The amazing design boutique ID Chicago on Halsted has always been one of my favorite places for inspiration. This season they are showing off the new Tord Boontje pieces from his 2008 milan collection The Little Wild Garden of Love. No surprise that the recent work is more sensual and curvacious than ever. But also the colors, weight and light are softer. There are new floating greens and translucent sky blues-- all pointing to childhood innocence. Perhaps Boontje is pointing to eden or some impossible lost utopia.
In the work I can't help but seeing William Morris. Perhaps Morris shares Boontje sensibility that design is life and vice versa. Perhaps they share more than design sense and share philosophies and politics. In William Morris we see the return to handicraft as activism for a better world. In Boontje we see the embrace of the digital world but also for the better.
The true converge regardless of sensibilities in not in conceptual approach but in the form and shape of their designs. Both Boontje and Morris show us nature, in subtle and beautiful repeats. Also they are both understated and find a way to hide the complexity they they both revere.
Most importantly both Boontje and Morris are able to reject the zeitgest of their time while at the same time creating a new zeitgest that defines the era perfectly. I hope our time is remembered in the work of Boontje-- what a beautiful world he creates. And I thank the guys at ID Chicago for introducing him to me.
-Justin Polera
Tuesday, October 7
William Morris and Tord Boontje
Allure of Couture
Allure of Couture Show
Chicago couture hit the runway as Fashion Focus rolled on at the Allure of Couture Show, October 6th in Millennium Park. Designers showcased some of the season’s most outrageous (and not-so-outrageous) styles, as I tried my best not to have a fashion-loving melt-down. The line-up included: Sam Kori George, James De Colon, Redshift by Kristin Mariani Frieman, Maria Pinto, Jack Cave, Katrin Schnabl, Billy Atwell, Abigail Glaum-Lathbury, Moire Conroy, Mi Ri Uhm, Vatit Itthi, and Nick Cave. First to show was Sam Kori George who delivered a refined collection of women’s-wear complete with chic suiting, gorgeous gowns, and a Fall trend: must-have coats. My personal favorite was a tall black, fire-red lined piece that made the model look like she was walking on stilts. Following George was James De Colon’s neutral colored collection, kissed with leopard and burnt orange. I’d be insane not to mention the creamy checked cape that came out on the first model. *Note to female readers: Get a fierce cape, stat.* Other influential collections such as Michelle Obama outfitter--Maria Pinto--topped the show. Her first look was a feast for the eyes as the model walked in a grey mini trench over a skirt with embellished shiny silver pieces that seemed to have sprouted feathers—g-g-g-gorgeous. Her couture collection spoke to the ready-to-wear woman looking for something elegantly eclectic, with chic detailing, and attention to fit. I wanted every beauty I know to be dressed in Pinto. I also appreciated the looks from Abigail Glaum-Lathbury that showcased woman in easy fabrics, beautiful shapes, and impressive color. Her use of red to pop her styling was not over-the-top and her collection was super-wearable. Mi Ri Uhm also shook my timbers with a masculine take on femininity. The collection offered pretty cream and white garments made with sheer fabrics against muted cream stripes and bright whites. The highlight for me was the selection of white patent leather (men’s) shoes on the models. WHERE, Mi Ri Uhm, did you get those glorious shoes!?—I need them. The Cave brothers—Nick and Jack, offered an eccentric look at fashion offering outrageous colors, cuts and embellishments on their couture clothing. Jack’s looks were much more wearable, offering a layered, loud line of mainly men’s clothing, while Nick continued to impress with an artistic, detailed collection that would turn the head of a marble statue. The resulting Allure of Couture show was a delicious taste of what Chicago fashion has to offer—and in this case, one taste is never enough.
-Ryan Beshel
DRESS CODE 2008
Chicago fashion schools delivered to onlookers a drastic selection of personal design at the Dress Code runway show on Friday October 3rd. Among the designs schools represented were the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the International Academy of Design and Technology, The Illinois Institute of Art at Chicago, and Columbia College of Chicago. First to walk the runway was an impactful collection of Super-hero garb designed by Tyler Coughlin. Though ‘costume-y’, the designs touched upon the Super-Hero Worship trend that has been hitting the fashion scene as of late. The designs that followed, made by Mariko Golden, offered an earthy pale-green dress collection with exquisite detail. My favorite of SAIC was Elyse Kutka, who was right on-trend with her floating white pleated, sheer dress that melted into a smoky deep purple at the midsection—stunning. While IADT left me wanting more—a lot more—I was impressed with designer Tanya Oost who presented a well-made trio of soft cream silky dresses. Also, Hector Monarrez from IADT, who pulled out his claws for a leopard infested collection of interesting dresses with back straps and ties. The Illinois Institute of Art brought a gasp to my gut when Sean Gibbons, and later, Casey Giglio, tossed out what seemed like an ode to the burlap sack. One tan, and one deep grey—two too many. The last two representing IIA might have just made up for the first. Danielle Wyman designed a beautifully put-together collection of papery dresses in soft grey, adding tulle, and playfulness, to two of her gorgeous dresses. Adriana Gonzalez offered up a gravity-defying assortment of short dresses with large swoops of printed fabric that danced with each step. Though Columbia was second in runway order, they rose to the top of the class, delivering a stylish plethora of looks from talented design students beginning with Liz Klimeck’s sexy leather pant, sharp white blouse and black vest look. Her collection stayed edgy as she presented an amazing tiered pale lavender short-dress lined in tulle, topped off with a fitted black coat—double stunning. Next was Yuka Takada who threw me off a bit with her collection in pale purples and soft blues. Her first look was pretty, but what followed was disconnected and a bit ‘off.’ Luckily, the collection was the only weak link in the winning chain of Columbia designs. Following Takada were designs by Amy Fenderson. Her deep currant colors and touches of plaid and grey tweed spoke to the ‘now’ of fashion, while delivering a great-fitting set. Second-to-last of Columbia’s crew was Jennifer Beeman’s collection of caramel golden looks. Her set began with an easy short dress in tan bordered by a thick chocolate stripe at the thigh, all covered with a soft deep green coat and gold zipper details. Last for CCC was an applause-worthy showing of black dresses that made me tingle. And I thank you Reginald Ilagan. His dresses were fresh, tiered takes on contradicting fabrics and lengths ending with a ruffled long dress that took my breath away—at least until my ‘burlap gasp.’ All in all, the designs at the Dress Code show all deserved an ‘A’, but Columbia College clearly did their extra-credit work.
-Ryan Beshel
Saturday, October 4
Abysinnia Ethiopian Restaurant
Abysinnia Ethiopian Restaurant
5842 N Broadway
Entrees $7-$13, also serves Ethiopian-style breakfast
One of Chicago's blessings is the many ethnic neighborhoods--Greek, Polish, German, Indian, Ukranian--and the authentic food (and grocery stores) that can be found there. Edgewater is quickly becoming the destination for Ethiopian food, with Rasdashen, Demera, Lalibela, Ethiopian Diamond and many other restaurants. It would be easy to overlook Abysinnia, a small restaurant with a modest awning and humble decor. But it also seems to be the place where the locals come to eat, which is always a good sign. It is a family operation, and I couldn't help wondering whether our waitress was also one of the cooks.
The food was much like the restaurant--honest, understated, reminiscent of family. This is not a place to go expecting an overwhelming sensory experience, though that type of restaurant has its place. The tastes here were subtle, but lingering. Ethiopian food is eaten by scooping up food and its sauces in injera, a spongy flat bread on which the main dishes are served (this was once one of the later questions on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire"). The gomen, collard greens, were perfectly cooked, still bright green, but only slightly bitter, enough to give a pleasant punch. Kik alicha, a dish made from yellow split peas, peppers, onions and garlic, was a gem of simplicity, with the delicate tastes of the split peas allowed to shine. Misir wat, red lentils, offered a pungent contrast, but also contained many surprising undertones. The specialty, shiro, powdered beans, had a wonderful texture. Although its seemed to me to be nothing special, the dish is an Ethiopian staple, and I imagine it is much loved by Ethiopians for reasons that have as much to do with memory as with anything else. The awazie tibs, beef cooked in tomato and jalapeno, was well made and delicious.
The meal ended with Ethiopian coffee, a source of pride among the restaurant owners and among Ethiopians more generally, for Ethiopia was where coffee was discovered. It was brought out in a beautiful teapot and a joy for both its rich fragrance and the air of ritual surrounding it.
-Ian Le
WORLD FASHION CHICAGO 2008
The runway in Millennium Park went global last night as Fashion Focus Chicago 2008 hosted the World Fashion Chicago Show presented by Chicago Sister Cities International. Included were high-end collections from Chicago’s 27 sister cities. The whole shebang was sponsored by the i-REAL concept ‘car’, Toyota’s new personal mobility vehicle or as I like to call it: the personally lazy-as-hell vehicle. It’s cute and all, but i-REALLY don’t think that as a society we need to slowly discontinue the use of our legs while riding around on ‘futuristic vehicles.’ In my opinion, no one looks more like a d-bag than an individual on a Segway.
My apologies.
I got a bit off-topic…
The runway event was hosted by Chicago’s own news anchor, Linda Yu. Her hair also made it to the show, with more volume than the tulle puffing out a fantastically playful yellow skirt with thick blue horizontal stripes. Countries such as Germany, England, Pakistan, Italy, Canada and many more, delivered an eclectic mix of global fashions, all of which are available in this fine city. Though there was dizzying array of looks, a few inspirations managed to stand out. The triple-model threat, black and white striped trench, then dress, then fierceness collection was stunning. The bell curve was a big runway attendee, and dress lengths still appear to be dropping below the knee this coming season. But without worry—there were definitely some great designs to show off those legs.
Though designer styles varied, color tied together many of the looks. Bright turquoise, Crayola green, deep black, rich brown, soft peach, tangerine orange, and my favorite pops of red lit up the runway last night. The resulting show was a stellar offering of International designs. With so many culturally inspired looks showcased last night, I find it difficult to criticize personal taste. I don’t, however, have a problem discussing the model that looked like she was going to eat me. You know which one I’m referring to.
The after-party at Trump Towers featured a handful of one-on-ones in different suites, allowing party-goers the chance to discover inspirations and personal stories from each designer. The individual rooms also offered cocktails popular in the countries represented, which I then offered to myself in each room. Before I knew it, we had turned the corridor into an all-out Fashion Dance Party 2008—Trump-style. Too bad the old man couldn’t make it to witness my wicked dance moves. Maybe next Donnie, maybe next time.
-Ryan Beshel
