THE COVETED » What is art? http://the-coveted.com/blog be stylish • be lovely • be coveted Sat, 11 Oct 2008 14:41:54 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 en If Looks Could Kill http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/09/26/if-looks-could-kill/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/09/26/if-looks-could-kill/#comments Fri, 26 Sep 2008 16:18:30 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=2667

Most every woman I know/trust was a great lover of horses as a child. Who didn’t have My Little Pony, or well, Western Barbie with a horse. Residual love and fascination stopped me in my tracks at the National Gallery upon the sight of the life sized painting Whistle Jacket.

Portland artist Scott Parry paints the cross between beauty and horrow. Westerns and Science Fiction. Gorgeous steeds with laser beam eyes.

“he introduces multiple concepts that play with our inability to escape the hidden order of communities and separation from the natural world.” ~ Beholder

But really, I wonder if all those cartoons with magical horses, She-Ra, Rainbow Brite, My Little Pony… had anything to do with this. Of course they’re girls cartoons… but then, these laser eyes are kind of evil.

]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/09/26/if-looks-could-kill/feed/ The Opulent Ostertag http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/09/04/the-opulent-ostertag/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/09/04/the-opulent-ostertag/#comments Thu, 04 Sep 2008 17:02:19 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=2412

One of the rising stars of German fashion, Marcel Ostertag, still in his 20’s is certainly a force to be reckoned with. Producing entire 50 piece collections on his own, hard labor, doesn’t come without benefits, after all he is the winner of the Karstadt New Generation Award during Berlin Fashion Week, this is only the beginning of his career. The other day, we sat down together in his Munich studio/shop to have a chat about his inspirations, what it’s like to be an independent designer…

Inspiration

“I’m not one to design something practical”

While at Central St. Martins, Marcel Ostertag studied Menswear, but moved towards womens clothing, because women are more keen to wear more daring things… “I’m not one to design something practical.” He then found himself going through old Vogue magazines, particularly the issues from the late 1970’s, dramatic, opulent silhouettes. Of course, the collection isn’t merely repeat the past, it has a modern twist, metallic fabrics, sequins, and a high contrast color palette.

marcel ostertag

Being Independent

Being an independent designer is tough work, there is a lot to compete with these days, but the challenge doesn’t deter Ostertag. It’s difficult because often you’re on your own while big design houses have research teams, checking trends, inspiration… etc. As an independent designer Ostertag, will have a student studio assistant for two months and by the time he gets to know them and get a good report it’s time for them to move on. Then there’s the pressure to produce a large collection of 50 pieces or so, because no one wants to look at a designer with 10 or so pieces. The samples is produced in the studio, from inspiration, to the patterns, to what you see on the runway. Then the rest of the collection for sale is produced in Germany, so the profit margins can be really tight.

Munich

When so many designers try to move to the big fashion cities like London, Paris, New York, Marcel moved away out of the mainstream centers. After five years in London, it was time to move back home, where the quality of life is higher and one can really concentrate on the important design aspect of fashion. Besides, being outside the mainstream has it’s fringe benefits… Marcel Ostertag, is frequently noted as one of the hottest designers in Germany, and he gets a lot of attention in the German press, and you can just tell he has the drive to expand his brand to international status.

You can find him at MarcelOstertag.com
Photographer: Oliver Rau

]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/09/04/the-opulent-ostertag/feed/ Rapunzel http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/07/16/rapunzel/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/07/16/rapunzel/#comments Wed, 16 Jul 2008 12:50:23 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=2060 The lure of long hair has always had this romantic, captivating feel about it. Tell your boyfriend your cutting your hair, just to watch him freak out. But the reality is that it’s a lot of work, and it kind of grosses me out, even my own hair. My Love for You is excellent at finding all kinds of great artists, like Collen Sanders, who paints these beautiful locks in abstract forms…

Naik Fur

Colleen Sanders work reminds me of Amy Hemmen’s experiments with hair couture…

naik fur

]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/07/16/rapunzel/feed/ Lookie Lookie http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/07/02/lookie-lookie/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/07/02/lookie-lookie/#comments Wed, 02 Jul 2008 09:46:02 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=1917 Who says youth is wasted on the young? Today’s young guns seem to be quick with the camera and looking very, very stylish. Or so it seems on Lookbook.nu a new ‘what are you wearing?’ online community. Though, I’m a long-time wardrobe_remixer, (flickr is just so easy), there are several of these communities, like I like My Syle, StyleMob, StyleDiary, I know I’m forgetting some major ones… but you catch the drift. The phenomenon is great, it goes without saying, I’m all for creating discourse in the ritual of robing. (not robbing)

Lookbook.nu is well designed… and they’ve done a fantastic job of finding stylish people to join and participate. I was so inspired just looking at the first page. Like, I must get myself a Colonel Sanders tie again…

If you’d like to join LOOKBOOK.nu, is still invite only, but with this invite code, you can join: THECOVETED

alice in wonderland, bunny, blondfloral fluttermotorcycle jacket, bowtierd dressswedish styleblack nylonsgingham bows

]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/07/02/lookie-lookie/feed/ Bleeding Knees: A Little Chat with Caitlin Shearer http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/06/25/caitlin-shearer-2/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/06/25/caitlin-shearer-2/#comments Wed, 25 Jun 2008 09:30:09 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=1872

The wonders of the innately creative never cease to amaze, being an artist, not as much by desire, but by birthright. Young artist (18!) Caitlin Shearer is as such. Where many of us (like myself) take so much time to try to develop our unique way of communicating with the world, Caitlin has done this so naturally. Her beautiful drawings have a quirky sense about them, a lovely woman with bleeding knees, getting in touch with the most feminine and beautifully imperfect part of us. I’ve been visiting Caitlin’s flickr page for a while now, but since she’s really stuck around the internet, her Esty shop is just as delightful. I decided to get in touch with her for a little conversation…

TC: What are you obsessing on these days?
CS: anne frank, hitler, macaroons, witches, big beds and black dresses.

TC: Does fashion influence your art? How so?
CS: yes! definitely! the clothes my girls wear are just as important as their faces. i cant sew well enough to make clothes that don’t fall apart the first time you wear them, so being able to paint clothes gives me an outlet for the designs i’ve got in my head.

TC: What is “The Bleeding Knees Club”?
CS: a club for anyone who has cuts and bloods and scars from falling over. its for adult kids. its kind of like peter pans neverever land. if you just dont wanna grow up, then you can stick with us in the club.

TC: What are you doing tonight?
CS: i’m buying a new bed today, so maybe i will sleep in it if it is delivered. maybe i will just fall asleep really early instead.

]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/06/25/caitlin-shearer-2/feed/ Into The Wild http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/26/into-the-wild/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/26/into-the-wild/#comments Mon, 26 May 2008 13:20:20 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=1611

If wigs are going to always look fake, why not work with it? I may have been in the market to buy a fun wig, but now that I see these lovely animal shaped hair hats, my preconceptions about wigs have changed. Japanese Art Director, Nagi Noda created a series of synthetic hair hats each representing a different species… dogs, owls, lions, you name it. Fashionologie mentioned Björk will be using these in her UK tour. Since Björk’s been able to pull off a swan shaped dress, a lion shaped wig should be a piece of cake.

Image Source
]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/26/into-the-wild/feed/ Reel Around the Fountaine http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/22/reel-around-the-fountaine/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/22/reel-around-the-fountaine/#comments Thu, 22 May 2008 10:03:00 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=1594 I’m always delighted to see illustrators and their whimsical takes on reality. It never fails to cheer me up on a muggy overcast day, nor does it fail to inspire me forge ahead in my own labor of love. The beautiful work of Australian artist, Fontaine Anderson is no exception. Inspired by ancient Egypt, Aztecs, fashion and her own dreams, the illustrations are highly stylized with small marks like pieces of embroidery. Just lovely.

fountaineillustration.com


]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/22/reel-around-the-fountaine/feed/ Whatever it is I think I see becomes a Prada bag to me http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/17/whatever-it-is-i-think-i-see-becomes-a-prada-bag-to-me/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/17/whatever-it-is-i-think-i-see-becomes-a-prada-bag-to-me/#comments Sat, 17 May 2008 17:20:52 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=1524

As much as I’d love to have the $1500 to shell out on a Prada bag, It’s not reality and the one on Etsy is $29.50 has it’s own charm and character.

When shopping, I’m always looking for elements that inspire… Hardly do I look for exact replicas, but for pieces that relate to points of inspiration. Ever since the James Jean post, I’ve been thinking about illustration and apparel. Not in the sense of prints and patterns, but how imagery works on apparel. When I came across this vintage hand-painted dragon bag on Etsy, I instantly thought of the illustrated Prada Fairies bag…

Note the whimsy and the use of gradients…

]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/17/whatever-it-is-i-think-i-see-becomes-a-prada-bag-to-me/feed/ Iris in the eyes… http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/14/iris-in-the-eyes/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/14/iris-in-the-eyes/#comments Wed, 14 May 2008 10:33:30 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=1500
The haunting work of Iris Van Dongen so eloquently mixes the unreal beauty of fashion with the intuitive force of art. Drawing from art history and contemporary culture, they tend to resemble classic works, it’s not until you look closer that you see modern details, like a skull scarf, that you realize that it’s a contemporary work. Many of the pastel drawings stand and impressive 240cm (over 7 feet) in height…

In this way the surroundings in the drawings of the ‘angels of death’ symbolizes her psyche, as a mirror of her soul, and seems to haunt her, even though she has resigned herself to the fact that it is she who is haunting herself. [source]

]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/14/iris-in-the-eyes/feed/ James Jean, Rebel Without a Pause http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/08/james-jean-rebel-without-a-pause/ http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/08/james-jean-rebel-without-a-pause/#comments Thu, 08 May 2008 14:01:13 +0000 jennine http://the-coveted.com/blog/?p=1470 I love it when it takes a few moments for beauty to sink in. Or a few months in my case. This morning, I was delighted to read Chic Today featuring James Jean, illustrator behind Prada’s SS08 dream-like prints. Although I wasn’t sure if I really liked the printed luxury clothing, reading the interview and seeing Jean’s work changed my mind. His work is magical.





images via JamesJean.com

]]> http://the-coveted.com/blog/2008/05/08/james-jean-rebel-without-a-pause/feed/