GOLF issue
aRUDE comment
ONLINE content
ARBITERS
Got Game Marisa Baena interview by Iké Udé
Large Arc Robert Baker interview by Iké Udé
MirrorMask Neil Gaiman interview by Brandon Judell
Cineman Chief at MOMA Jytte Jensen interview by Brandon Judell
Scents and Sensibility Chandler Burr interview by Lacy Crawford
The Supreme Tiger Tiger Woods profile by John Huggan
Building Bridges Bob Rubin interview by Nicholas Callaway
BEAUTY
Beauty Illustrated photography by Jamie Nelson
A Girl's Best Friend photography by Kimio Takeyama
BON APPETIT
Questions for Chanterelle's David Waltuck
Questions for Gualtiero Marchesi
Casati in Chocolate by Scot D. Ryersson & Michael Orlando Yaccarino
FASHION
Self Portrait Diane von Furstenberg Essay & interview by Iké Udé
Costume Change Harold Koda interview by Ralph Rucci
Hannah And Her Syster photography by Nicholas Callaway
KULTURE & ART CINEMA
The Boy From Oz Michel Wright interview by Brandon Judell
Eternal Tees Maggie Gyllenhall interview by Brandon Judell
Smart and Smarter Jeff Daniels interview by Brandon Judell
Happy Endings Lisa Kudrow interview by Brandon Judell
The Toronto Kid Norman Jewison interview by Brandon Judell
Family Values Natasha Richarson interview by Brandon Judell
LEGEND
Immortal Bobby Bobby Jones interview by Robert Green
The Quixotic Limelight Payne Stewart interview by Robert Green
Master and Peacock Walter Hagen interview by Robert Green
Eternal Optimist Gary Player interview by Cyril le Tonqueze
OFF THE WALL GREEN IS OUR COLOR
Pier Guerci
Robert F. Smith
REVIEW
aRUDE Comment by Iké Udé
Telescope A close-up of the stars, notables, scenesters and picturesque dilettantes
ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN
The Impresario's New Act Ian Schrager interview by Alex Ulam
Golf Landscapes
STYLE
Pardon Our Apparance Kangaroo, Lake karrinyup...
Element of Style aRUDE's template for style
Style File Robert Rufino
15 Minutes Plus Ragin Success Idris Mignott interview by Lola Ogunnaike
Fantasy & Simulacrum Giraffe, The Leopard Creek...
Le Girl
aRUDE comment
golf_issue_dvfurstenberg.php
ONLINE content
ARBITERS
Got Game Marisa Baena interview by Iké Udé
Large Arc Robert Baker interview by Iké Udé
MirrorMask Neil Gaiman interview by Brandon Judell
Cineman Chief at MOMA Jytte Jensen interview by Brandon Judell
Scents and Sensibility Chandler Burr interview by Lacy Crawford
The Supreme Tiger Tiger Woods profile by John Huggan
Building Bridges Bob Rubin interview by Nicholas Callaway
BEAUTY
Beauty Illustrated photography by Jamie Nelson
A Girl's Best Friend photography by Kimio Takeyama
BON APPETIT
Questions for Chanterelle's David Waltuck
Questions for Gualtiero Marchesi
Casati in Chocolate by Scot D. Ryersson & Michael Orlando Yaccarino
FASHION
Self Portrait Diane von Furstenberg Essay & interview by Iké Udé
Costume Change Harold Koda interview by Ralph Rucci
Hannah And Her Syster photography by Nicholas Callaway
KULTURE & ART CINEMA
The Boy From Oz Michel Wright interview by Brandon Judell
Eternal Tees Maggie Gyllenhall interview by Brandon Judell
Smart and Smarter Jeff Daniels interview by Brandon Judell
Happy Endings Lisa Kudrow interview by Brandon Judell
The Toronto Kid Norman Jewison interview by Brandon Judell
Family Values Natasha Richarson interview by Brandon Judell
LEGEND
Immortal Bobby Bobby Jones interview by Robert Green
The Quixotic Limelight Payne Stewart interview by Robert Green
Master and Peacock Walter Hagen interview by Robert Green
Eternal Optimist Gary Player interview by Cyril le Tonqueze
OFF THE WALL GREEN IS OUR COLOR
Pier Guerci
Robert F. Smith
REVIEW
aRUDE Comment by Iké Udé
Telescope A close-up of the stars, notables, scenesters and picturesque dilettantes
ARCHITECTURE & DESIGN
The Impresario's New Act Ian Schrager interview by Alex Ulam
Golf Landscapes
STYLE
Pardon Our Apparance Kangaroo, Lake karrinyup...
Element of Style aRUDE's template for style
Style File Robert Rufino
15 Minutes Plus Ragin Success Idris Mignott interview by Lola Ogunnaike
Fantasy & Simulacrum Giraffe, The Leopard Creek...
Le Girl
DIANE VON FURSTENBERG self portrait
interview Iké Udé
Diane von Furstenberg photography Helmut Newton click image to enlarge Iké Udé: What was it like for you to find yourself on the cover of Newsweek in 1976 at age 29?
Diane von Furstenberg: I was on the cover of Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal and Interview. I had only started to live in America six years earlier and had started my business four years before. Everything was happening sooo fast—I was really living the American Dream at a supersonic speed.
Iké: How did the legendary "wrap dress" happen?
DvF: It started as a little top first, like a ballerina wrap top, except that I added a collar and cuffs to the sleeves to make it more tailored. The top sold with a skirt and blew out of the stores…I then decided to turn the top into a dress…not thinking of course that it would become such an iconic piece.
Iké: Did it pose the same Herculean task that Thriller posed for Michael Jackson, in the sense that you couldn't top its massive success?
DvF: It became so successful that my partner wanted to do nothing but wrap dresses. We were making twenty thousand of them every week. Of course the market got saturated.
Iké: What followed afterwards, creatively, mentally, physically and otherwise?
CH: I separated from my partner, licensed my dress business to a large 7th Avenue company and decide to embark on the beauty business.
Iké: What prompted your comeback, your return to the game?
DvF: More than seventeen years later I discovered that the original wrap dress was in great demand in vintage shops and that the hip girls were buying them. Rose-Marie Bravo, then president of Saks, asked me to make them again for her store. I did, and to my surprise was in great demand by a whole new generation.
DvF: I was shy, hesitant and worried. But I paid attention to the girls who were buying them; even though I was much older, my brand was becoming a young brand. When I first started, I designed for the woman I wanted to become: a liberated, independent, engaged, seductive woman. I became that woman. And now I continue to design for that same woman, the woman I used to be and the woman I still am in many ways.
Iké: Did any of your best and worst pre-comeback experiences provide any help for you now?
DvF: What I did instinctively, I now do with experience. Both instinct and experience are important. Passion is key.
Iké: Today's fashion seems to have very little room for creative, gifted designers; it seems to have been hijacked by celebrities, anyone famous or infamous, rich or just rich enough. Your thoughts?
DvF: Celebrities have always created styles, the first one being the King of France, Louis XIV. In the end, the products are what count and create real long-term success.
Iké: Chanel's little black dress and your wrap dress don't happen often in any industry. Do you foresee a great talent coming up with a new simple iconic dress anytime soon?
DvF: Impossible to predict that…it is the mystery of fashion.
Diane von Furstenberg click image to enlarge Iké: What are your passions other than fashion?
DvF: Life is my passion—I love life, and I love to travel. For me, traveling and living are the same. You can travel without moving, by reading.
Iké: What did you show for the fall and how do you typically plan a collection?
DvF: For fall I showed a collection called "Winter Palace," inspired by the heroines of Russian literature. I design my own fabrics, so inspiration is important. For Spring '06, the next collection that I showed in September, the inspiration was Rome, Via Veneto, the movies in Cine Citta, the paparrazzi and the Dolce Vita. The collection will be named "Dolce Diva"—it was top secret before the show!
Iké: Are you able to plan more than two or three collections in advance?
DvF: I have a sense of the inspirations, but it can change.
Iké: Do you sometimes retire an idea for a future collection in place of a better one?
DvF: Changing your mind is a sign of intelligence and of an open mind. Nothing is ever carved in stone.
Iké: What distinguishes your jewelry collection from the rest?
DvF: I worked so hard at making this collection happen. I love fine jewelry; I have become quite a collector over the years. The jewels are of a high quality, all hand made, every piece. I am VERY proud of them.
Iké: Ever considered doing menswear and for that matter, shoes?
DvF: No! I relate to women—I am a woman. I have no interest in menswear. I don't think I would be good at it. I love life!
interview Iké Udé
Diane von Furstenberg photography Helmut Newton click image to enlarge Iké Udé: What was it like for you to find yourself on the cover of Newsweek in 1976 at age 29?
Diane von Furstenberg: I was on the cover of Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal and Interview. I had only started to live in America six years earlier and had started my business four years before. Everything was happening sooo fast—I was really living the American Dream at a supersonic speed.
Iké: How did the legendary "wrap dress" happen?
DvF: It started as a little top first, like a ballerina wrap top, except that I added a collar and cuffs to the sleeves to make it more tailored. The top sold with a skirt and blew out of the stores…I then decided to turn the top into a dress…not thinking of course that it would become such an iconic piece.
Iké: Did it pose the same Herculean task that Thriller posed for Michael Jackson, in the sense that you couldn't top its massive success?
DvF: It became so successful that my partner wanted to do nothing but wrap dresses. We were making twenty thousand of them every week. Of course the market got saturated.
Iké: What followed afterwards, creatively, mentally, physically and otherwise?
CH: I separated from my partner, licensed my dress business to a large 7th Avenue company and decide to embark on the beauty business.
Iké: What prompted your comeback, your return to the game?
DvF: More than seventeen years later I discovered that the original wrap dress was in great demand in vintage shops and that the hip girls were buying them. Rose-Marie Bravo, then president of Saks, asked me to make them again for her store. I did, and to my surprise was in great demand by a whole new generation.
Changing your mind is a sign of intelligence and of an open mind.
Iké: How was your self-confidence
quotient the first two years of your comeback?
DvF: I was shy, hesitant and worried. But I paid attention to the girls who were buying them; even though I was much older, my brand was becoming a young brand. When I first started, I designed for the woman I wanted to become: a liberated, independent, engaged, seductive woman. I became that woman. And now I continue to design for that same woman, the woman I used to be and the woman I still am in many ways.
Iké: Did any of your best and worst pre-comeback experiences provide any help for you now?
DvF: What I did instinctively, I now do with experience. Both instinct and experience are important. Passion is key.
Iké: Today's fashion seems to have very little room for creative, gifted designers; it seems to have been hijacked by celebrities, anyone famous or infamous, rich or just rich enough. Your thoughts?
DvF: Celebrities have always created styles, the first one being the King of France, Louis XIV. In the end, the products are what count and create real long-term success.
Iké: Chanel's little black dress and your wrap dress don't happen often in any industry. Do you foresee a great talent coming up with a new simple iconic dress anytime soon?
DvF: Impossible to predict that…it is the mystery of fashion.
Diane von Furstenberg click image to enlarge Iké: What are your passions other than fashion?
DvF: Life is my passion—I love life, and I love to travel. For me, traveling and living are the same. You can travel without moving, by reading.
Iké: What did you show for the fall and how do you typically plan a collection?
DvF: For fall I showed a collection called "Winter Palace," inspired by the heroines of Russian literature. I design my own fabrics, so inspiration is important. For Spring '06, the next collection that I showed in September, the inspiration was Rome, Via Veneto, the movies in Cine Citta, the paparrazzi and the Dolce Vita. The collection will be named "Dolce Diva"—it was top secret before the show!
Iké: Are you able to plan more than two or three collections in advance?
DvF: I have a sense of the inspirations, but it can change.
Iké: Do you sometimes retire an idea for a future collection in place of a better one?
DvF: Changing your mind is a sign of intelligence and of an open mind. Nothing is ever carved in stone.
Iké: What distinguishes your jewelry collection from the rest?
DvF: I worked so hard at making this collection happen. I love fine jewelry; I have become quite a collector over the years. The jewels are of a high quality, all hand made, every piece. I am VERY proud of them.
Iké: Ever considered doing menswear and for that matter, shoes?
DvF: No! I relate to women—I am a woman. I have no interest in menswear. I don't think I would be good at it. I love life!
