December | 2013 | THE HARLOW

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JACOB HASHIMOTO

Posted on December 19, 2013 by Editorial Staff

Jacob Hashimoto uses the traditional kite-making techniques and forms to construct his three dimensional wall works. Neither sculpture nor painting, Hashimoto’s compositions delicately float before the eye, mounted on an intricate network of interlaced nylon thread suspended from the wall by a line of pegs at both top and bottom. Through a unique process Hashimoto’s works convey an ephemeral wonder, entrancing the viewer with their continuously shifting illusion of light, space, motion, and sense of flight. This eye pleasure will be on view from Jan the 3^rd 2014 at Moca, LA.

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EYEDRESS

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Maxim Deluxe

Idris Vicuna goes by the name growing up in Arizona and California before moving back to Manila in Philippines. He’s created some wonderfully evocative music with his first EP ‘ Supernatural’ . Listen on Soundcloud

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CUT THE RIBBON, NINA SIMONE

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Editorial Staff

For unforgettable music she left us, for her civil rights battles and marches with Martin Luther King. For her two careers in one; she left it in 1978 and disappeared. Then, due to a Chanel advertising that brought back on charts “My Baby Don’t Love Me”, she had some few more years. For her no diva approach, for her unique life made of good and bad, for concerts where she used to introduce “her music” with her own words. “Her music”, as she declared in several interviews, was the most important thing. Then there was love, not marriage of course, she was twice, but love. Born in North Carolina in 1933 under the name of Eunice Kathleen Waymon, she started singing in the local church with her two sisters. It took not much time to everybody in her small town community to understand that Eunice was gifted. She was so talented to deserve a proper course of studies in New York City. Her neighbors promoted a foundation and managed to collect money in order to make her flying. In 50ies she was paying one’s dues as a nightclub singer and changed her name in honor of actress Simone Signoret that she adored. In 1958 Simone’s debut album. In 1968, after King’s and Kennedy’s assassination she left Us and settle down in Barbados, Egypt, Holland and Switzerland. After this betrayal nobody were publishing her records any longer but she kept on composing and playing piano until the very last days of her life. Simone left not only her music but examples, not only Jazz but hope for a better life to African American. A cut the ribbon for this complex, yet genius persona, was compulsory here at The Harlow.

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LA KISS ROOM

Posted on December 17, 2013 by Editorial Staff

10 square meters of room. It’s La Kiss Room, a project by French-Hungarian artist Mathias Kiss. It’s actually a hotel room with 1,000 mirrors, that’s open for 1,000 nights. The space-distorted installation expresses both infinity and the idea of our intimate selves. The room has no windows, it’s acoustically isolated and the only thing guests do hear is a constantly evolving ‘song’ by Nicolas Godin, from the French band Air. It doesn’t come cheap: it can only be booked one night for €750. The Kiss Room is a space where intimate and infinite get together, and even if it sounds a like macabre as an experience for couples, it sounds sexy and kissy!

www.lakissroom.com

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ST.MORITZ OR CHAMONIX? A WINTER WONDERLAND

Posted on December 17, 2013 by Isabella Cecconi

How cool are they? When breezy days aren’t over there’s nothing left to do than being wrapped in a fun pattern pullover or in this case, shooting with a the new winter editions of Lomo! Experimenting with crazy colour filters and magical optical effects, the Sardine and the Diana F are magical cameras. Canvas covered with Christmas themed prints in festive colours, La Sardine St. Moritz with its wide-angle perspective is a very practical also convenient camera as it uses all types of 35mm film, making it easy and ideal for any crazy, sporty and adventurous holidays. At the same time, the Diana F+ Chamonix is great if you want to shoot in squares and create dreamy medium-format photos.Getting ready for an analogue retreat? Scandinavian-inspired woolly jumper will have a hard time as you will embrace amazing snow-covered views, Christmas markets, and your family’s outfits in New Years Eve party. Lomo, a winter wonderland. Continue Reading →

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GLAW, SPRING SUMMER 2014

Posted on December 16, 2013 by Marco Maggetto

Goodbye winter. It’s time to think about Spring 2014. As lighter clothes are slowly arriving in stores, we start this new season in a pink mood. In color psychology, pink is a sign of hope. It is a positive color inspiring warm and comforting feelings, a sense that everything will be okay. Is there a better way to start new year with? Specialists of this tone and attitude are Berlin based designer duo GLAW. Devoted to urban elegance, Jesko Wilke and Maria Poweleit got to know each other at Esmond Fashion School and started their business after graduation in 2011. Glaw is bold, very sexy and cut to amplify femininity. Glaw puts a strong emphasis on wearability and diversity and it’s addressed to a wide range of female consumers from all ages. Made with luxury materials and high quality manufacturing standards, its gowns, cocktail dresses and tailleurs really stand out for an evident strong attitude . Imagine a contemporary, yet chic, bombshell with a romantic side. She wears Glaw, she wears pink.

www.glaw-berlin.com

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McQUEEN + HIRST = ENTOMOLOGY

Posted on December 16, 2013 by Luisa Fazio

If we merge two things that have never been together, we get a magnificent aesthetic osmosis. On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the creation of his original and unmistakable skull scarf, fashion maison Alexander McQueen lends itself to art. In the meanwhile the artist with the most macabre taste, Damien Hirst donates himself to fashion. This very time, Hirst does not put sharks in formaldehyde or composes black paintings formed by thousands of dead flies. Colonies of butterflies, spiders, beetles, stick insects, leaf insects, worms are repeated symmetrically, populating a light and soft meadowsof of cashmere, silk pongè, chiffon and twill. Capturing eyes will recognize a skull in the background, previously camouflaged. We aren’t facing the classical cataloging of insect with use of entomological pins, this time, it isn’t a natural processe of decomposition. It’s the “Entomology” collection (30 foulards of limited edition) designed by Hirst for the British fashion maison Alexander McQueen. A versatile accessory that can’t fail to delight. A precious gift idea. The only risk: all the people to whom we would like to donate one of these colorful and hypenothical “remnants” may suffer from entomophobia!

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CUT THE RIBBON, ALFRED NOYER (OR JULIAN MANDEL?)

Posted on December 12, 2013 by Editorial Staff

Alfred Noyer, or Julian Mandel, was a signature name, and surely the pseudonym related to the identity of one the best-known commercial photographers of female nudes of the early twentieth century. Known in the 1910s, the mid-1930s, his picture portrayed models in classical poses, photographed both in studio and outdoors. Images are composed artfully, with exquisite tones and soft use of lighting, showing a particular texture created by light rather than shadow. Mandel was a member of the German avant-garde, featuring natural settings, skin tones, roughness of nature vs. beauty of human beings. The nude photographs were in a postcard-sized format, but as “A Brief History of Postcards” explains, “A majority of the French nude postcards were called postcards because of the size. They were never meant to be postally sent. It was illegal to send such images in the post”. The size enabled them to be placed readily into jacket pockets, packages, and books. There is a belief nowadays that Julian Mandel was the pseudonym of Julian Walery, a well known photographer of the same period, still, he cut a huge ribbon!

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SWEET LIFE, SWEET GALLERY, DOLCE VITA

Posted on December 11, 2013 by Luca Andriani

There is a unique place in the center of Rome, a one of a kind corner, which will probably become one of the most fascinating places and destination for those who have loved and still love La Dolce Vita, The Sweet Life, the Roman historical period (the 50’s and 60’s) characterized mostly by joy, happiness, entertainment. Let’s talk about LA DOLCE VITA GALLERY, a space that collects shots of great photographer Marcello Geppetti. To many of you this name would sound new but in reality, it has nothing to envy to other photographers of la Dolce Vita like Secchiaroli or Barillari. Geppetti was, indeed, the first example of modern reportage photography. He can be considered the first Italian photographer to have told facts with a capturing eye, highlighting an event triggered within an event itself. His photographic archive is immense and collects photographs ranging from 1958 to 1998; telling the story of Italy within forty years, from the Dolce Vita to the entire First Republic. Thanks to his family, nowadays represented by his son Marco (photographer as well) and three other people’s passion (Andrea, Hilde and Camilla), the gallery has taken shape and substance. As soon as you enter you will immediately be thrown into those years and start a very special journey, punctuated by every single photo that hides stories and anecdotes that Andrea will be pleasured to tell you. This is not a simple photo gallery but a visual experience, also supported by great furnishing and original clothes that flank photoshots all the way. I assure you that once the visit is finished, Rome will appear with less secrets. La Dolce Vita Gallery organizes ad hoc projections drawing on its photographic archive. DOLCEVITAGALLERY, the pleasure of living is always here.

http://www.dolcevita-gallery.com/

http://www.marcellogeppetti.com/

photo courtesy of Luca Andriani

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CREEP

Posted on December 11, 2013 by Maxim Deluxe

Brooklyn electronic duo ( Lauren Dillard and Lauren Flax ) are talented producers and Djs. They’ve worked with an amazing roster of artists from The XX to Nina Sky and Tricky. Now they are out with new album ‘ Echoes’ which is full of talented collaborations. Via Inertia Records.

Official Creep

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PIJAMA, MADE IN MILAN

Posted on December 11, 2013 by Marco Maggetto

I imagine everybody is in a hurry for the very last Christmas gift. I’m not in this category thank god, I could never survive the anxiety of a last minute run into crowded shops. In case you are still crazy and on the run, here is Pijama. Such a good idea. Useful and colorful, very well designed, friendly in many ways, Pijama offers a wide range of cases (Ipad, MacBook, Iphone) and an irresistible variety of accessories. From sleeping masks, to slippers passing by a really fresh, and cool, line of duffle bags and backpacks. Smart is in the air at their Via Pastrengo 11 headquarters. Pijama is a 2006 project founded by Monica Battistella and Sergio Gobbi. Monica is a fashion designer, Sergio is an architect. The duo initially started creating neoprene cases to protect technological gadgets and continued later extending the collection with a careful choice of fabrics and new designs. Simple and straightforward, Pijama is an ambitious project that is already best seller all over the world and that you will find in best museum shops and boutiques like Madewell and International Center Of Photography in New York. To preserve plus colour up your devices and everyday objects, to save them from time, to take them around. Pijama!

http://www.pijama.it/

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HERB RITTS

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Isabella Cecconi

It will open tomorrow, wednesday the 11^th of December 2013. Rome will host a retrospective on Herb Ritts, photographer of strength, dreams and the Hollywood star system. Ritts established an international reputation for his distinctive photographs of fashion models, nudes and celebrities. From the late 1970s until his untimely death from AIDS in 2002, he created photographs that successfully bridged the gap between art and commerce. Great interpreter of fashion photography, he had countless famous portrait’s sitters: Madonna, Michael Jackson, Richard Gere. His work has been exhibited in numerous museums, where shiny Versace and perfect bodies were fully immersed in light. Glossy photographs of dreamlike fashion will be all displayed. Over 100 precious photographs of different sizes, from the impressive platinum prints to the series of prints with silver salts medium format, up to large spectacular blowups will glow at the Rome Auditorium. Ritts’ style, unmistakable and powerful showed what a cultured and sensitive man he was: a lover of art and history of photography. In fact, Ritts was studying classical compositions, the plasticity of dialogue between bodies in Renaissance art when “kidnapped” by the formal rigor of the German photographer Herbert List. He then understood the mystery that lied at the bottom of those perfect compositions of light and volume.

You have time until march the 2014. Watcha waiting for? Hurry up!

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A BLINK OF WINGS, A HEART-SHAPED LOVER: THE DRAGONFLY

Posted on December 9, 2013 by Luisa Fazio

It can be a missile, a glider or a helicopter. It can dart in every direction changing suddenly curse, putting into reverse without turning around. It can climb and descend vertically, planar, and even remain stationary in the air. The dragonfly is an old flying machine. Thanks to the Odonata, for instance, our plane flights have become safer. Once, the wings of airplanes coming into vibration would crack. It is said that entomologists and engineers realized that it was necessary to weight the wings towards the end. In the same way in which dragonflies used an anti-vibration device. At the bottom of each wing there is, a stabilizer, a ballast of their hemolymph. They are healthy carriers of gene inspiring great works of genius. Shouldn’t we give this insect a patent? These amazing air acrobats, couple while flying. The male grasps with its prehensile appendages at the extremity of its abdomen, the front chest of the female. The receptive female bends its abdomen forward to reach the male organ. Going beyond all imagination, in a miraculous balance, the two lovers make a lovely and romantic “wedding heart.” Dragonflies are extravagant in love and ravenous eaters. At the same coupling, the “flying gems” continue hunting flying mosquitoes and other insects casually, as if nothing had happened. It is as if it were a thing that you can do even if you are making love. As the English would say: brilliant and multitasking insects! As the French would say: Son Altesse imperial, l’Empereur Napoleon!

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BEFORE I DIE I WANT TO…

Posted on December 9, 2013 by Editorial Staff

Candy Chang is an artist that likes public spaces and their influence on our lives. She loves people and the sharing factor. Ideas, thoughts, sketches, everyone is involved as she is just an humanity feelings collector. One of her signature projects was “Before I Die I Want To…”. Chang transformed an abandoned house’s wall into a huge blackboard where people stopped by and wrote what they wanted to do before death. From that day the project has been traveling 60 countries and become one of the most participated art work ever created. In a society that tends to forget we are not eternal, Chang”s project is an interesting, yet touching, statement of humanity’s wishes and dreams.

http://beforeidie.cc/

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THE COPENHAGEN WHEEL

Posted on December 5, 2013 by Editorial Staff

The Copenhagen wheel is a bike-wheel attachment that helps power riders. The device is comprised of a self-contained motor and batteries that snap onto the back of an ordinary bicycle, instantly transforming it into a hybrid electric vehicle with social media capabilities. The wheel stores energy during a ride, and when cyclists need a boost, it helps give them an extra push. Developed in MIT’s SENSEable City Laboratory in 2009, as part of a research project sponsored by the Mayor of Copenhagen, the bike learns how you pedal and improves by understanding how hard you push when you pedal, and how often you need help. With a cyclist’s smartphone and a sensor built into the circular red hub, it can pre-program when the user want help. Amazing, don’t you think?

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QUEEN OF THE BONGO!

Posted on December 5, 2013 by Editorial Staff

We love to travel, some of us live abroad, and we wanted to create a product that would travel with us. A product that would get us, and those around us to rip out their headphones and be together in the same room, listening to the same son.

Bongo has an amazing sound and wireless connectivity, it’s totally environmentally friendly. It’s beautifully designed and it blows away an incredible sound. Bongo is the creature of Otis and Eleonor. Its bamboo housing resonates much better than plastic or metal and produces a full, natural sound. As far as sustainable resources, bamboo is often a best bet. This amazing speaker boasts eight hours of playback with a 30 foot playable range. The Bongo speakers not only deliver superior sound, but also exude an awesome earthy vibe.

http://www.otisandeleanor.com/

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CUT THE RIBBON, DAME ELIZABETH

Posted on December 4, 2013 by Editorial Staff

On the occasion of the World Aids Day, occurred on the 1st of December, our Cut The Ribbon is all for dearest, lamented and missed Elizabeth Taylor. Dame Elizabeth Taylor, born in Hampstead in 1932, had a fantastic Hollywood career, we all know that. She was a great actress also called “Queen of Hollywood with no ego” or “the most democratic soul” of Hollywood” due to her simple attitude and her love for “people”. When Aids made its appearance in the very first 80ies, fear was everywhere and people linked to people that were developing this disease where everything but showing their support in public. And do you want to know who was the first person in the entertainment industry to stand up and take charge when few were willing to listen? Dame Elizabeth. Since then, Taylor has remained the symbol of the battle and for this reason she was named the “Joan of Arc of AIDS.” Founder of the American Foundation For Aids (amfar.org) she helped raising 50 million dollars until 1999 … and if this terrible illness is, 35 years later, somehow considered “acceptable” in a way, it’s also because of this solid woman, mother, Hollywood goddess. Her willing to help will always remain legendary.

“I have to show up because it galvanizes people. [They] know . . . I’m not there to sell or gain anything. I’m there for the same reason they are: to get something done.”

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MIDLAKE

Posted on December 4, 2013 by Maxim Deluxe

The lo-fi rock quintet were formed in Denton, Texas, in 2000 by a group of musicians who had attended the North Texas School of Music. They issued their own EP, Milkmaid Grand Army, in 2001, and sold 1,000 copies at their Texas gigs. They attracted the attention of Simon Raymonde who signed them to his Bella Union label in the U.K., leading to European concerts and the recording of their first full-length album. After ten years of success the 4th studio LP ‘Antiphon’ is now out. One of the best 2013 albums, for sure.

MIDLAKE.NET

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LEICA M (RED)

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Isabella Cecconi

A one of a kind Leica camera designed by Apple’s Jony Ive has been sold for more than $1.8 million at a charity auction. The stunning Leica M, co-designed by Marc Newsom, was a one-off piece made to benefit the (RED) campaign to fight HIV and Aids in Africa. The magnesium die-cast camera had an estimated list price of $500,000 to $750,000 but eventually sold for more than twice as much as the upper estimate. The camera features (along with its gorgeous, unique design) a full-format CMOS sensor, a powerful processor, and a 50mm f/2 ASPH lens. It’s the ideal intersection of design, craftsmanship, and charity. Good on ya Leica!

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SWAN NECK

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Editorial Staff

The importance of a sparkling necklace. The problem solving attitude it posses. It’s a sprinter, a play up, a highlighting pen. Doesn’t matter if you can spend or not, and doesn’t matter if it’s bad or good. It has to be heavy, made with chains and pearls. It should shout a message, loud and clear. It should rap. You should be sort of an MC, no matter what’s your age and what they say. Keep your exaggerated necklace ready for festivities and any other occasion.

Lanvin Show Piece Collier Necklace at ln-cc.com

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THE MAN WHO PLANTED TREES BY JEAN GIONO

Posted on December 2, 2013 by Luisa Fazio

It’s the story of a tireless, solitary, simple and peaceful pastor living slowly with sheeps and a dog. Elzeard Bouffier is “The Man Who Planted Trees” that writer Jean Giono met during a walk in the ancient region of the Alps that penetrates into Provence. A wasteland where the only vegetation that grows is wild lavender. Without wanting anything in return, he sowing acorns and grows countless oaks with care. He does it with the sunique mission of restoring life, harmony, happiness, giving oxygen to the villages and the land. Without that the land belongs to him. Behind this unusual story lurks a positive message of love and hope of centrality of man and nature together. This man is against destruction, this man makes a trip up to cruel and cynical deforestation and to greedy farmers. Bouffier can put up alone, in company of his insight and strength, day after day, season after season, a giant natural forest. We are faced with a parable about ecology no fanatic, no idealistic but pure and selfless. True story or legend, it does not matter. – There is anyone in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago – cit.