Life with Bird: A/W 08 Womens Collection

As promised, here is another post about Life with Bird. I have to say I had a tough time choosing which images to post since I love the entire collection. But here are a few of my favorites.

Landscape: Patricia Urquiola for Rosenthal

A beautiful tableware collection by Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola for Rosenthal. Check out the article at cool hunting. Is it also available online at unica home.

Nomenus Quarterly: Mike & Doug Starn

Nomenus Quarterly is a stunning publication by Erik Madigan Heck. Here is a description taken from the site and as you'll see I'm continuing to post about interdisciplinary work (because that's really where it's at!):

"Nomenus Quarterly is a collaborative publication and platform, working with artists of all mediums and disciplines within the worlds of fine-arts and fashion... Nomenus was conceived initially as a location where commercial artists could be viewed in a more personal and intimate manner, focusing on the physical act of creation, and utilizing a more classical cannon of aesthetics. All works presented in Nomenus are created for each edition, or are previously unpublished".

I've chosen to feature works from the archive and work my way to the most recent issue. Since I've shown photographs from the first issue available online in my Maison D'Esprit post I'm posting images from a fascinating interview with artists Mike & Doug Starn.

The Starn brothers are identical twins and have been working within the space of photography, sculpture and painting. Conceptually their work has focused on exploring the representation of the cycle of time, change and age (Stephen Wirtz Gallery).

The images I've posted are from a body of work that deals with capturing snowflakes called alleverythingthatisyou. By reading the interview, you will get a sense of how long the process was to just technically make this series happen. It took five years before this body of work materialized; three years were spent experimenting and building the camera that made this possible.

I love these photographs because of the seeming permanence they give to a completely impermanent phenomenon. They are delicate, beautiful and presented in a way where they are jewel like. This last quality was an interesting entry point into fashion I thought. As I looked at the images I chose to post, I started thinking about how much they look like little jewels and started referencing even something as specific as Tiffany's style of presenting jewelry.

Please visit the publication online to discover more and look out for more posts about Nomenus very soon.

Tsumori Chisato: S/S 08 Collection

I could have posted every single outfit from Tsumori Chisato's S/S 08 Collection. She is one of my favorite designers.

See more from this wonderful collection at Elle.com.

Linda Farrow Sunglasses for Raf Simons at oki-ni

Coming soon to oki-ni...

Life with Bird: A/W 08 Mens Collection

You're seeing some great stuff from the A/W 08 Mens Collection by Nicholas Van Messner and Bridget (Bird) McCall for the Australian label Life with Bird. I love the minimal palette of white, grey and black, with bold graphics, patterns and wonderful surprises in detailing on what, at first glance, appears to be a simple jacket or sweater.

Please check out their site and don't be surprised to see a posting very soon of their women's collection - I love it! Life with Bird is available in the US, check the store listings on their site.

Commuun S/S 08 by Kaito Hori & Iku Furudate

This wonderful collection is by Kaito Hori and Iku Furudate for Commuun. A rather young label Commuun, established in 2005, has understandably enjoyed critical acclaim from such stores as Saks, Bergorf Goodman, Lane Crawford and Dover Street Market. I love this S/S 08 collection and would wear so many of these outfits. Simultaneously classic and futuristic, I'll defer to quoting a bit from their website:

"The core idea of all collections is drawn from the structural aspect of nature, with its balance and tensions. Commuun's work aims at reconstructing these features through simple but strong shapes and fine detailing. This fundamental approach is also reflected in the exclusive use of natural and organic fabrics for the collection... Commuun's garments are best-known for their simple and well-tailored patterns reinforced by futuristic details".

Please visit their site to read and see more.

Jerome C. Rousseau

Check out the article on Jerome C. Rousseau and his website.

Navy Blue + Orange, Stickers as an Accessory

Precious Lindsey in a lovely assortment of blues, gold + black glittery socks, awesome orange Nikes and the best thing of all: a blue star sticker as an accessory.

Maison D'Esprit: Erik Madigan Heck

I just discovered this wonderful fashion photography by Erik Madigan Heck. Staying within the theme of interdisciplinary work Heck's photography brings up so many incredible references. It is painterly, cinematic, a wonderful exploration of light and texture, mood and atmosphere, reminds me of Antonioni, Godard and old master paintings.

The images I've posted are pulled from his site and are from his fashion series for the following brands: Rodarte, Christian Lacroix, Gilles Rosier, Christian Peau.

Here is an excerpt from his bio:
"Operating under many differing guises, Erik's work collects itself within maison d'esprit, a house created in 2004 for his varying projects and imagery. The persona surrounding his many aliases and collectively that of maison d'esprit has always been that of ambiguity and invisibility, characteristics that are truly understood and felt in his work".

Please visit Maison D'Esprit to see and read more.

FORM New York: S/S 08 Collection

FORM, based in New York, was founded by Jerry Tam "with the intent to create a comprehensive brand, rather than another independent label that celebrates the work of one person". The team includes individuals with backgrounds in architecture, designers and brand experts. It's exciting to read FORM's bio and see this kind of collaboration taking place. More truly collaborative, interdisciplinary brands and companies please!

Though I love all of their designs, I think my favorites from the ones I chose to post are the grey and chartreuse chiffon dress and the metallic smoke bubble dress. There is so much more to see, so please check out FORM's website. FORM is available at Ultimo here in Chicago.