14 posts tagged "Liz Goldwyn"
The Lady Is A Teese
Decades owner Cameron Silver led a delegation of L.A. fashion types to see his friend Dita Von Teese debut her Live at the Crazy Horse act in Vegas last night. He was kind enough to send back his report on the evening. Some bugle beads, alas, were harmed in the making of this production.
A Dita Von Teese performance may appear to be all about the art of stripping, but it’s just as much about the art of dressing. Dita wears—at the beginning of her act, at least—couture costumes by Elie Saab and John Galliano, and her fan base is equally fashion-conscious. I flew in from L.A. for her Vegas opening last night with a crew of style mavens—Susan Casden (in Alexander McQueen), Rose Apodaca (in a Thomas Wylde kimono), British burlesque star Immodesty Blaize (in Jil Sander), and Michael Schmidt. We were all wowed by the spectacle—not to mention the Crazy Horse dancers, who, with their precise moves and perfect bodies, look like a living embodiment of Guy Bourdin’s seminal Charles Jourdan ads from the seventies. (“Those dancers are hot stuff, and really can inspire a girl to try some new tricks!” filmmaker Liz Goldwyn told me.) I must say, though, as someone who deals day in and day out with immaculate couture, I winced a little each time one of Dita’s shucked-off pieces hit the floor. “Well, that’s an element of the decadence of burlesque,” she told me. “Dropping, flinging, tossing aside these beautiful things. It always hurts me a little to hear the bugle beads and Swarovski crystal crashing to the floor, but that is part of the fantasy, the excessiveness of the show. And anyway,” she added, “we just send it off to repair, and trusted cleaners.”
Live at the Crazy Horse runs through April 7. For more information and tickets, visit www.mgmgrand.com.
The Stylists Take The Stage
Stars like Ginnifer Goodwin, Christina Hendricks, Abbie Cornish, Marisa Tomei, and Perrey Reeves kicked off Oscar week last night in L.A. at a private reception, sponsored by Dior and Vanity Fair, for artist Kimberly Brooks’ (pictured, with Tomei) exhibition The Stylist Project. Call it a favor returned—the subjects of Brooks’ oil portraits are the men and women who spend their days making sure the celebs look good. And since those stylists—Arianne Phillips, Liz Goldwyn, Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant—most often spend their time behind the scenes (well, all except Rachel Zoe, another sitter), it was their night to shine. That’s not to say, of course, that the stylists are all retiring types. “I love that he’s talking and holding court,” said Tracee Ellis Ross after surveying the portrait of her friend, Decades’ Cameron Silver. Spoken like an actress. The man himself had professional concerns of his own. “All I cared about was looking young and skinny,” joked Silver, dressed in Alexander McQueen.
The Stylist Project runs through April 3 at Taylor De Cordoba, 2660 S. La Cienaga Blvd., L.A., (310) 559-9156, www.taylordecordoba.com.
Yea, Nay, Or Eh: Chloë Sevigny and Liz Goldwyn Razzle-Dazzle ‘Em
Spotted: Partners in scene-stealing, Chloë Sevigny and Liz Goldwyn. The pair turned heads at back-to-back events in L.A. this weekend in some straight-from-the-runway Miu Miu and (we’re guessing here) trademark quirky vintage. At Friday night’s Prada book launch, Sevigny’s Fall ’09 Miu Miu navel-plunger with exposed bra (see here on how to rock the lingerie trend) would be an obvious choice for most daring ensemble, but Liz’s fully covered cat-print dress is just as sexy—the red lip and tousled hair don’t hurt. The next night, at MOCA’s 30th anniversary party, the duo both showed more skin. Goldwyn’s flamingo pink harem pants ensemble drew attention to her, um, palm trees, while Sevigny’s Spring ’10 Miu Miu look was all about her California tan and long gams. (Ed.’s note: Both of Sevigny’s Miu Miu looks were number 34 on the runway. Coincidence?) What do you think of the friends’ attention-grabbing looks? Leave your comments below.
Peggy Moffitt Celebrates William Claxton
With the Met’s Costume Institute gala nearing, its theme—the role of fashion models as muses—has become party talk even on the West Coast. Last night, at a memorial celebration for legendary lensman William Claxton, who died a day shy of his 81st birthday last October, it was abundantly clear that no subject offered more grist for the photographer than wife Peggy Moffitt. While working with Peggy on planning this event for the past few weeks, I discovered that Peggy’s own muse had become a life of 48 years with her husband, lived to the max.
Before hundreds of friends that ran from James Galanos and Vidal Sassoon (above, with Moffitt) to Liz Goldwyn and Sandy Schreier to Greg Gorman and Matthew Rolston, the Claxtons’ collaborations were on vibrant display last night inside the Bing Theater at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Following a comedic series of tales from Bernie Taupin, a self-avowed fanatic of Bill’s work, Burt Bacharach’s tender “Alfie” turned up the waterworks. Peggy art-directed every ebb and high of the evening, from pal Benedikt Taschen’s opening words to the rousing New Orleans band that capped the night and had us all dancing up a storm in the museum courtyard. No one better than Bill knew the seamless synergy between muse and artist, and how one breathes life into the other until it’s impossible to tell them apart.
Blasblog: Tea With the Mulleavys
In the world of fashion, Katherine Ross, the PR honcho for all of LVMH, definitely has some pull. But who knew she also had an in with Mother Nature? “I saw that it was about to rain, so I made some calls,” she jested, poolside at the Chateau Marmont where she and Alex de Batek were hosting a sunset poolside tea party for Rodarte’s Kate and Laura Mulleavy. While you could see some drops in the light of the projection screen showing Tuesday’s Rodarte show, which was being beamed over the pool, they dissipated soon enough for the likes of Francesco Clemente, André Balasz, Vincent Gallo, and Tracee Ellis Ross. In the middle of the party, when the tea was flowing like wine and decapitated gingerbread men littered the deck, Alex de Batek got on the mic to sing “Happy Birthday” to Kate. “Yes, this was all a clever ruse to throw me a birthday,” she teased. “I wanted everyone to think I had this many friends.” Not that she was fooling anyone with her deprecation: many had come not for the dresses or the herbal refreshments, but the girls themselves. “I’ve been dying to get to know these girls better,” Natalia Vodianova said. “I love what they do.”