The Asia Song Society, Terence Koh’s notorious, Factory-esque three-storey art gallery-cum-studio-cum-living space is almost entirely packed up the day The Block arrives to photograph the New York-based, Canada-raised art provocateur. He’s in the process of relocating from the Lower East Side to Chinatown, “where the snow fairies are,” he says, in the typically cryptic, frequently bizarre, yet good-natured way anybody familiar with Koh is used to him communicating. “I feel comfortable living amongst my people.”
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Sweater, Stella McCartney

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Harp strings echo soft and evocative tones, as the haunting hymns gradually flood your ear drums. A trumpet commandingly chimes in, and 15 seconds later you are met with a voice that sounds as though it has been stripped straight from the almighty Apollo himself. Enter Active Child, the musical undertaking of vocalist, harpist and Los Angeles resident Pat Grossi.
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Candela S/S 2012 (photo: Fairchild Archive)

On one of the hotter days of fashion week, designer Gabriela Perezutti brought the jungle to Lincoln Center with a tropical installation for Candela NYC’s spring ready-to-wear show. And even though bottles of water were being passed out to those guests with beads of sweat dripping down their faces and fans were on high speed, the heat did not seem to dissipate. Full of lush, fecund plants, the installation hosted still, mannequin-like models bedecked in the designer’s spring collection.

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There are few materials in this world that encompass luxury, functionality and durability in the way that leather does. Our affinity for leather goods has deep-seated roots in the story of human evolution, survival and progress. It has remained a fixture of our material culture for thousands of years, keeping us warm, holding the things we value most, protecting our bodies and representing the crafts our lineage. We have learned to love all its smells, the way it feels and the elegance of its simplicity because it has come a long way with us through the annals of history.

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Baartmans and Siegel S/S 2012

Since their very recent graduation from London College of Fashion, Wouter Baartmans and Amber Siegel have skipped right to the top of the distribution chain, amassed an enormous amount of credibility and been one the most highly anticipated new menswear labels to emerge in the last two years. Their Spring/Summer 2012 collection, titled “Dust Drifters,” is a rare collection that invokes a true curiosity about the stories that have laced themselves into the fabrics that you see, the ideas that have been woven into the silhouettes before you, the expanse of reference that is the sum of its components.

The duo occupy that popular oxymoronic playground of modern-traditionalism, but so does everyone. However, Baartmans and Siegel entertain this tension between the modern and the traditional differently. They approach it with a narrative, thematic philosophy in mind. They combine their formative and conceptual experience at Viktor & Rolf, the wisdom of the British tradition of menswear enshrined on Savile Row, and their own unique interpretation of culture, cinema, and landscape to create highly visceral pieces that embody a potent and romantic, if somewhat atypical modern man.

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Films about the era of organized French brothels are a dime a dozen. Films as beautiful and enchanting as House of Tolerance are once, maybe twice, in a lifetime. See it by any means possible.

Set at the turn of the 19^th century, House of Tolerance (French: L’Apollonide: Souvenirs de la maison close) covers the span of mere months into the final days of one of Paris’ most prestigious and well-kept brothels. The film was written, directed and produced by Bertrand Bonello, a filmmaker known for his attention to beauty and detail and sexuality. Bonello’s last appearance at the Toronto fest was to debut his 2001 movie The Pornographer, which looked at sexuality through the eyes of a porn star. It, too, was also a silent hit, winning the 2001 Cannes prize for FIPRESCI Prize (International Critics Week).

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Art and Culture, Toronto | No Comments »

Madonna screens her new film W.E. to Toronto audiences, the second time the film has been shown after debuting at the Venice Film Festival. The question: Is it good? The answer: It’s interesting.

It’s Madonna’s sophomore directorial effort, a biopic-ish flick largely about the life and love of Wallis Simpson, the woman who attracted King Edward VIII’s affection, prompting him to renounce the throne in 1936 in order to be with the woman he loves (what happened next for the royal family forms the premise of Oscar-winning The King’s Speech).

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At 32, Skye Parrott is every bit a contemporary trendsetter. Part fashion photographer, she has contributed to V, Interview, i-D and Acne Paper. Part publisher, she is the co-creator of Dossier, a biannual art and fashion journal. She’s also an art photographer, curator and retailer running the bricks and mortar manifestation of her magazine, Dossier Shop, from the garden level of her Brooklyn home.

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Barilá S/S 2012 (photographed by Jimmy Hamelin)

Montreal Fashion Week rolled back into its usual digs at the Marche Bonsecours for three full days and nights of Canadiana style.  The Block made its way down the cobblestoned streets of Vieux Montreal (in heels, no less!) to bear witness to the display of local talent. Check out our thoughts on three of the Montreal-designed collections we caught during the week.

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