Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld's Favorites - I Want To Be A Roitfeld

samedi

août212010

Serge Gainsbourg

samedi 21 août 2010

Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld considers his style idol to be Serge Gainsbourg, a true French original renowned as a singer, songwriter, and director among other talents. Gainsbourg lived the familiar life of the artist, tumultuous, passionate, impulsive. Notable among his numerous trysts are his third wife Jane Birkin and an ardent affair with Brigitte Bardot, the muse for his song "Initials BB." He has four children, Natacha, Paul, Charlotte, and Lucien.

The Vatican once publicly denounced Gainsbourg as offensive and of course as a result the song in question, "Je t'aime... moi non plus," quickly became a top ten hit in countries throughout Europe. He also pissed off Bob Marley and much of Algeria with a reggae version of "La Marseillaise" at another illustrious point in his career.

If you happen to be in the mood to explore the discography of Gainsbourg, permit me to recommend my favorites: "Requiem pour un con," "Sea, Sex, and Sun," but most of all the iconic "Bonnie and Clyde" which has inspired musicians like French rapper MC Solaar who samples it in the brilliant tune "Nouveau Western" from his album Prose Combat (1994). What are your favorite songs by Gainsbourg?

A film about Serge's life titled Gainsbourg (Vie héroïque) released in France in January. Written and directed by Joann Sfar, the biopic features Eric Elmosnino in the lead role, the late Lucy Gordon as Jane Birkin, Laetitia Casta as Brigitte Bardot, Anna Mouglalis as Juliette Gréco, and Claude Chabrol as Gainsbourg's music producer. If you saw the film, what were your impressions? Do you, like Vladimir, find the style of Serge Gainsbourg inspiring?

Serge Gainsbourg images courtesy of youtube.com and amazon.com

Update on mercredi 25 août 2010 by

kellina

Just read this fabulous quotation:

"Big breasts and lips. No! I hate those girls. I hate famous women. My ideal woman is Serge Gainsbourg. Not that he was a woman." — ISABEL MARANT

Can anyone detect a resemblance between Serge and Gio?

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mercredi

juil.212010

Richard Avedon

mercredi 21 juillet 2010

When asked to name his idols, Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld listed six: "Personally, my parents and my sister. Professionally, Tom Sachs, John Currin, and Richard Avedon for his photography." Avedon was an American photographer about whom The New York Times exalts, "His fashion and portrait photographs helped define America's image of style, beauty, and culture for the last half-century."

He began his career snapping ID photos for the Merchant Marines but somehow managed to capture the attention of Alexey Brodovitch, art director for Harper's Bazaar at that time. Avedon soon established his own studio and began selling photos to magazines such as Life. From the beginning, he refused to conform to the industry standard for fashion photography, instead catching his models in action and full of emotion.

In 1966, Avedon started shooting for Vogue and was responsible for most of the covers from 1973 until late 1988. He became known for his large-format portraits, typically in a minimalist style with the subject posed against a stark white backdrop looking directly into the lens.

None other than the amazing Audrey Hepburn inspired Avedon as his muse during the 1950s and 1960s; as he says, "I am, and forever will be, devastated by the gift of Audrey Hepburn before my camera. I cannot lift her to greater heights. She is already there. I can only record. I cannot interpret her. There is no going further than who she is. She has achieved in herself her ultimate portrait."

Avedon himself inspired the 1957 musical Funny Face, which stars Fred Astaire as the fashion photographer "Dick Avery." Clearly he provided many of the images used in the film as well including the most famous, an overexposed closeup of Hepburn in which we recognize the actress from just the details of her eyes, nose, and mouth. Note that Vladimir is not the only member of the Roitfeld family with fantastic taste in photographers, sister Julia is a fan as well with copies of Avedon's books Portraits and Woman in the Mirror in her library.

kellina |

Richard Hambleton

jeudi 27 mai 2010

Richard Hambleton is known as the godfather of street art and, thanks in part to the efforts of Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld, the artist is enjoying renewed popularity and success. A contemporary of artists that were germane to the New York City art scene such as Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat, Hambleton still lives and creates on Manhattan's Lower East Side.

Hambleton's work, like that of many artists, has gone through a number of distinct periods as his style developed. From 1976 to 1979, he was known for the concept that he called "Image Mass Murder" in which he created realistic homicide scenes complete with chalk outlines of the victims' bodies and splashes of red paint representing blood. The artist described his vision at the time thusly: “To me, the city is not a blank canvas. It’s a picture; a motion picture containing sociological and psychological elements. My urban work is added to and becomes a part of that picture... the blank canvas is in the studio. I give it deﬁnition, I work within its perimeters — I paint the entire picture....”

In the 1980s, Hambleton began to develop what he referred to as his "Shadowman" paintings, some of his most recognized work. The "Shadowman" series is a form of public art in which he would paint human-sized silhouettes on buildings, and in dark alleys, lurking on shadowy street corners with the intent to startle passersby. He even painted a Shadowman on the Berlin Wall. A variation on Hambleton's "shadow" theme was his "Marlboro Man" frequently painted atop a wildly bucking bronco; he was inspired by the depiction of the American hero in rugged Marlboro country, clearly a departure from his urban statements.

Hambleton next began working with transparent paint on metal to create "Beautiful Paintings," serene scenes that evoke a completely different mood than that of his prior art. "My 'Beautiful Paintings' are not landscapes, seascapes, or rainscapes — they are Escapes.” explains the artist, stating his intention with a capital "E" for emphasis. His expressive work has been exhibited in museums and galleries worldwide including twice at the Venice Biennale (1984 and 1988).

Note that the "Richard Hambleton—New York" show that Restoin-Roitfeld curated opened last September in conjunction with Fashion Week there; in March the Milan edition launched during Fashion Week in that city. After all, timing is key for events such as these. Well-timed they were because both shows sold out helping to cement Richard Hambleton's reputation as a modern artist in addition to Vlad's estimation as an art dealer. If you would like to learn more, watch the CNN video with Hambleton.

Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld, Richard Hambleton, Andy Valmorbida photograph courtesy of Milan Inside.

kellina |

Stavros Niarchos

dimanche 25 avril 2010

One of Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld's closest friends is Stavros Niarchos III, Greek shipping heir and international playboy. He was born in New York City and grew up in Paris. While he certainly has made some questionable choices in the dating game, Stavros looks to be a loyal friend. He and Vladimir attended University of Southern California together, strengthening the bond of friendship while studying and surfing in the sunshine and graduating the film school in May 2007. College was clearly a success, his occupation on his MySpace page reads "pro kite surfer."

Stavros has been on the guest list for every one of the art openings Vladimir has curated and I will wager a guess that he is also on the list of those to whom Vlad deals art. After all, his grandfather Stavros was esteemed as a private collector of fine art, particularly Impressionist and modern, considering it an important investment; he even had his portrait painted by Andy Warhol. Interesting footsteps in which to follow... another bond that he and Vladimir have in common.

Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld and Stavros Niarchos photograph courtesy of wwd.com
Carine Roitfeld and Stavros Niarchos photograph © 2009 Getty Images. All Rights Reserved.

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dimanche

mars282010

Coke

dimanche 28 mars 2010

The Roitfelds are certainly fans of the Coca-Cola family of beverages. Above we see Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld enjoying a can of the classic Coke while on a photo shoot for Flaunt Magazine. When his sister Julia Restoin-Roitfeld opened her Manhattan home to photographer Todd Selby, he stopped to zoom in on the can of Coke Zero on her sideboard pictured below. However, in the editorial for Russian Tatler shown Julia seems to be sipping a Diet Coke. My first thought upon noticing their preference for Coke was, "How American!" After researching the considerable history of the product, I discovered that Coke actually has French aspirations and an intriguing background.

Invented by John Pemberton in the late 19th century at the Eagle Drug and Chemical Company in Columbus, Georgia, it was initially called Pemberton's French Wine Cocoa and intended to compete with the popular European coca wines. When prohibition passed, Pemberton formulated a non-alcoholic version which he named Coca-Cola. The soft drink's two key ingredients were cocaine, derived from the coca leaf, and caffeine from the kola nut. With an estimated nine milligrams of cocaine per five cents a glass, Coca-Cola was extremely popular at soda fountains in the United States at the time due to the belief that carbonated water was good for the health. Huh, maybe the drink's enormous popularity was actually due to the cheap liquid cocaine in every glass... Even today, Coca-Cola uses a coca leaf extract as an ingredient that is free of active cocaine though trace amounts remain at a molecular level.

Coca-Cola was later bought by Asa Griggs Candler, whose marketing prowess led to the company's dominance of the international beverage market in the 20th century. The famous Coca-Cola logo was designed in 1885 by Pemberton's bookkeeper, Frank Mason Robinson. He conceived the name and chose the distinctive script for which the logo is renowned. The shape of the package known as the "contour bottle" is equally famous and was designed in 1915 by Earl R. Dean in response to design specifications that included the order to create a bottle so unique that it could be recognized if felt in the dark and distinguishable at a glance even if broken. Dean met this criteria by casting the design of the ribbed coca pod in the medium of glass and his work is still in production nearly 100 years later, a product designer could not hope for higher praise. Roberto Cavalli adapted his inspiring design for the limited edition animal skin versions seen below, perhaps with the leopard bottle even Carine can be coaxed to have a Coke and a smile...

Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld photograph © 2010 Flaunt Magazine. All Rights Reserved.
Photograph of Julia Restoin-Roitfeld's Coke Zero can © 2009 Todd Selby. All Rights Reserved.
Julia Restoin-Roitfeld image © 2009 Russian Tatler. All Rights Reserved.
Roberto Cavalli Coca-Cola bottle design courtesy of outnext.com.
Coke® is a registered trademark of The Coca-Cola Company.

Update on mercredi 7 avril 2010 by

kellina

I'm telling you, everyone's doing it... even Uncle Karl. Here is the design by Karl Lagerfeld drawn in his own silhouette for a special edition Coke Light bottle on sale now at Colette.