Style & Design
Originally published on Wednesday, 2nd September 2009
Old Dogs vs. New Tricks
Fashion’s a confusing game – can POP’s relaunch clear the air?
It’s a confusing game, fashion. One minute we’re feeling buoyed by the return of shoulder-pads we remember from their first outing in the 80’s, the next we’re choosing out funereal garb whilst comparing ourselves to another round of impossibly youthful, ponystepping models.
We’ve seen The September Issue heavily feature a 68 year old Grace Coddington as emotional foil to Anna’s overbearingly icy self at the helm of the world’s most venerable, if not experimental magazine, whilst LOVE ’s second ‘New Blood: The Young and The Reckless’ issue moves from plus-size to pint-sized, putting an unknown bass player found via the net, and an un-styled Coco Sumner front and center.
Playful designer Jean Charles de Castelbajac reckons he can go younger, sending out a recruitment cry via Dazed and Confused for young, hot and fun models to pose for his new diffusion line JC/DC, whereas D&G have gone back to the old guard featuring a naked Claudia, Naomi and Eva surrounded by hot Italian men for their new perfume ad.
So it’s with some hope that we’re relying on POP magazine ’s re-launch under Dasha Zhukova to bridge the gap between the old and the new. The cover features 13 year old blogging sensation Tavi against a background of Damien Hirst designed butterflies – a sure reflection of Dasha’s intention to combine intellectual fashion content (Rodarte on stem-cell scientists, anyone?) with a new generation of youthful talent.
