Obviously III

1. Jeff Koons Large Vase of Flowers, 1991
2. Finale at Jil Sander Fall/Winter 2012 show
3. Raf Simons' heartbreaking good-bye, Jil Sander Fall/Winter 2012
4. Jeff Koons Sacred Heart, 1994

Flowers and hearts, from Jeff to Raf. Now that the Dior rumours are finally confirmed, we can move on. And discover further, visual tributes. A sign of new, strictly self-referential commercial heights?
/HORST

Omen, Interrupted

1. Raf Simons last collection for Jil Sander Fall/Winter 2012
2. Another anonymous design team collection for Dior Fall/Winter 2012

Things that could have been and things that have never been. Speculations about a successor for Dior. And suddenly, similar thoughts become visible on the runway. The black insert dress. An omen, interrupted.
/HORST

P.S.: It has become silent around Raf Simons. Where are the latest rumours?

Reciprocity

Jil Sander Fall/Winter 2012

Touching one of fashion's most relevant and recurrent topics, the black and shiny is multiplied in material and form. The result: Serial killer duplicants dressed head-to-heel in periodic leather. The question: Is Jil the new Raf?
/HORST

Image credits Catwalking

Licensed To Death

1. Calvin Klein Campaign, British Vogue, March 1998
2. Menswear Fall/Winter 2011
3. Vivien Solari for Calvin Klein Eyewear

1. Calvin Klein Campaign, Harper's Bazaar, March 1998
2. Lara Stone by Mert & Marcus for Fall/Winter 2010
3. Menswear Spring/Summer 2009

1. Calvin Klein Campaign, Vanity Fair, March 1998
2. Amy Wesson for Calvin Klein collection
3. Menswear Fall/Winter 2009

A philosophical question for the 1st of January 2012: Why is there such a depressing contradiction between the severely strong 'image' of Calvin Klein collection and the reality we are confronted with on shop floors?
/HORST

Steel On Steel II

1. Markus Pritzi for Tush
2. Jake Cooper
3. Josefien Rodermans by Naomi Yang for Vogue Taiwan

It might be time for a return to the piercing. There are several options. Several placement possibilities. Some of them have already existed on myself. Do you think it's time to return to the piercing?
/HORST

Late Adopter

Comme des Garçons Fall/Winter 2009

Quick cry for help. Where can I (still) get these utterly adorable toe-printed shoes? Better late than never. Any advice will be worshipped with an air kiss and endless thankfulness.
/HORST

A Short History Of Dilettantism In Popular Culture

1. Jonathan Meese All works, 1998-2011
2. Kelly Rowland Solo career, 2002-2011
3. The Real Housewives of New York City All episodes, 2008-2011
4. German Vogue All issues, 2003-2011
5. Michael Kors All collections, 1981-2011

Banality, dysfunction, rubbish. Low quality productions, loaded with calculated pretentiousness. The manqué product, as part of a continuous cycle called 'culture', will quickly be replaced and forgotten. A quick last view at the flux of failure.
/HORST

Urban Traumata

Photos Unknown



Why do people fear the city and dress in utility wear once they leave their house? Are they expecting sudden earthquakes or sand storms? Or is it a mental phenomenon of a generation threatened by the turn of the 20th century? Sadly, they don't compensate their desire for protection as pictured above.

/HORST

Balenciaga Questions VI

1. Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2004
2. Raf Simons Fall/Winter 2009

And what happens when the DNA of Balenciaga is injected into menswear? The suit eventually becomes something else. Brutal shoulder proportions and feminine hourglass waists.
/HORST

Balenciaga Questions V

1. Balenciaga Spring/Summer 2004
2. Jil Sander Fall/Winter 2009

One more time. Another fictitious example of Simons x Ghesquière. The latter took over the house of Balenciaga at the age of 25 in 1997. He is history. And he is cute. Maybe Nicolas is the best of them all?
/HORST

Balenciaga Questions IV

1. Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2004
2. Jil Sander Fall/Winter 2008

Raf Simons undoubtedly shows apprecciation for Nicolas Ghesquière. Wouldn't these two make a beautiful couple, respectively team? Simons x Ghesquière. Wouldn't it be nice?
/HORST

Balenciaga Questions III

1. Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2003
2. Louise Goldin Fall/Winter 2010

Maybe unofficially, Fall/Winter 2010 has been declared a post-Balenciaga season? A London tribute to the Parisian house? The subliminal Transformers quote becomes literal meaning itself.
/HORST

Balenciaga Questions II

1. Balenciaga Spring/Summer 2006
2. Christopher Kane Fall/Winter 2010

Strictly speaking, we do not see a mere copy here. Instead, ornamental flower arrangements in white, blue and yellow are substitues for graphic compositions in white, blue and yellow.
/HORST

Balenciaga Questions

1. Balenciaga Fall/Winter 2003
2. Burberry Fall/Winter 2010

The master and the slave. Where is the fine line between inspiration and copy? Does an impression become a memory that recurs again during a moment of creation? Is referring an unconscious process?
/HORST

Body Modification

1. Hedi Slimane Diary
2. Unknown
3. Death Becomes Her

By the way: What happened to implants? A topic that dominated my late teenage talkshow afternoons. The mainstream has mutated its principle into contraception. But what is its current status in subculture?
/HORST

Fundamental Decisions

1. Raf Simons Spring/Summer 2009
2. Givenchy Spring/Summer 2011
3. Ann Demeulemeester Spring/Summer 2010

What to wear? What to pack? Your opinion and comment is highly appreciated. Sleeveless and shorts. Leather and leopard. Sequins and muscles. One, two or three? Paris, Paris, Paris.
/HORST

Shyam

Snakeskin belt Comme des Garçons Spring/Summer 2011

Better late than never. I really don't know where it suddenly came from. But the Comme poison has pervaded my veins. The result is unresistance. And the hindsight that sometimes it's love at second sight.
/HORST