Boredom

In fashion everything seems right now - somehow - so god damn boring. I can't find anything to get excited about. All the blogs look like copy of some others cheap and tasteless blog (not that I am any better), designers show that same shit season after season. Yeah, who the hell can actually get excited about the minimalism of Céline or that god damn tiger sweater that Kenzo did like ages ago. I need something new. Something fresh. Tom Ford is definitely on same track with me. Or that's how I see his fall collection, which obviously was a serious mess, but I can see how bored he is to all the minimalistic design out there.

God damn Alexander McQueen, why you had to kill yourself. Even the house of McQueen don't give me any inspirational vibes these days. So dear God, hear me and do something to this boredom and bring some new fresh blood to the industry. AND by the way God, Chanel should really considern replacing Karl with someone new, maybe you could do something to that stituation... He has done the same shit so many years I can't even count anymore.

xoxo bored shithead

Geometric

Pictures are from Vogue Italia's April issue, modelled by Steffie Soede and photographed by the talented Greg Kadel. Extra huge credits for the impeccable styling to Enrica Ponzellini.

This editorial manages to capture my favourite trends for this spring; prints on prints and stripes and checks. Especially the combination of black and white stripes is on my mind right now, both in vertical and horizontal ways. 

Givenchy at Barneys New York

Givenchy | Spring 2013 from Barneys The Window on Vimeo.

I've always had this kind of deep connection with Riccardo Tisci's design philosophy. What he does for Givenchy is just pure gold - usually - even though the latest few seasons might have been a bit lackluster to me in many ways. I'm getting a bit tired to see season after season sweatshirts with stars and prints. Move on already, I know you can do much better. Though those printed clothes are making me sick right now, this springs menswear collection does look quite good in that video that Gordon Von Steiner has directed for Barneys New York.

Gareth Pugh versus Mert Otsamo

Gareth in his atelier.

Gareth Pugh is one of the greatest English fashion designers alive. He studied in Central Saint Martins and made quite a entrance to the world of fashion with his graduation collection in 2003. Pretty much ever since he has worked for his own label, which is funded by the one and only Rick Owens who owns 49% of Pugh's company with his wife.
     Pugh is known for his edgy avant-garde design aethestic that has gotten a bit more commercial since the days he was starting his career. And obviously that is understandable - you got to get the money from somewhere. Gareth is always playing with different volumes and materials in his collections. Materials like PVC, latex or different kind of plastic materials or fur are not new to him, he uses most of them pretty much in every collection he does. And those are the materials he definitely knows how to work with.

Model in Mert's outfit and Mert Otsamo Pic: Iltalehti

Then there is Mert Otsamo. A young Finnish designer with a huge amount of talent and some fresh ideas to pursue a successful career in Finnish fashion industry. He came in the third place of Finnish version of Project Runway. Ever since that he has worked for his own label and showed three (?) collections under his own name.
     Like Pugh, Mert has very edgy and dark avant-garde aethestic in his designs. His material choices are pretty much the same with Pugh and the silhouttes and shapes... Well I can say there are A LOT similarities. What comes to styling, they are like twins. But what Gareth has done few years back, Mert is doing now. The only difference between these two seems to be that Gareth does things in a bit more modern way, where Mert's work seems a tiny bit outdated.

Gareth Pugh - Spring 2013 pic: Prince of Scots

Mert Otsamo - "Army of Generation" pic: House of Syys

Gareth Pugh - Fall/Winter 2012 pic: Purple.fr

Mert Otsamo - "Army of Generation" pic: House of Syys

Some people call Mert Osamo as "the Finnish Alexander McQueen". Somehow I can agree and somehow... well not so much. He is definitely creating something new in the Finnish fashion scene but like it always goes, what is done in here now has been done in somewhere else ages ago. And trust me, I know that fashion is all about repeating itself, but when designers repeat each others shamelessly, is it just lack of originality or perhaps lack of personality? In any case it definitely does not sound that good.
     I'm not trying to mock Mert - I respect him and his talent - but I'm only worried if he doesn't focus his talent on creating something more him, not something that McQueen did or what Pugh does, what is going to happen? Will he gain his spot on the top or lose it and leave the industry as a loser? Time will tell and the next years will show what he really is capable to do.

Soundtrack to my life

I'm quite a sucker when it is about the culture and different forms of art. I consider fashion and fashion design as an form of art, BUT I don't consider every fashion designer as an artist. Designers who only "design" nice clothes to sell well are not artists, they are only very creative marketers. Designers who in the other hand take risks and try to create something new and avant-garde, can be deliberated as a true artists. Just my opinion - obviously.

Other forms of art and culture that are part of my everyday life are movies and music. I try to listen different kind of music as much it is even possible. I'm alway introducing myself to a new artists to get inspired by, and I find it very liberating when I can't classify myself to a specific music genre.
     What comes to movies, I'm always looking for things that has a controversial mark on it, because things that put people to think about ethics are always the most powerfull review of experiences. Powerfull story with beautifully build characters and nice visual appearance - plus perfect soundtrack of course - are the things I'm always searching for from the movies I watch. There is the reason why movie directors like Darren Aronofsky, David Lynch, Gaspar Noé, Lars von Trier, Stanley Kubrick and obviously Quentin Tarantino are on the top of my list. They all have the gift to tell a story in a unique way and that's something what should be cherished to the next generations.
     As I told, music plays big part in my movie experiences and I'm always searching for the perfect movie soundtracks. Making the perfect soundtrack to a movie must be hard, 'cause the emotions that are happening on screen must reflect to the music that plays in the background. Usually it is the music that brings the emotions alive and brings the tears or the happiness or even maybe anger to the audience.
I gathered some of my favourite songs from a different movies, as you can see above.  All the songs are kind of grandiose, but all of them fit perfectly to the movies which they are played at.

Pictures are from Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut, Lars Von Trier's Antichrist, Gaspar Noé's Irréversible and von Trier's Melancholia. 

Peace out, xxx