO SEDUCE THEM. 

SO THE METHODS OF SEDUCTION NEED TO SHIFT. AND EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE SEDUCED. I'M NOT EXACTLY SURE HOW IT'S GONNA CHANGE, BUT I'M WATCHING. 

HOW IMPORTANT IS BEAUTY TO YOU? WHAT IS IT THAT ATTRACTS YOU IN A PERSON? 

ANYONE, ANYONE CAN BE WILDLY ATTRACTIVE BY MAKING THEMSELVES FIT, BY GROOMING, AND BY HAVING AN OPEN HEART AND AN EASY LAUGH. 

HOW DO YOU ENVISAGE THE INTERACTION BETWEEN YOUR FURNITURE DESIGN, PHOTOGRAPHY AND FASHION WORK? DO ALL FIELDS FEED EACH OTHER? 

YEAH, IT'S ALL ONE BIG PACKAGE, FOR BETTER OR WORSE. 

DO YOU CONSIDER YOUR WORK PERSONAL OR AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL? AND IF SO, IN WHICH WAYS? 

IF I EXPLAINED THAT, I'D RUIN ANY POETRY IN IT. 

YOUR RELATIONSHIP TO MICHELE LAMY HAS BEEN PIVOTAL IN YOUR LIFE AND CAREER. IN WHAT WAYS IS SHE UNIQUE AND INDISPENSABLE? 

I HAVE WONDERFUL BUSINESS PARTNERS BUT MICHELE FILLS ANOTHER, MORE SUBTLE ROLE; SHE'S ABOUT REFINEMENTS AND LOOKING UPWARD AND ONWARDS. AND REMINDING ME TO EAT AND PLAY. I THANK MY STARS FOR HER EVERY DAY. 

ARE THERE ANY ARTISTS, FILMMAKERS OR MUSICIANS YOU ALWAYS SEEM TO GO BACK TO? AND WHO ARE THE ONES THAT CURRENTLY EXCITE YOU THE MOST? 

OFF THE TOP OF MY HEAD: BRANCUSI, JEAN MICHEL-FRANK, COLANI, RUHLMANN, CHAREAU, HUYSMANS, DIVINE, BRODOVITCH, WAGNER, IAN KEIR, AUTECHRE, OLD SCHOOL HOUSE MUSIC, AC/DC, SATYAJIT RAY, CHARLOTTE RAMPLING, KLAUS NOMI. 

ARE THERE ANY OBJECTS OR PLACES THAT YOU CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT? 

NO. 

WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES FOR THE FUTURE? DO YOU STILL HAVE MANY DREAMS THAT ARE NOT FULFILLED? 

I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO ENDING UP PLAYING WITH A KITTEN IN A WALLED GARDEN. 

WHAT IS YOUR ESCAPE PLAN WHEN IT ALL BECOMES TOO MUCH? WHERE DO YOU FIND REFUGE?