FashionSF

500 image gallery

Get ready to head to the East Bay for this spectacular group art show dedicated to the eclectic Bay Area. Through installation, painting, printmaking, sculpture, fashion and live performance we are celebrating the artwork emerging right now on both sides of the bay bridge. Feast your eyes and ears on the fashion show set to a live musical backdrop performed by the What You Hear! GALORE Runway Ensemble. Featured designers include Molly Rebuschatis, Flyguy Couture, Evarize Apparel, Dulce Lalita, VindyCo Clothing, Studio VM, and Missing Clothing. The show takes place at the Lobot Gallery, 1800 Campbell Street, Oakland, CA. Doors open at 9:00 p.m. with the fashion show starting at 10:30 p.m. Suggested donation of $5-$20. Check here for more info.

Open Heart, Open Hand, will take place at California Modern Art Gallery (1035 Market St. @ 6th/7th) San Francisco starting at 8 p.m. This event crowns the San Francisco premiere of “Uncovering the Essence: The Alternative Photography Exhibit of Grammy award winning musician Barry Mann.” Known for such hits as “Somewhere Out There” and “You’ve Lost that Loving Feeling,” Mann now shares yet another one of his many talents in the form of the visual arts with his original photography.The “Evening of Art and Fashion” kicks off with a VIP champagne and hors d’oeuvres reception and silent auction, at 6:30 p.m. ($135) General admission ($75) opens at 8 p.m.

Missing Piece fashion show begins at 8:30 p.m. featuring designers Jasmin Zorlu, Molly Rebuschatis, KAYO, Miss Velvet Cream, Jeremy Parr, and special guest designer Jason Christopher Peters.

FashionWeekLive presented by Sephora is on its way to San Francisco straight from the runways of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York. Top designers, including Oscar de la Renta, Zac Posen, Francisco Costa for Calvin Klein, Badgley Mischka, Nicole Miller, Nanette Lepore and Michael Kors will reveal their just-debuted 07 Fall collections. And who other than supermodels Naomi Campbell and Gemma Ward to don their latest collections. I just confirmed that Francisco Costa of Calvin Klein will appear in the San Francisco show which will take place on a 115 foot runway. Fashion Week Live takes place for one night only on Thursday, March 15 from 6:15 pm to Midnight at the Festival Pavilion at Fort Mason. Partners include the Amschwand Sarcoma Cancer Foundation.

Warning: TVgasm link is NSFW

TVgasm is reporting that nude photos of Jael from America’s Next Top Model has surfaced. Well, after studying these photos extensively, I’m fairly confident that these photos are not her. The first hint is the obvious lack of tattoos in the nude photos. The second giveaway is the nude model standing looks slightly taller than Jael. Note that her hand hangs well above her knees just below her hips whereas Jael’s hands hang closer to her thighs.

Why does a reality based television show with no actors and no scripts need twelve writers? The answer apparently is that they don’t. The producers of ANTM announced that the next cycle of ANTM will no longer employ writers. Apparently, the “writers” (aka story producers) job was to go through the footage and craft dramatic story lines by deciding which characters to follow. So they didn’t actually write anything. They just looked at the footage and said “Hey, that looks interesting. Put that in.” That kind of sounds like an editor to me. So Ken Mok decided that editors were fully capable of deciding what’s interesting so no more “writers” for cycle 8. Of course, the writers are not happy. They’ve filed a complaint against the show claiming they were fired in retaliation for them going on strike last year. Check out the full article here.

The Art Institutes of California San Francisco held their annual student fashion show on October 21st at the Regency center presenting the works of over 21 fashion design students. There were several awards presented at the end of the night for various design categories. The judges include Priya Saraswati of Saffron Rare Threads. There was one award though that was overlooked. So after an exhaustive review of over 700 images from the evening, I now present the award for ‘most graceful runway model’ to Dena who made a gracious recovery from a spectacular tumble off the stairs at the beginning of the runway. Display it proudly.

Check here to view the full gallery of over 726 images 

Project Runway season two designer Diana Eng took the top prize at Yahoo Hack Day as part of an all women team who also included Emily Albinski and Audrey Roy. Their winning project, called “Blogging in Motion“, combined a camera, a pedometer, a handbag, and the Flickr API to create a device that would snap a picture after every few steps and then automatically upload those pictures to a Flickr blog. The hidden camera portion is not original. Afterall, perverts have been making these for years to create upskirt pictures and take voyeur pictures at the beach. But the concept of combining a hidden camera with a pedometer and uploading it to a blog is quite original. As a proof of concept, this project works but I doubt if this device will ever find a market as using it will open the user up to all kinds of invasion of privacy lawsuits.

In the United States, as in many countries, individuals have an expectation of privacy when not in public view. So any user of this device will have to remember to turn it off once they walk out of pubic view. It’s not as simple as remembering to turn if off upon entering someones house. There are many place in public where it is illegal to photograph and distribute. It is important to distinguish between the taking of a picture and the distribution of a picture. Different laws govern these two areas. Even in the distribution of pictures, there is a distintion between editorial use and commercial use. You could be walking on the street one minute and five minutes later, you could be entering a dressing room where it is obviously illegal to shoot pictures. In this post 911 era, there are also many places which are illegal to photograph such as certain bridges and tunnels in New York, nuclear power plants, military installations, etc. There are also restrictions against publishing copyrighted content so a picture of an original work of art may violate the copyright of the original artist. Carrying around this device along with the ability to automatically upload the pictures without user review is an invitation for a lawsuit.

Privacy and legality issues aside, it is a fairly original concept. This latest win is consistent with Diana’s history of combining fashion with technology. Her biography for Project Runway states in part:

Diana Eng strives to integrate fashion and technology. She hopes to make the fashion-minded more interested in the research process and the scientific-minded more interested in fashion as a form of self-expression. Diana is currently co-creating an online show called “SWITCHit.tv,” a do-it-yourself fashion website designed to switch girls onto technology by teaching them how to make accessories and apparel with embedded electronics from everyday supplies.

In an interview, she once stated that her ultimate design gig would be designing for Apple’s Steve Jobs saying “I would have a lot of fun designing an outfit for Steve that incorporates elements of technology, math and science so that he can better express himself through the clothes he wears.” Diana’s life is well documented in her blogs going back to 2003 and much of it includes pictures of herself and her projects. So carrying around a live camera purse is not so unexpected of her. But if you have ever watched Big Brother or checked out random videos of people on YouTube, you know that the documentation of someones daily life is utterly boring and mundane as witnessed by these sample shots from the “Blogging In Motion” hidden camera.

While there are very few compact digital cameras with built-in wifi, the team chose a Nokia 6682 which offers 640×480, 0.3 megapixel VGA resolution. Obviously, there are better camera phones on the market but even 1 mp camera phones suffer from poor image quality and the shots from this phone is nothing to write home about. Despite its lower image quality, using a camera phone is a more logical choice since mobile signals have a much larger coverage area than wifi.

Black Box Nation

Diana Eng and Emily Albinski collaborate to form the brand Black Box Nation. The duo first made headlines in October 2005 when their concept Inflatable Dress made the cover of I.D. magazine. Black Box Nation featured the dress in their runway show back in May 2006. You can view the Quicktime video here.
Here’s a gallery of images from the Yahoo Hack Day on Flickr

Picture of the “Blogging In Motion” components
Further reading regarding taking pictures in public.

For the past 24 years, Macy’s Passport has increased social awareness of HIV/AIDS related issues, and raised nearly $22 million to benefit HIV/AIDS research, care, prevention and education programs. This year’s Passport show featured guest designers Richie Rich and Traver Rains of Heatherette. Sean John (the design, not the person) opened the show, M.A.C Viva Glam returned again to close the show.

As fashion shows go, the Passport show is by far the biggest and longest running show in San Francisco. It involved hundreds of people and includes very high production value rivaling some of the most elaborate stage shows. Although this year’s show still takes top ranks as the biggest fashion show in the city, it’s starting to look like a one trick pony. They seem have a formula and each year they make small substitutions to some elements and slap a new year on the program. There’s nothing wrong with sticking to a formula that works but for patrons who attend each year, it can get a little repetitive. I mean how many times do we need to see M.A.C Viva Glam close the show with a sea of red gowns? This year’s show also seemed smaller and shorter as they cut out the Barbie kids segment. By far the most popular segment is the underwear segment. 2(x)ist replaced Calvin Klein as the designer for this year’s show and Bali was featured for the women’s segment. With all the designer lingerie labels out there, you would think they could do a little better than Bali. As in the past, there was a student design segment featuring selected designers from Academy of Art University.

The Passport show is completely produced in Los Angeles with most of the talent casted there. There is very little about the show which ties it to San Francisco other than the Student design segment. Wouldn’t it be novel if they offered a segment to feature local designers? Even if they didn’t include any local designers in the runway portion, they could still invite local designers to show during the pre and post parties which always include local restaurants offering samples. As it stands now, it feels like a show canned in Hollywood and dropped into San Francisco. Many in the San Francisco fashion community attend the show and this year was no exception.

San Francisco student designer Jason Christopher Peters was spotted on opening night posing with models Leigha (left) and Brooke (right). Fresh back from N.Y. Fashion Week, Jason tells me he has accepted an internship with Betsey Johnson in New York.

Also in the crowd was Michael Moskowitz of Gytha Mander whom I met at Gen Art’s Inspiration Defined show back in April. Michael designs an amazing line of finely tailored men’s wear and women’s wear and just has to be seen to be appreciated.

FIDM student designer Alli Lake was also in attendance checking out the crowd. Alli is working on a line of women’s swimwear.

Of course, no gallery of the Passport show would be complete without the token underwear shot so here’s one for the girls…

…and one for the boys.

This year’s image gallery contains 721 images from the opening night show. For comparison, you can also check out last year’s gallery. The images from the 2004 show can also be found here.

The Gen Art 3rd annual “Fresh Faces In Fashion” runway show was the biggest to date with over 1,000 San Francisco fashionistas in attendance. For the past 12 years, Gen Art has showcased the best emerging fashion talent in high-profile, group runway shows in both New York and Los Angeles. In 2003-4, the Gen Art runway expanded to include shows in Miami, Chicago and San Francisco. Gen Art shows invite the best new design talents in women’s wear, men’s wear and accessory designers to show their designs, free of charge, to a high profile audience of industry, press, celebrities and potential consumers. The ‘Fresh Faces In Fashion’ show focuses on emerging fashion designers who have launched their own collections in the past five years and who have already created at least one prior collection.

This years’ lineup included Bacca Da Silva, Black Horn, gr.dano, The 615 Project, and Verrieres & Sako. I have been personally following the designs of Jill Giordano and Brian Scheyer of gr.dano for the past few years when they first showed their line at the Effection fashion show way back in 2003. Their line has been refined over the years and the Spring ‘07 collection is among their most refined and sophisticated to date. The collection was inspired by the 1964 film “I Am Cuba”, which contrasts the luxury of the mid-1950’s Havana jet set with the struggles of the Cuban working class. gr.dano’s ready-to-wear line elegantly emphasizes the variants of structure and fluidity with the glamorous and practical aesthetic that was mid-century Cuba.

Bacca Da Silva had the largest collection with both a men’s and women’s line. The menswear line included sticking pieces which combine luxurious cashmere and silk shirts, and polos with flashes of high design and dramatic colors. With his attention to details, Bacca made sure his models displayed his signature belt prominently by tucking in part of the shirt as they strut the runway.

Francisco Chaydez of Black Horn showed their Spring/Summer ‘07 line which is a mixture of feminine, everyday casual and edge creating a look that is fresh, stylish and sharp. Black Horn represents a style that evokes a casual sexiness while showing off remarkable tailoring. Sparks of color and subtle fabric textures add to the simple color palette and strong garment shapes.

Jeanne Feldkamp of The 615 Project designed a line for women with a fresh, sophisticated take on style. The 615 Project blends a modern, wearable silhouette with old-world glamour. The sprint/summer ‘07 collection plays on this convergence of new and old with pieces inspired by the contrasts of Cuba: lush, tropical colors and elegant retro-inspired shapes mixed with rough textures and unexpected materials such as jute and hemp.

Stephanie Verrieres and Kimie Sako are a dynamic design duo with a desire to create clothes that have a sleek sophistication and timeless-nostalgia. The Verrieres & Sako women’s wear collection is a melding of the designer’s unique cultural backgrounds and similar design aesthetic. Their selection of the fines fabrics evokes luxurious femininity and their love for sharp tailoring and fabric manipulation has become their signature technique. The spring/summer ‘07 collection highlights the designer’s signature flair for fabric manipulation and dramatic style. The look borrows elements from the mid 20th century, encompassing streamlined suits and cocktail wear in neutral linen hues and smoky gray silks. Silhouettes synonymous with bygone eras accompany modern style and rich fabrics for a powerful new fashioned look. They closed the show with two beautifully tailored elegant gowns worth of a showing at the Black & White Ball.

As with any Gen Art fashion shows, the runway show is just the beginning. The after party ran pass midnight allowing patrons plenty of time to mingle and network with some of San Francisco’s most fashionable crowd. The party also showcased accessories designers Rebecca Ciccio (handbags), Tessapoppy Design (jewelry), and Tracy Matthews Designs (jewelry).

Gen Art produces dozens of events per year which include movie screenings, art exhibitions, and fashion shows. Membership in Gen Art includes complimentary or discounted tickets to all Gen Art events and is well worth the price of membership if you’re a social butterfly looking to make friends and network.

The runway gallery contains 621 images and the after party gallery contains 163 images. You can also check out a slideshow of 179 selected images which includes two images of each garment.

Check out the slide show of last year’s show here.

Portions of text were supplied by Gen Art and used with permission.