About Topic No. 1: Innovative Conferences

CosmoTHIS: Innovative Conferences, March 2012 - ongoing

Exploring the idea of what a conference is and what it should be for those of us in search of inspiration.  What comes to mind when you think of the word conference? 

More info about this topic here.

Images above: + Bubble Diagram with quote from post, TED: Ideas Worth Spreading  + Robert Wong picture and book cover from post, DO EPIC SHIT! declares Robert Wong  + Sofia Coppola portrait from post, An innovative conference for women by women... 

Coming Soon to CosmoTHIS - Topic No. 2: A Curated Apprenticeship

Montreal, Schiaparelli, Prada, and 21st Century gurus...

Reading material for the weekend...

Fast Company (content partner of C2-MTL) has dedicated a special advertising section to Montreal in their April 2012 issue.  The graphics are playful and right on; It's clear that the 18-page spread (pgs.73-91) was crafted with enthusiasm.  I highly recommend you pick up a copy. 

To compliment Safian's cool biz updates, I also bought the latest issue of The New Yorker. That Maira Kalman cover is so irresistible. I'm looking forward to reading the Jonah Lehrer (speaking at C2-MTL) article, "ROYAL FLUSH, How Roger Thomas redesigned Vegas" and the piece, "Radical Chic" about the upcoming MET exhibition, Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations. I missed the McQueen exhibit, but this one, is a definite must!

As for the mountain of books below, I would like to take this time to thank the Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec, it always caters to my literary needs.  Do I really plan to read them all?. . . A little here, a little there...it's R&D for C2-MTL.

The list of books displayed above (in no particular order):  

Whatever You think, Think the Opposite by Paul Arden  

Poke the Box by Seth Godin  

Linchpin by Seth Godin  

The Mind edited by John Brockman  

How We Decide by Jonah Lehrer  

A Whole New Mind by Daniel H. Pink  

Conversational Capital, How to Create Stuff People Love to Talk About by Bertrand Cesvet

Other books of interest not illustrated in shot above:
Imagine, How Creativity Works, by Jonah Lehrer (2012)
The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom by Jonathan Haidt 
It's Not How Good You Are, Its How Good You Want to Be, by Paul Arden.

I'm also currently reading Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Recommendations are welcomed!

Topic No.1: Innovative Conferences, Cosmo THIS! 

Can the networking follies at conferences really influence the way we meet people?

My first conference-like experience was in 2003 when I attended Milan's infamous fair, Salone Internazionale del Mobile. It was an incredible experience, especially since I was a student at the time, and everything just seemed beautifully intentional. . .from the networking follies, to the global representation of designers, to the gorgeous people in attendance, it was all unforgettable eye candy. You know it's a successful event when I'm is still talking about it 9 years later, right? A shot from my archives below.

Image below, Salone Internazionale del Mobile, 2003.

Earlier this week, the shot below was released as a teaser really, for the upcoming C2-MTL (Commerce + Creativity) conference which promises to reinvent the business conference experience.  Gorgeous right? Well, it made me think of two things.  One, the fact that networking is still a more successful activity when done face to face no matter what you facebook-addicts (linkedin-users) say. Two, what about those networking spaces? In recent years, some conferences/design shows/conventions etc...have been going out their way to design creative environments in a monumental scale. And so I'm curious,  can the networking follies at these conferences really influence the way we meet people?  I found a couple of recent examples to illustrate my wonder...see below.

Images below borrowed from the C2-MTL site.

Images below, courtesy of Fredrik Färg, of his installation / bar and furniture pieces for this year's furniture fair in Stockholm. 

Networking next to that giant yellow dinosaur was probably fun.

Images below of Novo Nordisk's new corporate conference center, Favrholm, designed by SeARCH architects, located in a historic farm 25 miles north of Copenhagen.  You can read a detailed article about it in this month's Architectural Record, click here.  Even the floor plan is alluring. Those Danes, what would we do without them? -  they foster innovation and restoration with great pride.  Can you believe this is a healthcare research facility (dash) conference center?

Images below borrowed from the Architectural Record site.

Topic No.1: Innovative Conferences, Cosmo THIS! 

What do you do when your own worst enemy is...you?

"We meet a Cold War negotiator who, in order to quit smoking, backs himself into a tactical corner, and we visit a clinic in Russia where patients turn to a radical treatment to help fight their demons. Plus, Elizabeth Gilbert lays out strategies for doing battle with your muse." RADIOLAB

I listened to this piece yesterday and afterwards, I felt relieved and smarter. Take an hour out of your busy Monday and listen. 


Topic No.1: Innovative Conferences, Cosmo THIS! 

a Barista, a Luthier, a Tattoo artist and a Barber...

A few of my favorite videos from THE CRAFT & THE PRIDE series. 

Video 1: Introducing CARAVAN, Coffee Traders & Roastery located in London.

Video 2: Introducing Nick the "Luthier" of Wildwood Instruments located in Brunswick, VIC, Australia.

Video 3: Introducing The Family Business tattoo parlour, located in London.

Video 4: Introducing Waldorf Barbers located in Dublin, Ireland.

"MO" is Aussie slang for moustache...

Today is the last day of the 2011 MOVEMBER campaign.  I had never heard of this movement until I saw the poster below while touring the Moment Factory studio last week.   What's it about?  Well, every year, men around the world commit to growing and sporting a moustache during the 30 days in November to bring awareness, and raise research funds for the cruel reality of prostate cancer.  
As it turns out,  this is a global movement  launched in 2003 by some guys in Melbourne, Australia. I'm very impressed by the alluring style of the campaign. The MANLY HUNTER visual strategy is hysterical and genius!  I also love the The Craft and The Pride video series. Bravo for promoting the craft behind the man, it's just as important as health in my book! 
This is Canada's 5th Movember campaign and it grows bigger every year.  It's funny, at the beginning of the month, I though it was the latest dandy trend among Montreal hommes. . .sorry to say that it doesn't suit all men . . . Désolé! BUT I LOVE THE PLAYFUL DEVOTION!


Photos borrowed from the official site, click here.  
Also, check out the YouTube videos from The Craft and The Pride series, here...absolutely stunning production. 

The beautiful shots below were taken at a barber shop in København, Denmark in honor of the Danish Movember Campaign. Borrowed from here.

Breakfast anyone?

There should be an entire blog dedicated to breakfasts from around the world, honoring  cultural richness with appetizing photographs like the ones shot below by Angus Fergusson for enRoute Air Canada magazine.  Let's all dream together and pretend we're having brunch in . . . 
(from top to bottom) St. John’s, Newfoundland * Frankfurt, Germany * São Paulo, Brazil or Beijing, China. . .bon appétit!


Images borrowed from enRoute, Air Canada.

And the Pursuit of Happiness...

235 years of American Independence!


I am celebrating the 4th of July here in Canada by reading Maira Kalman's book, And The Pursuit of Happiness . . . for the second time.  


Enjoy the images below borrowed from Maira Kalman's New York Times 2009 blog (now a book). See here.  
Every American should own this book!!!


Fun Facts:
1. Maira Kalman: author, illustrator and designer.
2. The text is not a digital font, it is Maira Kalman's own intentionally pictorial handwriting.

Saturday MILK...Call Me Red!

I stumbled upon MILK magazine (le magazine de mode enfantine) today during my routine weekend-bookstore-excursion.  It is a magazine published in France & Japan for "contemporary" mothers.  It covers furniture design, fashion, healthy culinary info etc.  I had to resist from buying it...it is a gem.  While gleefully perusing it, I came across the work of photographer/fashion designer/illustrator...Barbara Berrada.  
(Yes, a true interdisciplinary entrepreneur). The pictures below reflect her handmade (limited edition) 1930's country inspired collection: Les Zigouis: Spring/Summer 2011...more here.  
Photographs and styling by Barbara Berrada.


. . .long pause. . .I wonder if I am ready?. . .are you?  These pics are just too adorable.

Viktor & Rolf inspired makeup? Spring /Summer 2009 Collection: Behind the scenes with model, Shalom Harlow borrowed from here.

On curating fashion...

My first fashion exhibit was in Los Angeles' MOCA Grand Avenue venue in 2006.  The expo was appropriately titled,  SKIN + BONES: PARALLEL PRACTICES IN FASHION AND ARCHITECTURE.  The correlation between fashion and architecture was thoughtful and unrivaled thanks to the show's curator, Brooke Hodge.  It was a delicious exhibit.  Just to give you an idea...there were pristine Pucci mannequins dressed in couture by Viktor & Rolf, Alexander McQueen and Issey Miyake etc. . .collaborating space with creations by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Zaha Hadid, Herzog & de Meuron. . .(Click here for a complete list).  
After a few hours of thorough admiration (no probing allowed of course), I walked myself over to the gift shop (more of a book store really...) And just when I thought it couldn't get any better, I found myself gleefully overwhelmed by the array of fashion books on sale next to the exhibit's impressive catalogue.  I was lucky to have a good job at the time and well as expected, at the end of my visit, I left with about $200.00+ worth of books and fashion documentaries.


My first time was fabulous, but I am expecting to be blown away by the Alexander McQueen retrospective this year. SO, lets mark our calendars for the McQueen show and the other upcoming fashion exhibits around the world.  And if we can't make it to all of them, well there are always those enticing catalogues. Enjoy my finds below...any additional suggestions?

................................................

Fashioning Fashion: European Dress in Detail, 1700–1915
Where: Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Resnick Pavilion.
When: 2 October 2010 - 27 March 2011
Curated by: Sharon S. Takeda, Senior Curator and department head, and Kaye D. Spilker, Curator, LACMA's Costume and Textiles department.
NOTES: {The exhibition tells the story of fashion's aesthetic and technical development from the Age of Enlightenment to World War I. It examines sweeping changes in fashionable dress spanning a period of over two hundred years, and evolutions in luxurious textiles, exacting tailoring techniques, and lush trimmings}. Text by LACMA.

Photos from The Los Angeles Times: (from left to right) 1} A 1780–85 velvet jacket, with paste stones, foil, sequins and metallic-thread-embroidery appliqué trim.  2} Special archival mounts in nonreflective aluminum drawers hold the museum’s 18th-century shoe collection. 

Yohji Yamamoto (solo show)
Where: The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, UK.
When: 12 March - 10 July 2011
Curated by: Ligaya Salazar
NOTES: {This retrospective, experienced through a series of site-specific installations throughout the V&A and beyond, includes Yamamoto's menswear for the first time. The main exhibition space houses over 60 creations and a multi-media timeline which reveals Yamamoto's wider creative output}. Text by V&A


Photo credits (from left to right): 1} Red and black boiled wool jacket and skirt, Autumn/Winter 2009, Photography by Nick Knight & Art Direction by Peter Saville. 2} Photo by Ronald Stoops for V&A 3} Portrait of Yohji Yamamoto by Koichi Inakoshi.

Rodarte: States of Matter
Where: The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), @ the Pacific Design Center, Los Angeles, California, USA.
When: 4 March - 5 June 2011
Curated by: MOCA Associate Curator Rebecca Morse.
NOTES: {The exhibition will feature more than 20 pieces from Rodarte’s Spring 2010, Fall 2010, and Fall 2008 runway collections, and original ballet costumes designed by Rodarte for the feature film Black Swan.} Text by MOCA


Photo credits (from left to right): 1} Photo by Autumn de Wilde  2/3} Photos by Carmel Wilson/Cooper-Hewitt and Mimi Ritzen Crawford/Getty Images  4}  Photo of Kate and Laura Mulleavy (RODARTE), source unknown.

Video below of last year's RODARTE exhibit in New York's Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.

Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty
Where: The Metropolitan Museum of Art (the MET), New York, USA.
When:  4 May 2011 - 31 July 2011
Curated By: The head of the Metropolitan Museum's Costume Institute, Andrew Bolton.
NOTES: Check out Anna Wintour's interview for BBC news.


Photo credits (from left to right): 1} Photo by Annie Leibovitz for Vogue's Nobel Farewell, a tribute to Alexander McQueen‘s final collection for the July 2010 issue. Styled by fashion editor, Grace Coddington. 2}  Alexander McQueen, photographer...I believe it is also a Leibovitz shot.

Enchanted Palace
Where: Kensington Palace, London, UK. 
When:  26 March 2010 - 08 January 2012
Curated By: Historic Royal Palaces curator, Alexandra Kim + other collaborators...
NOTES: Participating designers include...Paul Costelloe, Dame Vivienne Westwood, Bruce Oldfield, Zandra Rhodes, Maria Theresa Fernandes, Boudicca...and WILDWORKS.
{The Enchanted Palace reveals the emotion and drama running through Kensington Palace’s history. Contemporary fashion collides with the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection and real stories from the palace to create stunning installations, fashioned by leading designers}. Text by the Enchanted Palace.


Photo credits (from left to right): 1} Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Europe: Dress designed by Bruce Oldfield. 2} Photo © Rex Features, Dress by Vivienne Westwood.



The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk
Where: Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, (Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion), Montréal, Canada.
When: 17 June - 2 October 2011 
Curated by: The exhibition has been initiated by and is under the leadership of Nathalie Bondil director and chief curator of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. It is curated    by Thierry-Maxime Loriot of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, along with Florence Müller, fashion historian and teacher at the Institut de la mode in Paris.  This Exhibition is organized by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts in collaboration with the maison Jean Paul Gaultier.  (MBAM)
NOTES: {The exhibition will highlight Gaultier’s eclectic and impertinent sources of inspiration through a selection of 120 haute couture dresses and ready-to-wear pieces (women’s and men’s) made between 1976 and 2011}. Text by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.


Photo credits (from left to right): 1} Jean-Paul Gaultier: Women's ready-to-wear, Spring/Summer 2011 2} Jean-Paul Gaultier: Haute-Couture, Fall/Winter 2010-2011. 3} Michel Comte/Jean-Paul Gaultier, W Magazine, 1992.

UNRAVEL. Knitwear in fashion
Where:  Mode Museum Provincie Antwerpen (MoMu), Antwerp, Belgium
When: 16 March - 14 August 2011
Curated By: Emmanuelle Dirix & Karen Van Godtsenhoven
NOTES: {Top pieces by national and international designers and labels (Ann Salens, Vivienne Westwood, Sonia Rykiel, Missoni) historic couture pieces (Schiaparelli, Patou, Chanel) as well as more avant-garde and cutting edge pieces by established designers and newcomers on the international fashion scene (Sandra Backlund, Maison Martin Margiela, Mark Fast), will sit side by side to reveal the richness and diversity of knitwear in high fashion...} Text by MoMu. Read more HERE.


Photo Credits: 1} Tilda Swinton in Sandra Backlund, ANOTHER Magazine S/S 2009. Photo by Craig McDean. 2} Marlene Dietrich wearing a Schiaparelli sweater in the 1930's German film, Der blaue Engel. 3} A design by Sonia Rykiel, Fall 08.  4} Sandra Backlund, FW 2010. Photo by Kristian Bengtsson