Westfield spreads the LOVE

Now we know the name Katie Grand probably means diddly squat to the average Australian punter and, notably, the hordes of shoppers that Westfield is no doubt hoping will invade its gleaming new Pitt Street Mall development tonight for Vogue Australia's Fashion's Night Out festivities. But since frockwriter believes we left the punters behind when we were blogging for smh.com.au and news.com.au and we now have a hardcore fashion audience that knows its shit, we thought our readers would get a chuckle out of this first look at a new magazine that the world's largest listed shopping mall developer is handing out tonight in Sydney. Behold the cover of the first issue of the Westfield magazine, 100,000 copies of which have been published for Westfield by, amusingly, Vogue rival, ACP Custom Media.

Bulgari's lion queen

How does Italian jeweller Bulgari top campaigns starring naked Julianne Moore alongside a sulphur-crested cockatoo and the next season, some adorable lion cubs? With a campaign for the company's brand new Mon Jasmin Noir fragrance starring another naked American actor, Kirsten Dunst, opposite... a full-grown lion. Behold what frockwriter understands is an exclusive preview of Bulgari's Mon Jasmin Noir campaign that is being released later today. It was shot by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott at Villa Balbianello in the exquisite Lake Como region just outside of Milan. Working alongside lion cubs is one thing, but even with the behind-the-scenes imagery (below), we're not convinced that Dunst happily nestled snugly against a real lion and/or that Mert + Marcus managed to get both it and Dunst to 'love the camera' at the same moment - and that's it's not a Photoshop mashup. Then again, Dunst is an old hand with big cats. Some movie sites list her as the voice of young Nala in Disney's 1994 animated feature The Lion King (IMDB has Nikete Calame voicing the role). The following year, she co-starred in Jumanji, opposite Robin Williams and some scary - albeit computer-generated - lions. 

Andrej Pejic channels Ziggy Stardust for Vogue Paris

Australia’s edgiest new modelling star, Andrej Pejic, was the talk of the town at last month's Paris mens shows. Frockwriter mentioned at the time that he had just worked with a well-known photographic duo for a major international magazine. Well that magazine is the just-launched September edition of Vogue Paris and Pejic features in a 16-page fashion story called 'Rive gauche et libre'. Shot by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott and styled by no less than Vogue Paris editor Carine Roitfeld, the story was inspired by '50s chanteuse Juliette Gréco and '70s gender bender Ziggy Stardust and also includes Malgosia Bela, Daphne Groeneveld and transsexual Givenchy muse Lea T. But make no mistake, Pejic is the star of the story. He not only opens and closes it, but accounts for almost half the images (below). Click here to see the entire spread. And stand by to see what role Pejic may play in the S/S 2011 womens show season, which is about to kick off in New York. Not to mention the November edition of an equally high profile international womens' title, for which he has just been shot by an even bigger name, opposite a top female cast. He also features in an upcoming spread in Arena Homme Plus. 

Givenchy's gender bender

mert + marcus via givenchy

With all the buzz about androgynous Oz model Andrej Pejic at the recent Fall Winter 2010/2011 menswear collections in Europe, it's been easy to overlook Givenchy's intriguing FW1011 womenswear campaign. It's not news - WWD reported it back in May - but alongside several high profile women, including Australia's Catherine McNeil (below), Givenchy creative director Tisci also cast his longtime muse, assistant and fit model, transsexual Lea T, nee Leo (second on the R, above). “She’s always been very feminine: superfragile, very aristocratic” Tisci told WWD. That was until Vogue Paris just published the following shot of Lea in its August edition. (warning NSFW).

BVLGARI's LOLCATS

Leos don’t start celebrating their birthdays until later this month, so what’s with all the lions? After last week’s eight tonne, 40-foot golden lion presiding over the Chanel haute couture show in Paris – closed by Karl Lagerfeld muse Baptiste Giabiconi in a stuffed lion’s head – comes the Fall/Winter 2010/2011 campaign for Italian luxurygoods brand Bulgari. We’ve already seen American actor Julianne Moore nude in Bulgari’s Spring/Summer 2010 campaign, paired with a couple of Australian sulphur-crested cockatoos. For the winter campaign, which was also shot by renowned fashion snapper duo Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott and is due to break in September issues, Moore teams up with a couple of adorable lion cubs. No idea what PETA has to say about it but if the cubs could speak, the expressions on their faces seem to be saying "MEH".

Meet Australia's next top male model Jordan Coulter - and his ass

mert & marcus/dsquared2 via fashion gone rogue

Jordan Coulter is Australia’s latest male modelling star. And here he is in all his glory modelling in the new Fall/Winter 2010/2011 ad campaign for Canadian fashion brand Dsquared2. His on-camera colleagues are Thomas Hoefnagels, Tyler Kenyon, Chanel Iman, Alla Kostromicheva and Iris Strubegger. All over 20. Scouted at the age of 14 by Gold Coast-based Kirk Blake, Coulter has been modelling for the past year. He turns 18 in December and is still at school. No, the photo is not full frontal and there is nothing sexually explicit about the pose. Nor is there is any suggestion whatsoever that anything untoward happened on the shoot. Nevertheless, it's a pervy shot and Coulter is a 17 year-old minor, who can’t vote or legally drink alcohol in either Australia or the US, and who is below the age of sexual consent in California, where the shoot took place.

The images are currently appearing in the pages of fashion magazines across the world and on numerous websites.

Coulter’s other gigs reportedly include Just Jeans, American Eagle, a Calvin Klein lookbook and the Dolce e Gabbana anniversary book (presumably to be unveiled at their show today, which celebrates 20 years of Dolce e Gabbana menswear).

In April, when Coulter was “rushed” to LA for the Dsquared2 shoot, Blake told The Gold Coast Bulletin:

“Mert and Marcus [photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Piggot], are pretty much the Gods of this industry so pretty much as soon as this campaign comes out, he will be known around the world or people will want to know who he is..... We now have to be very careful which jobs he will take, as his value becomes even greater with this new campaign under his belt.''

Frockwriter did make some effort to seek comment from both Kirk Blake and Scene Models.

Scene washed its hands of the matter in an email stating that it only manages Coulter's work in Australia and had nothing to do with the international booking. Blake declined to comment.

Model industry sources tell frockwriter that permission would have been sought from Coulter’s agent and, most likely, also his parents, to photograph him naked and that in fact he would have been paid a premium for doing so.

“It could be his big break” said one industry source.

“We just wouldn’t take the risk” said another; “if he’s that good, why not wait until he turned 18?”




mert & marcus/dsquared via fashion gone rogue

There are many reasons why fashion companies might want to exercise due diligence when it comes to photographing underage models.

In 2008, after questions were asked about a wet swimsuit image of then 13 year old Polish model Monika Jagaciak, IMG Fashion Asia Pacific banned under-16 models from Rosemount Australian Fashion Week. Ironically of course, Jagaciak is repped by IMG Models outside of Poland. Presumably, noone at IMG had a problem with her posing for that shot – or other provocative images while she was still under 16.

Also in 2008, following claims the company had published sexualized images of children in its marketing material, Australian department store David Jones went to the draconian length of banning all under-18 models from even its runway shows - and they don't include nudity.

Insisting on an 18+ workforce won't however guarantee immunity from scandal.

Yesterday, the David Jones board distanced itself from its own former ceo Mark McInnes, after one sexual advance too many prompted legal action from a 25 year-old David Jones employee and McInnes resigned in disgrace.

In March, several models over the age of 18 came forward to call out photographer Terry Richardson for inappropriate behaviour. Will Richardson perhaps one day find himself the target of a class action lawsuit?

What of male models?

In March 2003, Abercrombie & Fitch art director Sam Shahid was found guilty of sexual harassment and ordered to pay US$70,000 to 23 year-old former Abercrombie & Fitch employee Mladen Djankovich. Djankovich accused Shahid of touching him inappropriately and withholding advancement opportunities after he protested.

In December that year, Abercrombie & Fitch made the decision to discontinue its controversial quarterly publication, whose intensely homoerotic imagery – engineered by Shahid and photographed by Bruce Weber – had attracted considerable criticism. At the time one former model told WWD that Weber and Shahid sacked models who weren’t willing to pose nude and that Shahid was constantly pressuring models to “act sexier” on the set.

Just to clarify, to frockwriter's knowledge, none of the allegations revolve around anyone connected to the recent Dsquared2 shoot on which Jordan Coulter worked, but it's worth noting that there are plenty of new rumours flying about alleged sexual activity on fashion shoots involving male models.

In communications sighted by frockwriter, these include claims that young men have been pressured to masturbate themselves in front of parties present on photographic shoots, in order to get themselves 'in the mood' for jobs.

There has also been reference to something colloquially referred to as a "rape shed”, to which male models are said to have been lured.

At least one male model is said to have been emotionally disturbed by similar events.

Meanwhile, overnight came the sad news of yet another model death.

Top French male model Tom Nicon fell to his death from his Milanese apartment building, on the eve of the mens Spring/Summer 2010 show season, which starts today.

There are as yet no other details. Given the score of model deaths over the past two years - including multiple suicides – speculation has inevitably focussed on suicide.

Who knows what may have been troubling Nicon. One thing is for sure, however, the pressures in the modelling industry have never been greater.

All those involved in the supply line would be well advised to take stock of the situation. As noted by models.com’s Wayne Sterling last November, “We're dealing with human beings here, not inanimate mannequins”.

Or pieces of meat.

Hands on: The tactile photographic oeuvre of Posh and Becks

You’ve got to hand it to Giorgio Armani. His runway collections don’t thrill like they used to, but his advertising campaigns sure do. Notably, those for his underwear. Just released, this latest Emporio Armani underwear campaign featuring husband-and-wife mod team Victoria and David Beckham. No, it’s not the first time the duo has modelled together. In fact it's the second time they have done it for Armani. And the Beckhams, who celebrate their 10 year wedding anniversary tomorrow, continue to provide compelling evidence that sexual magnetism does not have to evaporate from long-term relationships - at least not when the cameras are rolling. Over the past six years they have posed for a steamy oeuvre of images for, among others, Vogue Italia Sport magazine, their own Intimately fragrance - and not forgetting Steven Klein's Beckham ahem, spread, for the August 2007 edition of W. In so many of the images (below), they can't keep their hands off each other - or indeed, themselves.




steven klein for w/thebosh.com


just jared


vogue italia sport/thebosh.com