philippe.pourhashemi

HERE ARE 9 TALENTED FEMALE DESIGNERS WHO ARE SHAPING THE WAY WE LOOK AT FASHION TODAY. WITH THEIR SIGNATURE AESTHETICS, STRONG VALUES, DISTINCTIVE VOICE AND INNOVATIVE USE OF TECHNIQUE, THEY HAVE ALL PAVED THE WAY FOR MORE WOMEN TO BECOME ENTREPRENEURS AND LAUNCH THEIR OWN BRANDS. IN MY OPINION, THEY SHOULD ALSO BE CONSIDERED -AND OFFERED- TO LEAD TOP HOUSES IN FASHION, BUT IT SEEMS THAT OUR INDUSTRY STILL DOESN'T GIVE WOMEN THE SAME CHANCES AS MEN. INSTEAD, WE HAVE THE LIKES OF SABATO DE SARNO AT GUCCI AND SEAN MCGIRR AT MCQUEEN, DOING WHAT CAN ONLY BE DESCRIBED AS MEDIOCRE WORK. IT IS PERHAPS WORTH MENTIONING HERE THAT KIM JONES' WOMENSWEAR AT FENDI WAS A COMPLETE MESS, ESPECIALLY HIS DOWDY 'MOTHER OF THE BRIDE' COUTURE SHOWS. AND LET'S NOT FORGET THAT LUDOVIC DE SAINT SERNIN DIDN'T EVEN LAST 6 MONTHS AT ANN DEMEULEMEESTER, ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL BRAND FOUNDED BY A WOMAN. SO WHY IS FASHION SO FIXATED ON THE CULT OF THE YOUNG GAY MALE DESIGNER? SORRY TO RUIN YOUR PYGMALION PARTY FOLKS, BUT YVES SAINT LAURENT WAS ONE OF A KIND, AND THERE IS NO POINT CHASING THAT MYTH IN THE 21ST CENTURY. I'M AFRAID IT'S GOING TO TAKE A LOT MORE THAN A SARAH BURTON OR LOUISE TROTTER TO ADDRESS -AND EVENTUALLY DISMANTLE- THE GAY LOBBYING THAT PERMEATES OUR INDUSTRY. THIS YEAR, I WAS SHOCKED -AND FURIOUS- TO HEAR FEMALE DESIGNERS TELLING ME IN INTERVIEWS THAT BEING A WOMAN IN FASHION IS CLEARLY A DISADVANTAGE. THIS NEEDS TO END, AND I WILL DO MY BEST NEXT YEAR TO SUPPORT MORE WOMEN IN FASHION, BECAUSE IT TAKES A LOT OF COURAGE, GUTS, DETERMINATION -AND BALLS- TO FIGHT THAT KIND OF SYSTEMIC INJUSTICE.

ANOTHER WHITE GAY MAN, APPOINTED AT A MAJOR LUXURY HOUSE FOUNDED BY A WOMAN?? GROUNDBREAKING...

THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BEARGEOISIE

IN JULY 1993, FRENCH DESIGNER CLAUDE MONTANA MARRIED LONG-TIME MUSE AND AMERICAN MODEL WALLIS FRANKEN. I REMEMBER FINDING THAT WEDDING PARTICULARLY ODD AS A TEENAGER, BECAUSE EVERYONE KNEW ABOUT CLAUDE'S SEXUALITY AND THAT HIS COMPANY WASN'T DOING WELL AT THE TIME. HIS STYLE WAS NO LONGER AS EDGY OR INFLUENTIAL AS IT USED TO BE, AND SOME FASHION INSIDERS EVEN GOSSIPED THE WEDDING WAS A SORDID PR COUP IN ORDER TO SAVE THE BRAND FROM COMPLETE OBLIVION. THAT WEDDING SEEMED, IN FACT, SO FAKE AND CONSTRUCTED THAT IT VERGED ON THE FARCICAL. MORE THAN THREE DECADES LATER, I CAN'T STOP THINKING ABOUT THAT EVENT AND HOW MONTANA'S LIFE AND CAREER FELL APART AFTERWARDS. WALLIS TRAGICALLY DIED IN MAY 1996, AND IT SEEMS THAT CLAUDE NEVER RECOVERED. YES, THEIR RELATIONSHIP WAS CLEARLY TOXIC, FILLED WITH LIES, FIGHTS, VIOLENCE AND DRUGS, BUT DOES THIS MEAN THERE WAS NO LOVE BETWEEN THEM? WHEN ALL YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH IS ABUSIVE PARTNERS, IT BECOMES INCREASINGLY HARD TO SEPARATE LOVE AND CARE FROM AN ONGOING TOXIC STATE. I OFTEN THINK OF WALLIS AND CLAUDE AS THE RIMBAUD AND VERLAINE OF CONTEMPORARY FASHION, BOTH TERRIBLY GIFTED AND CHARISMATIC, YET SO INCREDIBLY WRONG FOR EACH OTHER. AT FIRST I THOUGHT MY FASCINATION WITH THIS WEDDING CAME FROM HOW SILLY, GROTESQUE AND RIDICULOUS IT SEEMED, BUT NOW I WONDER IF IN ALL ITS FAKENESS THAT MOMENT HAD NOT REACHED SOME SORT OF FUNDAMENTAL TRUTH. AND THAT TRUTH IS THAT NO MATTER HOW BAD AND DESTRUCTIVE WE KNOW SOME PEOPLE ARE, PUSHING THEM AWAY IS BEYOND OUR CONTROL.

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN ROOMS SURROUNDED WITH PEOPLE WHO PERFORM FOR OTHERS, INSTEAD OF BEING THEIR TRUE SELVES? HAVE YOU EVER FOUND YOURSELF MOVED AND ANIMATED BY A PASSION SO STRONG THAT YOUR HANDS AND FINGERS START DANCING WHEN YOU TALK? AND HAVE YOU EVER FELT INCANDESCENT, AS IF EVERYONE ELSE AROUND YOU BECAME RESIGNED AND LUKEWARM, WITH NO BATTLES TO FIGHT OR IDEAL TO BELIEVE IN? MY LOVE FOR FASHION IS DEEP AND GOES BACK TO MY CHILDHOOD. THERE ARE LOTS OF LIARS, OPPORTUNISTS AND FAKE PEOPLE IN THIS INDUSTRY. THEY CONSTRUCTED THIS IMAGE AND PERSONA, WHICH CAN HARDLY CONCEAL THEIR INNER VOID. LIKE EMPTY SHELLS, THEY'RE DESPERATE NARCISSISTS THAT WILL GLADLY EXPLOIT AND MANIPULATE YOU WHILE PRETENDING THEY CARE AND ADORE YOU. IN MY ONGOING SEARCH FOR MEANING, I'VE HAD TO DEAL WITH MANY OF THOSE TOXIC INDIVIDUALS. THEY ARE NECESSARY AND EVEN IMPORTANT IN MY LIFE. I'VE HAD TO CONFRONT THEM SO OFTEN I CAN ALMOST SMELL THEM. IT'S FUNNY HOW WHEN YOU ARE SINCERE, AUTHENTIC AND GENUINE, YOU MAKE THOSE PEOPLE NERVOUS AND UNCOMFORTABLE. IN ROOMS WHERE I SEE OTHERS PERFORM THEIR ROUTINE FAKENESS, MY PASSION BURNS BRIGHTER AND I GET TO COME ALIVE. IN THE END, THE AUDIENCE CAN ALWAYS TELL WHO COMES FROM A PLACE OF TRUTH, AND WHO SIMPLY DOESN'T. MY NAME IS PHILIPPE AND I'M A FIRE DRAGON.

THE MORE POLITICAL AND SOCIALLY MINDED FASHION WANTS TO APPEAR, THE STRONGER ITS INTERNAL GUILT-TRIPPING BECOMES. YES, THE FASHION INDUSTRY HAS COUNTLESS REASONS TO FEEL ASHAMED. IT HARMS THE ENVIRONMENT, WHILE ENCOURAGING OVERPRODUCTION AND UNNECESSARY CONSUMPTION. ITS RHETORIC PROMOTES DIVERSITY, FAIRNESS AND INCLUSIVENESS, BUT NEPOTISM HAS NEVER BEEN AS HOT AND POWERFUL AS IT IS NOW. HAVING MONEY, A FAMOUS FAMILY NAME AND THE RIGHT CONNECTIONS MATTERS MORE THAN GENIUS OR INCREDIBLE TALENT. ALL FASHION WANTS TODAY IS TO ENTERTAIN US AND GRAB OUR ATTENTION WITH SILLY -AND INSTANTLY FORGETTABLE- GIMMICKS, PERHAPS BECAUSE IT LACKS SUBSTANCE, DEPTH AND INTELLIGENCE. FASHION IS VACANT, STUPID, DUMB, SHALLOW AND TEDIOUS. AND YET, I CANNOT STOP LOVING IT. WHEN I THINK OF HOW MUCH TIME, ENERGY, IDEAS AND RESOURCES DESIGNERS USE TO MAKE SOMETHING THAT IS BOUND TO OBLIVION AND OBSOLESCENCE, I FIND IT SO MOVINGLY POETIC AND EXTRAORDINARY. ISN'T BEAUTY ONE OF LIFE'S GREATEST REWARDS? AND WHY SHOULD FASHION HAVE TO JUSTIFY ITSELF TO THE WORLD? WHAT ABOUT THE JOY, PLEASURE, FANTASY AND EXCITEMENT IT BRINGS TO OUR DAILY LIFE? AREN'T THEY IMPORTANT, TOO? AND SHOULD WE SIMPLY BANISH DESIGNER FASHION, BECAUSE IT GENERATES WASTE AND CAN NEVER BE SUSTAINABLE? THE DARKER OUR WORLD IS, THE MORE RELEVANT FRIVOLITY BECOMES. FRIVOLITY IS A FORM OF RESISTANCE, AND FASHION REMAINS AN ODE TO FUTILITY. INSTEAD OF LOADING IT WITH MEANINGS AND MESSAGES IT'S NEVER HAD, WE SHOULD ACCEPT THAT -DEEP DOWN- FASHION IS PURE SEDUCTION. AND THE ACT OF SEDUCING OTHERS ISN'T ALWAYS MORAL.

CASUAL WEDNESDAY

OVER THE PAST FEW DAYS, KEY WORLD EVENTS HAVE TRIGGERED A DEEP SENSE OF ALIENATION IN ME THAT I HAD NOT EXPERIENCED IN YEARS. HOWEVER HARD I TRY, I CANNOT DISTANCE MYSELF FROM WHAT'S GOING ON AROUND ME, AND I'M PROBABLY NOT THE ONLY ONE. WHEN IT COMES TO REALITY, THERE IS NO SAFE PLACE TO RUN TO, AND WE ALL HAVE TO FIGHT OUR OWN BATTLES IN ORDER TO REACH SOME KIND OF TRUTH. GOING THROUGH THOSE EMOTIONS CAN BE PAINFUL, BLEAK AND MOSTLY HORRIBLE, BUT I BELIEVE THAT CHAOS IS NECESSARY IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND AND EVALUATE WHAT TRULY MATTERS IN LIFE. THIS IS A MOMENT IN HISTORY WHERE DISORDER AND THE ABSURD SEEM TO RULE AND THRIVE. WE ARE CONFRONTED WITH INCREASING MEANINGLESSNESS, LIES, IDIOCY, IGNORANCE AND MEDIOCRITY. WHEN I FEEL DISTRESSED, I ALWAYS GO BACK TO LANGUAGE AS A SOURCE OF POWER AND ENLIGHTENMENT. THERE IS NO CLARITY WITHOUT DARKNESS, AND THERE IS NO GENUINE APPRECIATION OF LOVE WITHOUT THE SUFFERING OF LONELINESS. THROUGHOUT MY CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE, I HAVE EXPERIENCED ABSENCE AND ISOLATION ON ALL KINDS OF LEVELS. THIS SENSE OF EMPTINESS IS SOMETHING I'VE HAD IN ME FOR A VERY LONG TIME, BUT I FOUND PRODUCTIVE WAYS TO DEAL WITH THAT VOID. WRITING IS ONE OF THEM, AND MY LOVE FOR FASHION IS ANOTHER. OVER THE YEARS, I LEARNED THAT BEING OF SERVICE TO OTHERS WHILE DEDICATING LIFE TO MY GREATEST PASSIONS GAVE ME INCREDIBLE JOY. I UNDERSTOOD THAT GENEROSITY IS A WONDERFUL SOURCE OF ENERGY, AND THAT WHEN YOU ARE SELFLESS LIFE TENDS TO REWARD YOU MORE. AND I ALSO LEARNED THAT LOVE IS COMPLETE AND UNCONDITIONAL PRESENCE. THE BEST WAY TO COME TO TERMS WITH LACK AND ABSENCE IS TO BE FULLY THERE FOR OTHERS. IRONICALLY, I'VE OFTEN HAD A HARD TIME ASKING FOR HELP OR EVEN GUIDANCE, BUT I AM WORKING ON IT. AND ON NIGHTS LIKE THOSE, I COME OUT OF OBSCURITY TO SHARE A BRIEF -YET MEANINGFUL- INSTANT OF CLARITY.

ALMOST EVERY OTHER MONTH NOW, WE HEAR ABOUT YET ANOTHER CREATIVE DIRECTOR LEAVING A BRAND HE -OR SHE- HARDLY HAD ANY TIME -OR CHANCE- TO CRAFT A PROPER VISION FOR. PETER DO IS A GIFTED DESIGNER, AND I DON'T WORRY ABOUT HIS FUTURE, BUT SUCH FREQUENT CHANGES SEEM TO UNDERLINE A MUCH DEEPER MALAISE, WHICH HAS AFFECTED OUR INDUSTRY LATELY. INFLUENCER CULTURE MADE EVERYONE BELIEVE THAT FAME COMES OVERNIGHT, AND THAT HYPE COMBINED WITH A SIGNIFICANT SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE ARE BOTH GUARANTEES OF A LONG-TERM SUCCESS. THAT IS MAKE-BELIEVE, AND SOMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY EVERYBODY FORGOT HOW PATIENT, RELENTLESS AND HUMBLE YOU HAVE TO BE BEFORE GAINING ANY KIND OF CREDIBILITY IN THIS BUSINESS. I ALSO THINK THAT THERE IS NO POINT TRYING TO REPLICATE THE WORK OF HELMUT LANG IN A CONTEXT THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE ONE HE WAS PART OF AT THE START OF HIS CAREER. WHEN LANG LAUNCHED HIS OWN LABEL, CONCEPTUAL THINKING, INTELLIGENT CLOTHES AND MEANINGFUL GESTURES HAD REAL VALUE, AND WERE CONSIDERED MORE IMPORTANT THAN VACANT CELEBRITIES, EXTRAVAGANT RUNWAY SETS OR WHAT IS CURRENTLY REFERRED TO AS 'VIRAL MOMENTS'. YES, FASHION IS STUPID AND VAPID NOWADAYS, BECAUSE OUR WORLD IS RULED BY CLOWNS, NARCISSISTS, IGNORANTS AND LIARS. THE WORK THAT LANG WAS DOING BACK THEN WAS SMART, SUBTLE, INCREDIBLY NUANCED AND POETIC. UNFORTUNATELY, SUCH QUALITIES NO LONGER MATTER IN 2024, AND IF YOU DON'T JOIN THE FASHION CIRCUS AND ITS GROTESQUE LITTLE CLOWNS, YOU SHALL ALWAYS BE THE UNDERDOG.

I RECENTLY HAD THE PLEASURE TO INTERVIEW YOUNG BELGIAN DESIGNER MARIE ADAM-LEENAERDT FOR WBDM. TALKING TO HER -AND LISTENING TO HER OPINIONS- MADE ME EVEN MORE CURIOUS ABOUT HER WORK AND HOW IT REINTERPRETS BELGIAN CONCEPTUALISM IN A FRESH AND INNOVATIVE WAY. DURING OUR CONVERSATION, SHE CONFESSED THAT BEING A FEMALE DESIGNER WAS IN FACT A DISADVANTAGE, SOMETHING THAT SHE WASN'T AWARE OF WHEN SHE LAUNCHED HER OWN BRAND. SADLY, SHE IS NOT THE ONLY WOMAN WHO HAS SHARED THIS WITH ME LATELY, AND I CANNOT FATHOM THAT IN 2024 WOMEN ARE STILL CONSIDERED A MINORITY IN FASHION. THERE IS THIS ONGOING MYTH IN OUR INDUSTRY THAT GAY DESIGNERS ARE SUPERIOR TO OTHERS, AND THAT THEY HAVE THIS UNIQUE SENSIBILITY NOONE ELSE POSSESSES. IT'S ALL BULLSHIT, REALLY, AND AN EXCUSE FOR MEN TO KEEP THEIR OWN POWER, WHILE FEWER AND FEWER WOMEN BECOME CREATIVE DIRECTORS WITHIN HUGE CONGLOMERATES. NOW THAT A RACIST, CORRUPT AND SEXIST BULLY HAS BEEN ELECTED PRESIDENT OF ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD, WOMEN MUST CONTINUE TO FIGHT FOR THEIR RIGHTS AND DENOUNCE ABUSES OF POWER MEN ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR. THE FASHION WORLD WOULD PROBABLY BE A BETTER PLACE IF MEN LISTENED TO THEIR MINDS MORE, INSTEAD OF THEIR DICKS.

PUTTING YOU BACK WHERE YOU BELONG.

LA FORCE