Did ya know Miuccia Prada was a communist? A "soft" one and apparently it wasn't unusual for the young middleclass in the 60ies in Italy... but, a communist, after all.

 the guardian wrote about this a while ago, for example

I wonder how many communists there are in the current fashion scene.
One of the new and "undergroundish" it labels of the past years is Gosha Rubchinskiy, whose founder of the same name is Russian. In his designs, he picks up the moods of the Eastern block in the time of the Perestroika, a kind of streetwear for a youth among concrete boxes and the austerities of a life in (post-) real socialism. His models wear t-shirts with the hammer and sickle symbol printed on them, the same symbol is shaved in their millimeter short hair. There is also a t-shirt with the Russian and Chinese flags on it.
Is it very naive to wonder if this is intended to be more than a pose, more than nostalgia and longing for youthfulness? Is it just a sell-out? The aesthetics of 90ies poor Russia can only seem appealing at this juncture, as we live in a much more crowded world of excessive supply. The clear symbols, the simple cuts and colours and the rough appearence of the models and the setting stand out from the usual and are kind of "not fashionable", even if we consider other "outsider" brands. honestly, there's nothing new regardings cuts and shapes or materials, it's just the strength of the symbols. so who is designing them and which people are they designed for?
For sure one shouldn't equalize the artist/designer and the piece of art/design, and this is a rule which applies to fashion as to any other kind of art. Gosha Rubchinskyi might not be a communist, but he definitely put something out there which is discussable, he put out symbols with a clear meaning. I don't think the term of the sell-out applies here. [to be continued]

to revive something

It has been more than 2 years since I looked on this blog for the last time. A lot in my personal life has changed: I moved to Berlin, I'm less into electronic music (which is awkward since my decision to move to Berlin was partly based on the fact that you can find a vast variety on club culture here) and more open again to explore other styles and genres. Still, I love to find a good techno or house track somewhere in the internet or in a record store and play it 137 times in a loop until I know how each millisecond sounds like. I sometimes have the assumption that I'm this kind of bulimic listener, which isn't really sophisticated (and which doesn't only apply to electronic stuff). Anyway, there have been a lot more changes, of course, and the interest in a certain style or aethetics can only occur within an interplay with developments that go beyond and/or might have a completely different subject. I will try to unroll this issue more clearly in the future.

I assumed that I would be ashamed to death when entering this website again after this long period (2 years - this is, when you strive to develop your character and interests in the midst of your "young adulthood", an eternity), but surprisingly I find my old notes not even that embarassing. still embarassing enough.

I'm definitely more into feminism and politics in general by now, and this is also something which touches my interest and my opinions in arts. I guess this will show evidence when I continue to write on certain topics on this blog.


When it comes to fashion, there has happened quite a lot (both in the world and my own style sensitivity). I don't pay A LOT of attention to the fashion circuit and most of the high fashion shows, I'm rather guided by coincidence and following curiosity. The brand which struck me the most during the past couple of months is probably Y/Project. I really admire how the clothes are simple yet craftful and original and how the collection, which is shown below, contains a lot of different items and colours, whitout ever appearing arbitrary. It is modern in a sense that is not clean, but rather dark (despite all the colours and playfulness) and moody, and, if there would still exist any real subcultures by now, I guess Glenn Martens would have studied them closely. Sounds like a huge contradiction which tells nothing at all to the reader? Well I guess then I have to improve my writing skills regarding fashion.
I would definitely like write more on this brand, and how it is connected to other young (Parisian) brands such as Jacquemus and Vetements, but for now I have to push my lasagne in the oven.