Premiere: Alexander Wang's first campaign video.
Jackie O's jewels are up for auction.
Naomi's take on trial — it's really not an "inconvenience."
Proenza Schouler launches its first campaign.
Joe Zee is headed for more TV.
>> There's more TV coming up from Joe Zee. In addition to his regular appearances on MTV's The City, Zee is getting a new show, All On the Line, to be aired on the Sundance Channel in 2011.
Each of the show's eight episodes will portray a new fashion designer in crisis, with Zee stepping in to provide "tough love" and "make or break [the designer's] dreams," according to the Sundance Channel. Zee, who will serve as a mentor to the designers and host of the show, will help the designers fix the problems with their collections and prepare to present for a buyer. “It’s about helping them get to the next level,” Zee said. “I will be here to lend my expertise." The program is in the middle of casting, according to Zee, who will also serve as a producer for the show.
Last night was a disco glam sort of night. Armani Exchange and Elle magazine threw a soiree dubbed "Disco Glam" at the A|X store in West Hollywood. Stylish guests like Rachel Zoe, Gabrielle Union, and Eva Amurri mixed and mingled, and Dragonette performed — fun times. Elle's latest June issue, with Kristen Stewart on the cover, was also on hand for fashion-loving guests to peruse. Enter to see who else showed up and what they wore.
>> Fashion Magazines Reportedly Have to Censor Images for iPad —Apple policy is affecting how fashion magazines translate their nude images onto the iPad: nipples (and other flashes of flesh deemed too revealing) apparently have to be censored. Shiny Shiny reports: "A [Dazed & Confused] insider revealed that the mag's iPad edition has been nicknamed the Iran edition by the people putting it together, given the parallels between censorship in the Muslim theocracy and the iTunes store." Meanwhile, on a related note, Joe Zee Tweeted this morning that Elle will be available on iPad in the Fall. [The Cut, Shiny Shiny, @mrjoezee]
>> Speculation: Vogue Publisher Tom Florio Hired Rival Elle Publisher Carol Smith to Protect His Interests —There was speculation yesterday about why longtime Elle SVP Carol Smith was hired at Conde Nast by Vogue SVP and publishing director Tom Florio, but now, it turns out there may be further ulterior motives. Elle finished last year with more advertising pages than Vogue (2,082 to 1,988) — although WWD notes the numbers may have come at the expense of revenue — and insiders report that Florio was heard saying, "The best offense is a good defense,” regarding hiring one of his biggest rivals, personally and with regards to Vogue. Meanwhile, Joe Zee Tweeted of the news of Smith's move: "I was told 2010 is the year of change. Change at ELLE today and I am heartbroken about it." [WWD, @mrjoezee]
>> Documentary in the Works on Stylist and Fashion Editor Polly Mellen —The wealth of recent fashion documentaries continues to grow — Bill Cunningham New York, a project ten years in the making on the original street style photographer just premiered recently in New York, and at the end of this month Ultrasuede: In Search of Halston, a documentary look at Halston (and whose director looked to Andre Leon Talley for guidance on who to interview and what to research) will premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. And it doesn't stop there: last night at the WFIT Elle panel, in talking about his first job assisting Polly Mellen (who worked for 28 years as a fashion editor at Vogue and eight years as creative director at Allure) Joe Zee revealed that he was interviewed this week for a forthcoming documentary on Mellen.
>> Elle's fashion news director Anne Slowey has sounded off on bloggers — particularly Style Rookie's Tavi Gevinson, before — which then prompted her to take to Elle's blog to further expound on her comments. Last night at ELLEvated, a forum of six Elle editors hosted by WFIT (the Fashion Institute of Technology's radio and television broadcasting network) in New York, the subject came up again, and creative director Joe Zee and style director Kate Lanphear, too, put forth their views on bloggers.
When asked his feeling on the Tavi phenomenon, Zee replied:
"The Internet has allowed people to be 'couch critics.' You could sit anywhere in the world, you could sit in Oklahoma, look at a fashion show on the Internet, you could post your thoughts . . . the Internet has made fashion a lot more democratic in this way. You know, Tavi, like her or don't like her, she's 13 — whether she even really writes it herself, the idea that she has gotten all this attention, it's because of the Internet, not because of anything else. [At Elle] we're talking about people who have really done this their entire lives, who've really covered fashion, who really understand fashion . . . understand the history of fashion, can critique it from a point of view, [can] actually relay it back to something they've experienced and understand. I don't think Tavi even knows what happened five years ago. She has every right to [post] on the Internet, she has every right to have the following she has . . . everybody can follow her and find her creative or funny or quirky or inspiring, but the idea is there are people here [at Elle] who do know the history and I think that Anne [Slowey] stresses this. It's absolutely true: if you don't know what you're talking about, then do you really have the credibility to talk about it?"
>> While the new W editor-in-chief could be announced as early as today and Stefano Tonchi seems to be the man for the job, the New York Post reports that former W fashion director (and current Elle creative director) Joe Zee is "in a neck and neck race" with Tonchi. Meanwhile, Fashion Week Daily has a full list of potentials for the job — Tonchi, Zee, Carine Roitfeld, Kate Betts, Katie Grand.
But what about the rest of the W staff? The Daily reports that the departure of W editor and editorial director Patrick McCarthy came as a shock, and so far, there has not been a formal staff meeting about all the changes. The Daily's sources are convinced that creative director Dennis Freedman, design director Edward Leida, and fashion director Alex White will all leave the magazine — and possibly deputy editor Julie Belcove, who is said to be "a wreck," as well.
Meanwhile, The Daily is surmising that W senior contributing fashion editor could stay on as fashion director, and Tonchi's close friend Anne Slowey, Elle's fashion news director, is a top contender for executive editor at W (or perhaps Tonchi's position at T).
>> After the New York Times article two weeks ago extensively covering Zac Posen's recent financial struggles, needless to say, eyes were peeled this morning bright and early at the Altman building for Posen's Fall 2010 plan of attack. Glenda Bailey, which the aforementioned article noted was not in attendance at Posen's show last season after they had a confrontation last April, was front row this time around, as were Posen's advertising photog Ellen von Unwerth, Patricia Field, Anna Wintour, Grace Coddington, Joe Zee, and Robbie Myers.
As the lights dimmed and runway photographers scrambled for their places, Israeli "hip-hop violinist" Miri Ben-Ari stepped from backstage to the left side of the runway, where she played her electric violin throughout the show, backed by a thumping bass. Despite the fact that Posen is still going with a pared-down runway in general, the performance added the energy of his elaborate productions of yore. The models, too — including Alek Wek, Hana Soukupova, Anne Vyalitsyna, Posen's muse Anna Cleveland, and Coco Rocha, who closed — were clearly told to smile and work the runway; Sessilee Lopez, hands on her waist, swung her hips with satisfaction. Posen's boyfriend, Christopher Niquet, styled the show.
The clothes, however, were telltale that Posen is making an effort to resituate himself: there were none of his signature gowns whatsoever. In their place, short skirts with flounce, '40-style trousers, and plenty of fur. "I'm playing with clean fabrications and upping the luxury level," he said backstage after taking his bow with Rocha and Kinee Diouf.
>> Snowstorm May Keep Some of the Industry Away from Beginning of New York Fashion Week —If your favorite model is missing on the first day of Fashion Week shows, snow may be to blame. New York experienced a snowstorm last night and well into this morning, and because of it, the Fashion Week crowds may be thinned out for the first day or so. Marilyn Agency reports: "No models will be flying in today to NY! 'No flights coming in, none going out' Thankfully most of ours are already here..." Elle's Joe Zee is in Los Angeles and was on the phone with American Airlines this morning about his flight back to New York today. But Sasha Pivovarova fans, rejoice: she caught the only flight to New York from London Heathrow that wasn't canceled today. [@MarilynAgencyNY, @mrjoezee, @evachen212, @evachen212]
