Opie x Rodarte

Image of a Rodarte gown by Catehrine Opie.

The photographer Catherine Opie is known for her portraits of gender. She takes photos of "men" and "women" in ways that show you the confusion of those terms, the identity they impose, and the ways they are expressed. She also photographs the body as a platform for thought and or pain. Self-portraits of the artist are disturbing and beautiful documents of self harm, or of love. It's this mix of the rough and soft, of the dark and the warm, that makes her pairing with Rodarte a natural fit. As a satellite to their MoCA show (which they call a case study of their still young work) Rodarte is releasing a book of photographs by Catherine Opie and Alec Soth. Californian landscapes of interest and inspiration to Kate and Laura have been photographed by Soth, while Opie has taken photographs of the Mulleavy sisters' clients and favorite models in their gorgeous American couture pieces.

The photos above are all included in the book which is available for pre-order on Amazon.

The Prettiest Nightmare I've Never Had.

Guinevere Van Seenus runs in Rodarte.

Wow. Rodarte's latest collaboration more than makes up for their lackluster show at the New York tents a couple of weeks ago. The video Todd Cole did featuring pieces from The Mulleavy Sisters' Spring 2010 collection is a mind warping romp through a rocket ship ghost yard. Shot on location at the now defunct space-tech field lab of Paypal co-founder Elon Musk, the video piece is chillingly sparse. It stars a lone supermodel, the excellent and underused Guinevere Van Seenus, who was a glossy page regular in the late '90s/early aughts. Her reemergence here is perfect for the strangeness of the video--where'd they find Guinevere? In that deserted spaceship hull?

Pretty/creepy.

Wherever she was, she's not happy about where she's wound up. Her pained expression and laborious running through the ghosted space spot are haunting to say the least. The eerily industrial soundtrack buzzes, hisses, and basses the perfect tone for all of the unsettling that unfolds. So, what's pretty about this nightmare of strain, strife, and space? The dresses! Rodarte's Spring collection was a collage of gorgeous fabrics that had gone through some really tough times--they were burned, stretched, dirtied, dunked, beat up--kind of like our seemingly tortured Guinevere. But they came out on the otherside knotted and resewn into some beatuiful pieces of work. Purgatory to the heavens. Watch the video, it makes a better case than I.

Click the above images to watch the full Todd Cole/Rodarte collabo.

Ruh-Ro.

A makeup look from the latest Rodarte line.

Dear Mulleavy Sisters,

I will never stop loving you. Never. You of the wittiest knits, of the blood and guts inspiration, you of the spiderweb tights and the stake-in-the-heart heels. I will never, never not love you. But. But. But. This latest collection was not your best work. I'm not trying to make you feel guilty, or bad about yourselves, but I am trying to make sure this doesn't happen again. You put a whole collection together based on the idea of getting dressed in the dark. Flip the switch and catch a glimpse of the mash-up.

Your craftsmanship is a wonder to behold. Do not question this. Your patchwork pastiche is always a showcase of some damn fine handiwork. Those sweaters that look like thick, loomed yarn? Gorgeous. Those strands of pearls strung sideways over the shoulders? Nice. But all of that mashed together with an ill fit and some ghostly makeup? Not so nice. This is tough love for my favorite pair. I have faith that you'll return in top form next season. Total faith. 'Til then? I have to speak my truth.

Tavi Hearts Rodarte.

Tiny fashion blogger Tavi is still the only 13 year old that I'd even consider going back to pre-pubescence to be. I mean, I'd suffer some acne and hormonal insanity if I could redo my tween years as a favored front row fashion show guest or a BFF of The Sisters Mulleavy. Since that's not possible, let's let Tavi do her own thing and give us a taste of the Target line Rodarte is going to drop nationwide Dec 20.



If you are a luck member of the New York Area Residents Club (and you are if you live here) you get to scope the goods at Target's special pre-Holiday event at the Gansevoort entrance to the Highline Park. The event, featuring Rodarte pieces among a selection of other giftable items, kicks off today, December 11 and runs through the 13th from 10am to 8pm. Get there. Maybe the freezing temps will keep the crowds away.

Three's A (Great) Crowd.

The indomitable Suzy Menkes takes a guided tour through the Rodarte installation at Paris' Colette shop.

Click to head over to NYTimes.com to view the video.

The three of them together signifies all that is good about fashion. All that is good, plus googly eyes.