Dion Lee composes himself

This morning at the Sydney Opera House, Dion Lee staged yet another bravura presentation: his 'Composure' Spring/Summer 2011/2012 collection. Here is a gallery of images. Review to come.

Marc by Marc Jacobs Spring/Summer 2011 by Juergen Teller - the campaign

We've seen a preview of Marc by Marc Jacobs' Spring/Summer 2011 advertising imagery, lensed by Juergen Teller. But now, on his website, Jacobs has just unveiled much more of the campaign. It stars Latvian Ginta Lapina, Serbian Australian Andrej Pejic and, it now emerges, a third model: androgynous Dutchman Jaco van den Hoven, the only brunette amongst the three. Shot in Marrakech just before Christmas, the campaign illustrates Pejic's unique versatility: he's not just the dude in the dress, but can also rock the sexy surfer boy look in straight menswear.

all images: marc jacobs.com

Meet the new girl, Emilia Skuza

elie saab haute couture SS11/getty via daylife

In spite of the deluge of global publicity following Jean Paul Gaultier's decision to cast Serbian Australian male model Andrej Pejic as the bride of his haute couture show in Paris on Wednesday, Pejic was of course not the only Australian on the haute couture runways. Abbey Lee Kershaw, a recent Chanel advertising face and runway regular, turned up at Chanel for yet another exclusive, no surprises there. Also scoring Chanel: Julia Nobis, who had a busy haute couture season, also walking at the Elie Saab, Georges Hobeika and Bouchra Jarrar shows. Ajak Deng walked at Alexandre Vauthier. According to Priscillas, Lauren Brown, who has appeared in several Chanel ready-to-wear shows, was in town for the haute couture castings but as far as frockwriter can tell, did not turn up on a single catwalk. One Australian who has slipped completely under the radar until now walked at Elie Saab and Bouchra Jarrar, alongside Nobis, as well as the show of new haute couture name Maxime Simoens - Emilia Skuza.

And three haute couture shows were not the sum total of Skuza’s catwalk appearances in Paris over the past fortnight. 

On Thursday 20th January, the 18 year-old, Adelaide-based Polish Australian was one of several women cast for Smalto’s menswear show (see below) on day one of the Paris Fall/Winter 2011/2012 menswear season and she also appeared in the Etam parade at the Grand Palais on Monday 24th. 
 
Etam is a French mass market lingerie and swimwear retailer. The company’s big bucks, Victoria’s Secret-style extravaganza featured performances from entertainers such as Beth Ditto, The Kills and Boy George and high profile modelling names such as Karolina Kurkova and Australia’s Nicole Trunfio. Although it’s a little difficult to tell from the video, below, that looks like Skuza at 9.58. Trunfio appears at 6.24 and 13.21.  

Skuza, who has just scored a TER of 99.7 in her HSC, is repped by Finesse Models in her home state, Chadwick in Sydney and IMG's Development division in New York and Paris.

Her experience in Australia consists of a few local parades, including shows at the Adelaide and Sydney Fashion Festivals and some low-profile beauty and fashion shoots.  

A dead ringer for a young Gisele Bündchen, Skuza is one of several new Australian models who are poised to make their marks on the Fall/Winter 2011/2012 womens runways, which kick off in New York on February 10.

smalto fw1112/enmodefashion

 

Andrej Pejic celebrated Australia Day on a Paris haute couture runway in a wedding dress

now fashion

While many Australians were celebrating our national day with a bbq, minutes ago Andrej Pejic just did something a little different: he walked in Jean Paul Gaultier's Spring/Summer 2011 haute couture show in Paris. Closed it in fact, as the traditional bride. Yes, a day after the designer finally unveiled his much-anticipated Spring/Summer 2011 ready-to-wear advertising campaign starring Pejic and Czech supermodel Karolina Kurkova and almost a week after Pejic closed Gaultier's mens Fall/Winter 2011/2012 show dressed as a woman, Gaultier and Pejic just made a little more gender-bending music together. And they may have just made fashion history together to boot. Givenchy deployed its muse and advertising face Lea T, a transsexual (and technically a pre-op transsexual) in the brand's most recent haute couture presentation. That was, however, a static display only, not a show. Frockwriter is not sure that any couturier/couturière has ever previously sent a man down his/her runway in womens' clothing. And certainly never in a wedding dress. The collection was inspired by British punks and French showgirls, with the models sporting mohawks and Pejic trailed by a highkicking cancan girl. There was no soundtrack, just the soft drawl of no less than French screen legend Catherine Deneuve reading out the names of the garments, one by one, with the models each carrying a corresponding number - the way they used to do it half a century ago, in the golden days of the couture. Below are what appear to be three recent backstage shots of Pejic taken by a French photographer - and possibly before this show. They were posted at the same time he was in hair and makeup. Vive la Liberté.  

all three images: mathieu berthemy

Trench coat glamour mafia: Andrej Pejic and Karolina Kurkova for Jean Paul Gaultier Spring/Summer 2011

A matter of days after Andrej Pejic strutted Jean Paul Gaultier's Autumn/Winter 2011/20112 menswear runway in Paris as both a man - and a woman - and twenty-four hours before the designer's feverishly-anticipated haute couture womenswear show, Gaultier's Spring/Summer 2011 campaign images starring Pejic and Czech supermodel Karolina Kurkova have finally landed. With the designer himself joining Twitter to excitedly unveil them. Shot by high profile photographic duo Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, the campaign consists of two black and white images of Pejic and Kurkova, both in fishnet stockings and wearing matching trench coats from the Spring/Summer 2011 womens collection (as first revealed by Kurkova just before Christmas in a Tweet from the set). In one shot, they are kissing. Who's the prettier of the two though?

images: via TFS

Calvin Klein gets back into the movie business ahead of the Golden Globes

Tom Ford isn’t the only American luxury brand going gung ho in the leadup to this Sunday’s Golden Globes ceremony in Los Angeles. Following the unveiling of a supersite billboard of Ford together with Australian model Abbey Lee Kershaw on Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, comes a 20 second television commercial produced by Calvin Klein to run during the Globes broadcast on NBC. No this is not Calvin Klein's first tvc. Founder Calvin Klein made an impact with a series of highly provocative television spots in the 1980s and 1990s starring, among others, Brooke Shields and Kate Moss in the company's jeans, underwear and fragrances (here is a backgrounder). But this tvc, the company claims, represents the first time it has ever produced a branded tv campaign advertising Calvin Klein's designer collections (with accessories and homewares also getting a lookin). Starring world number 1 Lara Stone and Tyson Ballou, the commercial was shot on location in La Jolla, California and directed by Fabien Baron. Here is a first look.

video: supplied to frockwriter by calvin klein

When Abbey met Tom

Shots of Australian supermodel Abbey Lee Kershaw in Tom Ford's new eyewear campaign are all over the net. But who knew she was also in his first womenswear campaign? Behold a supersite billboard of Kershaw not just in a sequined sheath from Ford's debut womenswear collection, but locked in a staged passionate embrace with Ford himself, that has just gone up in Beverly Hills, California, coincidentally a few days ahead of the 2011 Golden Globes. According to Kershaw's US agent, Next, it's part of the womenswear campaign. More images to come presumably. Kershaw was among the very select cast of Ford's intimate runway presentation at New York Fashion Week in September last year.

image: supplied by next management

Tom Ford's eyes-only debut womenswear collection is now on YouTube

Well Tom Ford certainly got off to a cracking start in 2011, uploading images of his new eyewear campaign which co-stars Abbey Lee Kershaw. Evidently Ford is another client who didn’t mind Kershaw’s new platinum blonde do – even apparently adding hair extensions. Now (via Homotography) comes a video of that top-secret debut Tom Ford womenswear show which was presented to a tightly-edited throng of just 100 at New York Fashion Week in September, with highly restricted camera access. Ford has spent a lot of time talking down the new digital news domain, telling US Vogue, "I do not understand everyone's need to see everything online the day after the show". Now that it’s crunch time for Ford's collection to hit stores, frockwriter has little doubt he is thrilled that social media is spreading the buzz. 

Abbey Lee Kershaw channels Vali Myers for ManiaMania

maniamania SS11 via the new york times

It’s been quite a year for Sydney jewellery brand ManiaMania. First, it gets picked up by high profile European bloggers Garance Doré and Susie Bubble, catching the eye of Madonna and daughter Lourdes Leon and subsequently getting a nod on their Material Girl website. Now comes word that ManiaMania designers Tamila Purvis and Melanie Kamsler have scored Abbey Lee Kershaw as their new season face. Just gone up on The New York Times: The Moment blog: a first look at Kershaw shot by Barnaby Roper for ManiaMania's Spring/Summer 2011 campaign. Entitled Rêve, the collection was inspired by Australian artist, dancer, wildlife warrior and white witch, Vali Myers, who died in 2003 at the age of 72 after an extraordinary life, during which she befriended, was mentored by and/or played muse to some of the biggest art, literary and music figures of the 20th century, from Salvador Dali to Andy Warhol, Tennessee Williams, photographer Ed van der Eisken, Patti Smith and Marianne Faithfull. As documented in four films. The perfect muse for ManiaMania which, in just three seasons, has forged a reputation for its bold bohemian jewellery. 

The NYT reports that the SS11 collection includes a “vagabond” cuff with the texture of whittled wood, quartz jewel necklaces and a bronze “immortal” ring inlaid with amazonite. All of which suits Kershaw, who is usually laden with bold jewellery, particularly over-sized rings. 

Kershaw is a quite extraordinary get for ManiaMania. Their last collection starred another Australian, the upwardly mobile Bambi Northwood-Blyth. 

This is an interesting turn of events for Kershaw, whose Australian work for the past couple of years as she has been building up an impressive international body of work, has almost exclusively consisted of magazine covers. And it's the second local campaign that she has recently booked.

On Monday and Tuesday this week, Kershaw shot the Autumn/Winter 2011 campaign for Australian fast fashion chain Portmans for an estimated A$120,000. Presumably this kind of fee would be out of the reach of Purvis and Kamsler, so we’re assuming ALK may have done it at mates rates and because she really digs the product. 

In the ManiaMania shots, Kershaw is sporting the same platinum blonde version of her infamous “Kob” bob, that was died on the eve of New York Fashion Week in September. And which some have speculated may have cost her some work in the interim. 

What does Kershaw's hair look like now just out of interest? Still the same platinum bob, according to sources who were on the Portmans shoot.

Check The New York Times story for more images. 

mania mania SS11 via the new york times

 

Andrej Pejic: Shooting Jean Paul Gaultier's Spring/Summer 2011 campaign with Karolina Kurkova, rattling rednecks from Sydney to Serbia

karolina kurkova's facebook

Overnight Czech supermodel Karolina Kurkova published a shot of herself and a Jean Paul Gaultier Spring/Summer 2011 campaign co-star on Facebook and the cat is out of the bag and all over the net. Australia’s Andrej Pejic is also in the campaign. That’s the second big international SS11 campaign booked by Pejic to which frockwriter referred in our post on Tuesday. It is unclear at this stage if the JPG campaign features any other models beyond Kurkova and Pejic. But both do look to be wearing similar pleated trench coats – which were prominently featured in Gaultier’s SS11 womenswear show in Paris in October. The garment does not, however, appear anywhere in Gaultier’s mens SS11 collection, which was shown in Paris in June and which, as you may recall, Pejic in fact walked. What conclusion can we draw from this? That, unless Kurkova posted a staged teaser shot, Pejic may well be modelling womenswear in this campaign. Stop the press. 

Since he first popped up on the international fashion radar at the Paris mens' shows in June, much ink - not to mention photoshoot styling - has been dedicated to Pejic's distinctive androgynous look.

In Jan Breen Burns' recent story in The Age, 'Beautiful Boys', Matthew Anderson at Chadwick, Pejic's mother agency, suggested that the agency's new star could be at the vanguard of a whole new "femiman" trend.
 

On Wednesday, News Limited’s newspapers went ballistic on the Pejic story. The same story ran in multiple interstate editions – and even as the main shot on the front page of News Limited's online news portal news.com.au, together the headline, “Hang on - Dude looks like a lady.... Melbourne teenager is the most beautiful boy in the world”.
 

The story prompted almost 100 comments, largely hostile towards Pejic – describing him as "flat out just too weird”, “ridiculous and laughable”, “hideous”, “disgusting” and “queer”. That's what was actually published. You can only imagine what wasn't cleared.
 

A very similar reaction, in other words, to that prompted by a recent Serbian television story on Pejic, after a Serbian news crew followed Pejic around his grandmother’s rural village over the northern hemisphere summer and the reporter canvassed opinion from some of the village locals.

The News Limited backlash prompted quite some buzz on Twitter and at least two blog posts which lamented Australia’s intolerance towards anyone who is “different”– and discussed the reemergence of androgyny in fashion.

Pejic, meanwhile, is laughing all the way to the bank. 

mert + marcus for vogue paris via TFS

Frockwriter previously noted how unusual Pejic's career trajectory has been for an emerging Australian model: since June he has shot editorials for three international editions of Vogue, including two of the most prestigious fashion titles in the world (Vogue Paris and Vogue Italia). 

Also out-of-the-ordinary: the fact that he keeps getting buddied up with the world’s most high-profile female models.
 

Kurkova is one of the biggest names in the modelling business. 

Ranked by Forbes in 2008 as the sixth highest model earning model, earning an estimated US$5million in the preceding 12 months, she slipped off Forbes’ more recent lists after her contract with Victoria’s Secret expired. Kurkova was back in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show this year, nevertheless, and she continues to be one of modelling’s biggest earners. Hence her models.com rankings in the “Money Girls” (#7) and “Top Sexiest Models” (#19) lists. 

In the September issue of Vogue Paris, Pejic was photographed alongside 14 year-old Daphne Groeneveld (also Malgosia Bela and Lea T). Groeneveld, who currently features on the magazine's December cover, was one of the biggest new modelling names to emerge in 2010. 

vogue italia/z fashion blog via TFS

In the November issue of Vogue Italia, Pejic was cast by high profile photographer Steven Meisel to appear alongside models.com’s world number two Freja Beha Erichsen, together with Iselin Steiro and Iris Strubegger (equal #9). 

In Pejic's mystery second SS11 ad campaign - for an equally big brand whose name we can't yet reveal - he was shot alongside lookalike Latvian supermodel Ginta Lapina, yet another of the industry’s hottest new faces, who has advertising campaigns for Yves Saint Laurent and Miu Miu under her belt.

Andrej Pejic, campaign trailblazer

thomas lohr for i-D via TFS

Long time, no Andrej Pejic post. Australia's most successful new model, of either gender, has been building up such a body of editorial work since first emerging on the Paris menswear runways in June, it has been difficult keeping up. We clocked, of course, his three Vogue coups - notably the Vogue Paris and Vogue Italia spreads, shot with Mert + Marcus and Steven Meisel, respectively. And it seems Pejic's blue chip editorials - which all capitalised on his distinctive androgynous look, a look that some have suggested is at the vanguard of a new "femimen" trend - have not gone unnoticed by other fashion heavyweights. Frockwriter can reveal that Pejic recently flew to north Africa to shoot an advertising campaign for a major international fashion brand. We can't disclose the name, unfortunately, just that it co-stars top (female) Latvian model Ginta Lapina. With the right styling, 21 year-old Lapina could be a dead ringer for 19 year-old Pejic, who is of course half Serbian and half Croatian. It sounds like the brand, which produces both mens and womens collections, may be planning a mix-and-match, guess-the-gender concept. But that won't be Pejic's only Spring/Summer 2011 campaign. After returning to Australia on Saturday to commence work with some local publications, Pejic has suddenly been obliged to up stumps after being booked for another ad campaign - this time for a major European fashion brand. He leaves tomorrow for New York to shoot that with a well-known photographic duo. Pejic will then return to Australia to spend Christmas with his family, before leaving for Europe in early January, ahead of the Fall/Winter 2011/2012 menswear season in Milan and Paris.   

Summer blockbusters: Australians on the runways for SS11

Another international show season has wrapped. And as has been the case over the past seven years - since the arrival of Gemma Ward - Australian models continue to grab an increasingly large share of that runway real estate. Below is a list of all Australians on the Spring/Summer 2011 runways - updated from frockwriter's post three weeks ago, at the end of the season's first leg in New York. The list is ranked, top to bottom, by show numbers, but clearly, some shows eclipse others in prestige. Hence Abbey Lee Kershaw doesn't have the biggest show tally, but overall was booked for a higher volume of big shows. Unheard of this time last year, Julia Nobis walked in 43 shows, including some of fashion's biggest names. Ajak Deng and Lauren Brown also continued their ascent. Even Miranda Kerr, at five months pregnant, made an appearance on Balenciaga's runway. Who would have thought it possible two years ago? With Kerr recently lurching forward to the eighth position on models.com's Top 50 working models rankings - jumping seven places since we last profiled this list in July - that places three Australians in the world top 12.

And clearly, there is no shortage of new faces coming up behind them. Bambi Northwood-Blyth emerged from left of field to do 12 shows in her first international season, including blue chip names Balenciaga, Chanel and Emanuel Ungaro. 

The biggest mystery of the season was Catherine McNeil, who made what looked to be a very respectable return to the New York runways after a short hiatus, only to disappear off the radar at London Fashion Week after just one show in that city. There is as yet no word from McNeil's agency as to whether or not she may have been busy working. 

Many thanks to the model fans at TFS for keeping such close tabs on their faves, making the compilation of this list much easier. Feel free to add any details we may have missed.

Julia Nobis
Proenza Schouler (opened and closed)
Vogue's Fashion’s Night Out show
Narciso Rodriguez
Marc by Marc Jacobs
Rag & Bone
3.1 Philip Lim
Alexander Wang
Matthew Ames
Diesel Black Gold
Joseph Altuzarra 
Sass & bide (opened)
Daks
Margaret Howell
Richard Nicoll
Topshop Unique
Jonathan Saunders
Ance
Peter Pilotto
Erdem
Pringle of Scotland
Jaeger London
Burberry Prorsum 
Roberto Cavalli
Iceberg
Sportmax
Antonio Marras 
Balenciaga
Haider Ackerman
Hakaan
Sharon Wauchob (closed)
Roland Mouret
Pedro Lourenço
Gaspard Yurkievich
Rick Owens
Sonia Rykiel
Viktor & Rolf
Costume National
Chloe
Vanessa Bruno
Balenciaga
Chanel
Kenzo
Louis Vuitton

= 43

Ajak Deng
Matthew Ames (opened and closed)
Parkchoonmoo
Y-3
Vogue's Fashion’s Night Out show
Edun
Marc by Marc Jacobs
L’Wren Scott
Nanette Lepore
Lela Rose 
Mark Fast
Meadham Kirchhoff
Todd Lynn
Fashion East
Felder Felder
Twenty8Twelve
Michael van der Ham
Holly Fulton
Matthew Williamson 
Felipe Oliveira Baptista
Damir Doma
Haider Ackermann
Cacharel
AF Vandervorst
Vanessa Bruno
Moncler Gamme Rouge
Martin Grant
Manish Arora
Lanvin
Louis Vuitton

= 29

Abbey Lee Kershaw
Rag & Bone (closed)
Isaac Mizrahi (opened)
Donna Karan
Ralph Lauren
Anna Sui
Alexander Wang
Derek Lam
Proenza Schouler
Vera Wang
Carolina Herrera
Tom Ford
Preen
Jason Wu
Dolce & Gabbana
Ermanno Scervino
Etro (opened)
Fendi
Gucci
Versace 
Balmain
Chanel
Hermes
Isabel Marant
Lanvin
Miu Miu
Stella McCartney
Valentino
Viktor & Rolf

= 27

Lauren Brown
Joseph Altuzarra
Elise Øverland
Yoana Baraschi 
Burberry Prorsum
Erdem
Giles Deacon
Sass & bide
Topshop Unique
Emilio Pucci
Emporio Armani
Frankie Morello
Giorgio Armani
Jo No Fui
Marco de Vincenzo
Moschino Cheap & Chic
Chanel
Loewe
Paul & Joe
Shiatzy Chen

= 19

Jessica Hart
Gottex 
Christopher Kane
PPQ
Louise Grey
Emilio de la Moreno
Osman
Sass & bide
Julien Macdonald
Matthew Williamson
Antonio Berardi
David Koma
Giles Deacon
Jonathan Saunders
Charlie le Mindu

= 14

Georgie Wass
Tory Burch
Nanette Lepore
Mulberry
Band of Outsiders
Candela
Thuy
Halston
Bebe 
PPQ
Michael van der Ham
Charles Anastase
Fashion East
Amanda Wakeley

= 13

Bambi Northwood-Blyth
Diesel Black Gold (closed)
Rag & Bone
Jen Kao
Joseph Altuzarra 
Topshop Unique
Giles Deacon 
Balenciaga
Loewe
Emanuel Ungaro
Giambattista Valli
Chanel
Kenzo

=12

Annaleise Smith
Joseph Altuzarra (opened)
Carmen Marc Valvo
Monique L’Huillier
Love Sex Money
Krizia
Emporio Armani
Laura Biagiotti
Roberto Musso
Martin Grant
Kenzo

= 10

Ruby Jean Wilson
Dallin Chase
Lacoste
Karen Walker
Custo Barcelona
Imitation
Andy & Debb
Odd Molly

= 7

Catherine McNeil
Ohne Titel (opened)
Jason Wu
Carolina Herrera
Vogue’s Fashion’s Night Out show
Oscar de la Renta 

Matthew Williamson

= 6

Tallulah Morton
Amaya Arzuaga
Manish Arora
Cacharel
Marithé & François Girbaud

= 4 

Shanina Shaik

Project Runway

LAMB

= 2

Miranda Kerr
Balenciaga

= 1

Amelia Brown
Kimberley Ovitz

= 1

Megan Hind
Moncler 

= 1 

Andrej Pejic
KTZ

= 1







all images: style.com

1/ miranda kerr at balenciaga
2/ abbey lee kershaw at yves saint laurent
3/ julia nobis at rick owens
4/ ajak deng at haider ackerman
5/ catherine mcneil at matthew williamson
6/ bambi northwood-blyth at chanel
7/ lauren brown at burberry
8/ jessica hart at christopher kane
9/ annaleise smith at martin grant
10/ georgie wass at fashion east