Memories of Kaiser Karl

Karl Lagerfeld at one of his Chanel shows recreating a French bistro

Towards the end of dinner this evening, my friend looked at her phone and saw a news alert that designer Karl Lagerfeld had died at the age of 85.

It was a shock to hear the news -- I remember watching him on Fashion Television in the late 80s and early 90s talking a mile a minute about how he made fashion relevant or how women wanted strong-looking clothes in the office or how they wanted to be feminine looking or how women wanted clothes to make them feel comfortable.

Back in the early 1990s with supermodels wearing Chanel

These sound bites rattled off his tongue and fashion correspondents lapped it up because he was considered the genius to reinvented Chanel from 1983 into the power fashion house it is today, while keeping Fendi still relevant despite the trend of moving away from wearing fur.

When I first started watching him on TV he already had greying hair -- and yet he kept working 30 years later, averaging a staggering 14 collections a year. How do you come up with so many ideas for so many collections?

That didn't seem to be a problem for him when it came to Chanel, as he continually riffed off the boucle fabric, the interlinking "Cs" and the multiple strands of pearls. He made the iconic boxy jackets into biker ones, or harked back to Coco Chanel's days or paired them with tulle skirts or leather minis.

I was just in awe of the myriad of combinations he would think of and yet each piece would have some kind of Chanel DNA in them.

Lagerfeld recreated a beach for his spring/summer collection

In the last several years he came up with more grandiose ideas of how to present his collections. One time he recreated a bistro in Paris, a supermarket even with Chanel-branded food products on the shelves, or what about trucking in tons of sand to recreate a beach...

Meanwhile Fendi is a brand I am not so familiar with, but he has had a long association with it since 1965! He would experiment with fur, shaving it, dyeing them, creating new textures and colours with them. Customers lapped it up, along with the baguette bag, which has made a comeback in different sizes.

Fashion never really changes, but just enough that you're lusting for the latest one...

He even made a Chanel-themed supermarket for a catwalk

Lagerfeld introduced me to the world of fashion -- it seemed glamorous and beautiful to a young person -- and how the clothes, particularly haute couture were made. He gave me a new appreciation for this art form and that it was important to keep couture alive.

While the German had a quirky personality, he anchored fashion for decades and has left behind a giant hole of creativity. Lagerfeld will be missed.

Guo Pei's Fantastical Fashion

Nothing short of wow... Guo Pei's weight-bearing long coat with embroidery

After two days of sun it was back to rainy weather in Vancouver. But that's OK because we had planned to go downtown to the Vancouver Art Gallery to check out the current exhibition, Guo Pei: Couture Beyond that is on until January 20.

Layers of organza give volume to this whimsical dress

When it opened in mid-October, it coincided with the Vancouver premiere of the documentary Yellow is Forbidden, which follows Guo preparing for her haute couture show in Paris, and how she became a fashion designer.

She was born at the beginning of the Cultural Revolution and learned how to sew at a very young age from her mother, but Guo didn't know there was such a thing as fashion, with everyone wearing the same dull Mao suits.

"When I was little, I didn't know what fashion was. The word didn't exist," says Guo in Yellow is Forbidden. "My Granny told me many stories about embroidery, what people wore in the palace, and I would fantasize about that. When I was eight years old, I asked Granny for a yellow dress, and she got very angry at me. She said, 'Yellow is forbidden'."

Guo later studied at Beijing's Second Light Industry School, graduating in 1986 and worked for a Chinese clothing manufacturer before launching her brand Rose Studio with her husband in 1997.

The "omelette" dress made famous by Rihanna in 2015

The exhibition features pieces from 2006 to 2017 and yes it includes that 25kg yellow dress with fox fur trim Rihanna wore to the 2015 China-themed Met Gala that put Guo in the global spotlight.

Looking at the pieces you can see Guo's fantastical imagination and you can't help but be in awe of both the design and the execution particularly in terms of the embroidery and beading. It is absolutely amazing how much work was poured into each outfit.

She has teams of some 500 artisans working with her in Beijing, training and learning from her. Apparently in the documentary, couture organizers weren't sure who Guo was because many fashion designers are usually the ones barking directions.

A dress as ornate as a Faberge egg

It's interesting to see her interpretation of religious iconography like the cross and royal symbols, as she has no strong connection or association with them. She freely uses bejewelled crosses to embellish crowns or even a headdress that looks like a human-sized Faberge egg with the model's head peeping through. Inside it's far from plain -- there are layers and layers of beading that are incredible.

One section was on Guo's reinterpretation of wedding dresses. Traditionally in China they are red, while in the West they are white, and so why not a completely white beaded Chinese wedding dress complete with buttons with 喜喜 or double happiness characters.

Another had a western scalloped neck with traditional Chinese floral embroidery that was gorgeous, complemented with sleeves decorated with long strings of gold beads, like a flapper dress.

That yellow dress was magnificent and yes it did look like a fancy omelette, but we preferred the turquoise embroidered coat and dress, the coat with massive long sleeves and a fur trim that needed assistants to help carry it. Now that's an entrance.

Why not a white beaded wedding gown?

The embroidery for each piece was different, colourful and dynamic -- the designs were hardly staid or routine. Many were long dresses, but there were some with pants, others using a kind of ribbon-like fabric to sculpt the skirt, or creating new shapes altogether.

It wasn't just the outfits themselves that were jaw-dropping. Guo also accessorized each piece with dazzling headdresses such as crowns or chunky jewellery around the neck or fingers, and even platform shoes that echoed those worn by women in the Imperial Palace.

The exhibition also has a video of Guo's fashion shows and you wonder how these models managed to walk the catwalk without falling over! In the documentary trailer, at one point someone says the models have to be athletes to be able to wear her clothes because they are so weighed down by the embroidery and beading.

Some of the pieces at first glance look very western, but look closer and there are some fine Chinese flourishes. Many of them look very regal, elegant and sophisticated, others are interesting experiments in shapes, textures and colours.

Curvaceous shapes created from this sculptural fabric

Being able to examine these pieces up close is very rare for haute couture, so it's a fun opportunity to see these ones in particular. They immediately make you appreciate the tens of thousands of hours put into each piece with so many people working on each one in tandem, with Guo as the visionary and conductor.

We left the show feeling in awe and proud of what Guo has accomplished -- the first Chinese to be invited to become a guest member of the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, and creating pieces she has always wanted to do.

Guo Pei: Beyond Couture
Until January 20, 2019
Vancouver Art Gallery

Chanel Up Close

A beautifully encrusted Chanel haute couture dress

Tonight after dinner, my friend and I happened to be near PMQ or Police Married Quarters on Aberdeen Street above Hollywood Road, when I remembered there was a Coco Chanel exhibition there. Lucky we caught it because it closes tomorrow!

When we arrived there wasn't much of a line, though we had to scan a QR code and tediously register online in order to get in free of charge. The first part of the show featured local artists' interpretation of the legendary Paris-based designer.

This white wedding top is completely beaded

While it's nice to have these kinds of overseas shows invite local artists to participate, the pieces themselves seemed forced... perhaps because the local artists have no affiliation with a brand that makes zillions of dollars from fashion slaves.

Then we walked inside a room where you could smell the different essential oils that go into making Chanel No. 5 perfume and when we walked out we wondered if that was it. But thankfully it wasn't, though it meant walking up several flights of stairs to get to an exhibition showing a few select haute couture pieces up close.

They were presented behind several sheets of muslin (white fabric used to make the first draft in tailoring) and a rectangular hole cut through them for viewers to "peek" inside the atelier.

Some of them had very intricate beading like the top underneath a white wedding jacket, or a dark navy dress encrusted with sparkles. There was also a selection of little black dresses that revealed the outer shells to show fashion fans how intricate the sewing was, but also indicate how many man hours went into each outfit, which was in the hundreds.

890 hours of work went into this black dress

It's almost as if Karl Lagerfeld wants to challenge the haute couture staff into doing the most tedious work to deadline, but in reality fashion is a business and these pieces are a way to lure clients to order these one-of-a-kind dresses.

One that I liked required 890 hours of work into it. Thin organza black strips were carefully sewn either horizontally or vertically -- definitely a daunting task not everyone would have the patience for.

There were also some high jewellery featuring lots of small diamonds to create glittering pieces that would turn heads, including one of a carved lion signifying the leo constellation that stands on top of a shooting star.

At the end there is a very short film that Lagerfeld made in 2015 featuring himself and Geraldine Chaplin as Gabrielle Chanel. She wakes up in her Paris salon and goes upstairs to find Lagerfeld there and the two have a feisty debate about how things have changed since she died, but she still doesn't approve of what he has done with the label.

Chanel's favourite leo on a shooting star

It's a funny finish, but then we are handed a cloth bag and a poster -- of Lily Rose Depp -- Johnny Depp's daughter with a tiara on her head... what does that mean? Hardly a souvenir we want to keep!

Mademoiselle Prive Hong Kong

Until February 10, 2018

PMQ

35 Aberdeen Street

Hong Kong

Fashion and Design, Handmade and Machine

A Dior dress on the left, Alexander McQueen on right

Today I went to see the annual fashion-related exhibition at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. This year it's called "Manus x Machina: Fashion in an age of Technology". It showcases handmade clothes and those made by machine, from the 1920s until today.

They were divided into different sections focusing on lace, sequins, artificial flowers, feathers and beading, presented in a white austere looking room with mini arches that almost had a religious feeling, like worshipping the best of fashion.

Gareth Pugh's outfit made with sraws

Some had interesting juxtapositions, like a 1920s Chanel sequinned evening dress, and then two others of similar styles but from the 1990s and 2000s next to it to show how technology has enabled designers to make 3-D printed outfits.

There were some outfits that were totally out there -- like a dress made completely of black drinking straws that were individually hand sewn onto the fabric. Another was a black dress that had white delicate tulip-like flowers coming out of the dress and the edges of the petals connected with each other to create a kind of bubble over the black dress.

Admittedly I preferred many of the older designs, that were so elegant and stylish even today, while the newer ones seemed to be only made possible with technology, or used it to prove how far they could go in pushing design forward.

Many brand names were featured, from Chanel and Dior to Alexander McQueen, Prada and Yoji Yamamoto. There were a few Chanel wedding dresses designed by Karl Lagerfeld, one a winter dress that was covered in white sequins and camelias.

Ethereal wedding dress from Chanel

The highlight of the show was another wedding dress designed by Lagerfeld with a very long 20-foot-train covered in the most intricate beading with sequins and pearls in a computer-generated design, while the dress itself is relatively simple. My friend said it was the perfect outfit to wear for your coronation.

While we liked the outfits, and how they were put together, the atmosphere didn't encourage people to celebrate and have fun with the fashion. Instead it just felt very serious and almost austere.

What a pity, with such gorgeous clothes, to not be warm and inviting, and inspire the next generation of designers to push boundaries even further.

I missed last year's exhibition that was fashion inspired by China that I heard was a very good show, but my yardstick is the Alexander McQueen one that fascinated and amazed us with his creativity and innovation.

Avant garde Iris van Herpen

Manus x Machina: Fashion in the Age of Technology

Until August 14

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

1000 Fifth Avenue

New York

Tel: (212) 535 7710

Dior Then and Now

Raf Simons impressed by how Dior's archival pieces are still so modern

I am mesmerized by designer Raf Simons' eyes. They are so clear and bright -- an intelligent person who has the smarts and optimism to get through life.

In Dior and I, director Frederic Tcheng follows Simons from the first day he meets the team of couturiers at Christian Dior, the people behind the dazzling haute couture pieces, to eight weeks later when he presents his first collection.

Simons is understandably anxious -- no one has only two months to put a collection together -- and on top of that transition from doing ready-to-wear to haute couture. There are language and cultural barriers, but the atelier is used to creative directors coming and going, and they take it all in stride.

Simons' fresh floral take on Dior's feminine silhouettes

Some have been there for decades, and they have magical skills to turn fabric into gorgeous suits, dresses, tops and skirts, the tailoring perfect. Even down to the last minute they are carefully hand-sewing things -- a group of them overnight if need be.

They love what they do and are there to serve not only the creative director of the moment, but also honour the spirit of Monsieur Dior. They love the idea of working for the fashion house, the history, but also the grandeur associated with the name.

With time quickly ticking away, Simons decides to pay homage to Monsieur Dior by taking the founder's classic pieces and style and reinterpreting them with innovative fabrics and modern touches.

It turns out the Belgian's style is very similar to Dior's -- as Tcheng cleverly picks out passages from Dior's memoirs and has them read out as voice overs, reminiscing about presenting his first collection at the age of 41, the frustrations, the tears, anxiety and excitement.

Simons uses Sterling Ruby's paintings to make his pieces

We see Simons with flashes of brilliance -- taking artist Sterling Ruby's paintings and making fabrics out of them, and deciding that the space where the fashion show will be held will have walls completely covered in flowers, an inspiration from Jeff Koon's floral Puppy, but also from Dior's childhood home as well.

In the end it comes together and the audience is mesmerized by the sumptuous designs that are feminine and sexy, silhouettes that are reminiscent of Monsieur Dior and yet have a modern touch.

They are not just Simons' ideas, but of the entire atelier -- it was them who translated the sketches into three-dimensional designs that take exceptional talent and experience to pull off. Interestingly the atelier are impressed by the accuracy of Simon's team's sketches, down to the millimetre, though haute couture is a work in progress, as they literally work on a model to figure out exactly what they want to do.

As a result Dior and I gives the general public insight into what it takes to put a collection together, as well as have greater appreciation for haute couture. They cost tens of thousands of US dollars to make, and so they are a form of art.

But throughout it all, it's Simons' eyes that show his emotions -- he is honest and scared, elated and frustrated.

Some criticisms of the documentary are that there was no context, that Simons was coming to Dior after John Galliano was fired in 2011 for making drunken racist slurs in a bar.

However, one could argue that kind of context could detract from Simons' story, and focusing it on him and Monsieur Dior is already a good contrast and interesting story to tell.