Australian models on the S/S 2013 campaign trail

Their numbers on the Spring/Summer 2013 runways might have dropped by half from the previous summer season, but 19 Australian models still managed to cut a swathe through the New York, London, Milan and Paris shows in September and October last year. Some among them, such as Ruby Jean Wilson and Julia Nobis, scored high profile opening and closing roles. Judging by the SS13 advertising campaigns that are now beginning to roll out, the antipodians made quite an impression. To date, no less than seven Australian models have popped up in ten major international campaigns. Who are they?

The butterfly effect: Why couldn't Toni Maticevski take over the reins at Christian Dior?

Frockwriter popped down to Melbourne last week for the last leg of the L’Oréal Melbourne Fashion Festival (as a guest of the organisers, once again). Among the shows we caught was Toni Maticevski’s 'Red Carpet Runway' on Thursday night, which closed the event with 50 looks from Maticevski’s archive of 2000 pieces, collected since he launched his demi-couture label in 1999. There were plenty of his signature, heavily-embellished ballgowns and shorter, artfully-deconstructed tailored pieces that have made their way to New York Fashion Week, The Grammys, the Cannes Film Festival and a raft of other events on the backs of celebrities such as Beyoncé, Scarlett Johannson, Leighton Meester, Christina Ricci, Abbie Cornish, Gemma Ward and Kim Kardashian. At 35, Maticevksi is exactly the same age as was John Galliano in 1996, when the latter was appointed as the creative director of the storied Parisian haute couture house of Christian Dior. With Galliano fired last year, there is a vacant position to fill. Suspend your disbelief for a moment that an Australian designer could ever be considered for the creative director’s role of a major Paris fashion house (Martin Grant FYI once turned down the Céline gig) and ponder the hypothetical question, why couldn’t Maticevski fill Galliano’s shoes?

Christian Dior's little shop of haute couture

Highres images have yet to go up on the main sites and the real-time images via Twitter were few and far between. But behold the Christian Dior Fall/Winter 2010/2011 haute couture collection which has just walked off the runway in Paris, via Now Fashion, a website which publishes runway images in real-time. Glorious colours, theatrical styling, the show was literally set in a garden in Paris (visible in some shots through a plastic tent structure behind the rows of seating) and appears to have been inspired by exotic hothouse flowers. For images of the complete collection head to Now Fashion.

Hollywood's risk takers

reuters via daylife

Just a couple of personal favourites from last night's Oscars. Most of which, frockwriter notes, are already turning up on worst-dressed lists. In a sea of safe, so-so goddess gowns and meringues, however, we applaud their bravura: Charlize Theron, Zoe Saldana and Sarah Jessica Parker in haute couture, respectively Christian Dior, Givenchy and Chanel. Then there was Nicole Richie's quicksilver boho de luxe gown by Lebanese American designer Reem Acra. And the statuesque Kathryn Bigelow, who looked striking in her gunmetal Yves Saint Laurent sheath. Although the latter design was far more conservative than that of Theron and co, when you are the first woman in 82 years to be awarded a Best Director Oscar, who needs haute couture?







all images: daylife

sarah jessica parker/getty
nicole richie/getty
zoe saldana/AP
charlize theron/reuters

Galliano saddles up for Christian Dior SS10 haute couture

If you missed the shots coming in overnight, here are some excerpts from Christian Dior's magnificent Spring/Summer 2010 haute couture show in Paris, via UK Telegraph fashion editor, Hilary Alexander. Frockwriter does not have the benefit of the show notes to hand, but the equestrienne and Gibson Girl influences seem fairly self evident. Given that American couturier Charles James was however not born until 1906, Alexander's suggestion that James was active at the "turn of the century" should be taken with a grain of salt. Judging by the two-tone hair, one might assume that contemporary Irish aristo Daphne Guiness may also have been a muse.

Frankie goes to fashionwood

givenchy SS10/wwd.com

Jethro Cave might have an edgy look, a famous dad and good connections, not to mention a Gumby earring. But the real dark horse of the Australian mens modelling scene was, as it turns out, right under our nose whilst reporting on the recent menswear season. Meet Frankie Elliss-Galati. The 19 year-old Gold Coaster was discovered by Sydney-based photographer Chris Ferguson in a Brisbane sushi bar in January. After booking jobs for Vogue Australia and Bisonte, among others, he headed to the mens Spring/Summer 2010 shows in Europe. In his first international season he walked for names including Christian Dior Homme, Givenchy, Thierry Mugler, Gucci, Roberto Cavalli, Calvin Klein, Trussardi and Tim Hamilton (which he closed) - a feat noted by models.com, which included him on its Top 10 Men’s New Faces for SS10. Not that anyone thus far appears to have been aware of his nationality.

Although repped in Australia by Viviens, Elliss-Galati's mother agent is in fact LA-based Australian Patrick Corcoran, who, like Ferguson, is a former Chic Management booker.

At Givenchy (above), Elliss-Galati got to wear one of the more extreme studded pieces which were inspired by the proposed collaboration between Givenchy creative director Riccardo Tisci and the late Michael Jackson, for Jackson's O2 Centre concerts in London. Tisci was reportedly due to meet with Jackson about the costumes on Monday 29th June, obviously an appointment that Jackson never made.



christian dior homme SS10 (top); robert cavalli SS10/wwd.com

No pants - and no Australian models - at Christian Dior

Well the haute couture shows are off and running in Paris. The biggest show of Day One was of course Christian Dior. It was not staged in a large venue as usual, but instead the salons above the flagship Avenue Montaigne boutique, as Dior himself would have shown his collections in the years after he founded his maison in 1946. As for the collection, you could call it Bar meets burlesque. For day, Dior’s trademark wasp-waisted peplum Bar jacket was teamed with voluminous skirts, many transparent, or else nothing at all in the bottoms department, save for silky knickers, tap shorts or foundation pink corsetry. Creative director John Galliano said he had been inspired by 1950s images of Dior with his half-dressed mannequins. The inspiration might have been vintage, but thanks to Lady GaGa, the no-pants look had a distinctly modern edge. The corsetry theme played out into the magnificent eveningwear, with nude corsets underpinned by extravagant, heavily-embellished tulle crinolines. Although Chanel reports 2008 was a record year for its couture, Dior’s smaller venue seemed an obvious nod to the economic climate. As did the smaller cast: 35 girls, compared with 39 at the January show and 44 one year ago. And for the first time in several years, this Dior show did not feature a single Australian model. Given her longstanding relationship with Galliano, this must have been disappointing for Alexandra Agoston-O’Connor, who nevertheless scored two smaller shows yesterday: Georges Hobeika and Alexis Mabille. She was joined in the latter by Perth’s Skye Stracke.

Gareth Pugh FW0910 live blog

Fashion never sleeps - and nor does frockwriter. Especially not when we’re on deadline. But another live blog calls people. And who are we to ignore it? Nick Knight’s SHOWstudio is thoughtfully providing a live stream (correction, video) of Gareth Pugh’s FW0910 collection at 5pm today Paris time, which is 3am AEST tomorrow. Join frockwriter, Bryanboy and Imelda live as we slice and dice Pugh’s sure-to-be theatrical extravaganza and ponder the second biggest rumour of the season after Alessandra Facchinetti working on Tom Ford’s new womenswear label: is Pugh headed for Dior Homme? Beyond LVMH’s statement that the company is bankrolling Pugh's shows, some believe an announcement is imminent. Today? Ironically, Pugh’s FW0910 show timeslot immediately follows that of Kris Van Assche, the Dior Homme incumbent Pugh is tipped to replace. In the interim, here is Pugh, above, in some other SHOWstudio vignettes.

05/03: As becomes obvious at the kickoff of the blog, Pugh did not do a runway show yesterday, but showed a video. That's fine and it was still a first look, however we can't help expressing our disappointment in SHOWstudio's lack of transparency. The website advertised "the exclusive opportunity to watch Gareth Pugh's eagerly-awaited A/W show, live on SHOWstudio... we will be able to simultaneously show exactly what press and buyers will see". Several phone attempts last night to clarify the exact nature of the presentation were blown off, with a SHOWstudio rep refusing to confirm or deny whether it was definitely a live stream of a runway show. We received confirmation that it was a video from Sonny Vandevelde in Paris at 2.28am (Cover It Live's time code here is one hour out for some reason). We can't help feeling SHOWstudio deliberately misled readers - possibly also showgoers. Apologies to anyone who stayed up until 3am on our recommendation, expecting to see a runway collection.

Venus of Willen-Dior

christian dior SS09/getty

Ah yes the podiatric peculiarities of SS09 continued with Monday’s just-wrapped Christian Dior show – the most interesting facets of which, at time of filing, appeared to have been its African-inspired hairpieces and shoes. The latter included one curious platform sandal with a sculpted skyscraper heel fashioned from what looked to be an African fertility symbol, complete with swollen belly and breasts. Considering that by all accounts it's not uncommon for runway models to boast such little body fat that they cease menstruating, the irony was possibly not lost on some.



christian dior SS09/getty

Over at Cacharel meanwhile, the half century old French brand’s new creative directors, Mark Eley and Wakako Kishimoto, dispatched a charming collection of highwaisted, wide-legged trouser suits, colour-blocked smocks and sweet printed sundresses.

The finale showcased two rare phenomena: a limited edition of 1970s era Liberty print dresses from the house’s archives - and smiling models (who included, if I’m not mistaken, Australian Sarah Stephens, who must be trying her luck in Paris after all).

You’d probably smile too if you could walk one of this season’s runways barefoot.



Click here to see the complete Christian Dior collection on wwd.com.
Click here to see the complete Cacharel collection on wwd.com.