Have we Met?

In Blow-Up, a film by Antonioni, a fashion photographer unwittingly captures a possible murder while shooting in a park. He then tries to solve the mystery  by blowing up his film to look for clues to the crime.  Antonioni was not alone in using photographs to accelerate the plot. In many 1960s movies, photographs shot by a private investigator or spy give the viewer a key piece of evidence. 

In this photoshoot, we sought to pay homage to the style and spy photos of 1960s films. The photoshoot focuses on a female character who is unknowingly caught on film throughout her wanderings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Why is she being watched? Who is watching her? Is she a victim or a perpetrator?

The styling was inspired by Faye Dunaway in the indelible Thomas Crowne Affair. She is always dressed to the nines, favoring perfectly tailored dresses and jackets complemented with an upswept bun and always, sunglasses. In the film, the Met was her crime scene and her target, Steve McQueen. Can you spot her in the crowd?

ASOS dress, vintage Aquasactum trench, Hermes bag, Barney's headband, Marc Jacobs sunglasses

Photographs by Nick Shepard

Styling by Annie Shepard

More photos after THE JUMP

Holy Places

Taglit is the best thing to happen to Jews since Moses. A free trip to Israel? Count me in. The trip was wonderful, but my travels afterward were even better. In a whirlwind trip, I flew south and crossed into Jordan where I visited Aqaba and Petra and made friends with the Bedouins and their donkeys. Thank you to all the wonderful people in Israel and Jordan that I met along the way.

More pictures after THE JUMP

Story of O

My sophomore year in college, I decided to take a course that you can only take in college- History of Human Sexuality. Needless to say, this course was equally fraught with tension and an enlightening study. 

One of the required readings was Story of O, a controversial piece of literature as those who have read it can understand. It is the story of a chic Parisian woman, O, transported to Chateau de Roissy where she is subjected/ subjects herself to her sadistic master, Sir Stephen. She derives pleasure from being bound, raped, and humiliated. Clothing and jewelry play an important role as a visual symbol of her sexual assaults. What begins in the first scene, when O is forced to strip, culminates with a branding and piercing marking her submission.

Lara Stone's Sado Masochist inspired harnesses and classic French Chateau setting draws inevitable parallels to the book. The art director choose to shoot Stone solo, which creates a voyeuristic dynamic between Stone and us, the viewer. In this way, we take on the role of Sir Stephen in this interpretation of The Story of O.

La Belle Maitresse by Mario Sorrenti

for Vogue Japan

via Fashion Gone Rogue

Thank You Madonna

Sorry for the lapse in posts but I've been in the Middle East for the past two weeks but more on that later.. I probably would have stayed longer if it weren't for the superbowl and the G-Men (I heart you JPP). The rest of the world just does not care enough about American football. So thank you Madonna for celebrating what America does best and inaugurating my homecoming.

In a vaguely ethnic vaguely mythical ensemble of a winged headdress and over-the-knee stiletto boots, Madonnna alternately belted her songs, performed erotic acrobatics, and pretty much just rocked the house. While MIA might have stolen the show with a flick of a finger, it can't compete with Madonna (or infamous wardrobe malfunctions) for attention.