May News Roundup
Ribaudo family tomb in Genoa, Italy. Cover of Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart” single. Photo courtesy of faber1893/ Shutterstock.
1.
I think every generation has at least one band they wish they were old enough to see live, and mine is without a doubt Joy Division. Though Ian Curtis tragically passed away before the band’s first U.S. tour —a run of dates that would have transformed the American underground music scene—the singer’s influence has only grown stronger over the last 50 years. Curtis’s cultural impact is currently explored in a major exhibition at the Voltz Clarke Gallery. For the first time in the U.S., Curtis’s life and creative legacy are examined through handwritten lyrics, intimate photographs, letters, and other ephemera. Find out more about the exhibition here.
Baccarat Rouge 540 Extrait de Parfum Maison Francis Kurkdjian. Photo courtesy of Olha Yefimova / Shutterstock.
2.
Maison Francis Kurkdjian has emerged as one of the premier luxury fragrance houses of the last two decades. Founded in 2009, the brand has been helmed by renowned perfumer Francis Kurkdjian and Marc Chaya, the brand’s President and co-founder. Together, they built a fragrance house celebrated for treating scent as a fluid wardrobe capable of expressing a variety of emotions. Possibly the house’s most ubiquitous creation is Baccarat Rouge 540, which achieved legendary status through pop-culture musical references and massive global social media popularity. As Chaya prepares to step back from his co-founder role, he reflects on the brand’s legacy and the specific scent that brought the house its ultimate visibility. Read up on the business behind the fragrance here.
3.
Emmanuel Aggrey Tieku is a multidisciplinary artist and civil engineer from Ghana. He salvages second-hand clothing discarded on beaches, in landfills, or at the Kantamanto Market, and uses dyeing and assemblage techniques to transform them into public installations. His work confronts some of the most pressing issues facing the fashion industry and global society, from overconsumption to colonial heritage. Tieku’s latest series of works are huge public billboards—or rather, “Baleboards”—featuring cascading rows of textile waste situated across the Ghanaian capital of Accra. By bringing stark visual attention to the overflow of imported fast fashion from the West that clogs the country’s drains and pollutes its beach lagoons, Tieku physically exposes the environmental and social costs of our throwaway culture. The installations will tour Africa before heading to Europe. Discover the work of Emmanuel Aggrey Tieku here.
Kolhapuri chappal. Photo courtesy of Indiacom Ltd. / Shutterstock.
4.
Last year, Prada faced some serious backlash when it featured a $1,200 sandal on its Men’s Spring runway that was nearly identical to the humble $10 Kolhapuri chappal produced by Indian artisans. The brand was—rightly—called out on social media for cultural appropriation and its inflated pricing. Though Prada attempted to course-correct by creating a limited-edition collection made directly in India and launching a three-year training program to upgrade local artisans’ skills, at $930, the brand’s shoes are still priced well above traditional heritage pairs. The ongoing issue has sparked widespread outrage in India, leaving Prada to deal with the fallout while the Indian government decides how to better legally protect its country’s artisans and traditional crafts. Learn more about the luxury dilemma here.
Audrey Hepburn wearing a Yves Saint Laurent evening ensemble, 1962. Photograph, Richard Avedon. Photo courtesy of Lila Louisa / Shutterstock.
5.
When I learned there was a new documentary about Richard Avedon being released this year, I was super excited. But after reading Dan Schindel’s review in Hyperallergic I became a little less enthusiastic. One can only imagine how intimidating a subject Avedon must be for a director to take on; he remains such a towering, mercurial figure in the fashion world, from his visionary approach to movement to his archive full of iconic images. While it sounds like director Ron Howard avoided doing a truly gritty, deep dive into the photographer’s complicated life and creative friction, I will probably still watch Avedon to see his work and incredible legacy celebrated on film. Read the full documentary review here.
