MILAN CHATTER WITH TOMMY TON, ANNA DELLO RUSSO AND OTHERS

I asked Milan Fashion Week's pop stars, editors and bloggers to reveal their favourite Milan moments for AnOther's blog.



Anna dello Russo: “I loved the Jil Sander show. There was no need for Raf to use any embellishments, because there was such a couture element to his colours! I also really enjoyed the Maurizio Cattelan opening. There was only a small group of fashion people invited to the show, so it was only us in a small room with the artist and the famous sculpture of the Pope. It was a really great fashion moment.”

Tommy Ton: “It’s multiple moments in one. I loved seeing Anna dello Russo. It feels like she brought fun back to fashion. I also loved Jil Sander and Prada the day before. It was an eye-awakening experience. Still, the thing that probably excited me the most this week is the new Harry Potter trailer!"

Leona Lewis: “I only flew in for the Cavalli show, so didn’t get to see anything else. It was really great though.”

Tim Blanks: “My favourite show was Prada. It was such an upbeat, sexy collection with so many charming little details. At the same time, I don’t remember now what her story was, but like all Prada collections it had an undertone of something else. I absolutely loved it.”

Outside Antonio Marras image by Samantha Casolari

FLEET ILYA A/W 10

I shot lookbook and campaign images for Fleet Ilya - an amazing accessories label, whose bondage-inspired belts, bags and harnesses are favourites of Rihanna and - no surprise here - Olivier Zahm.









All pictures by me

MAXIMALISM

So it's my last day in Milan today, where I was reporting from the shows for Dazed Digital. Probably the biggest highlight of my stay was seeing the Jil Sander collection on the runway - a beautiful meditation on simplicity and volume that bears couture elements without overbearing the dresses with frills or heavy stones. The combination of Hitchock's "Psycho" soundtrack and Busta Rhymes added to the austere atmosphere of the clothes. I was very lucky to interview Raf Simons after the show for Dazed.



Dazed Digital: Could you tell us a bit more about your inspiration?

Raf Simons: What started me thinking about this collection was the ongoing discussion about new minimalism. I sat down with my team and thought: why not do the opposite? So we decide to focus on “maximalism”. That later brought us to couture. I guess I’ve always been interested in couture and what it means to society. At the same time, I didn’t want to have the excess of couture, because it wouldn’t suit the line.

DD: So did you implement the couture influences on the RTW collection?

Raf Simons: I focused on its form language – the lenghts, the proportions. I also wanted to combine it with a street element, so I paired the skirts with the simple parkas and t-shirts.

DD: Where did the Hitchcock reference come from?

Raf Simons: I used a lot of nylons and bright colours in the collection, but I still wanted my woman to look quite stern. I love the women in Hitchcock movies, because they’re just that.

Backstage picture by Morgan O'Donovan

BACKSTAGE AT JONATHAN SAUNDERS S/S 11

The pastel colour combinations and quiffs really reminded me of "Mad Men"...



Picture by me

BACKSTAGE AT PAUL SMITH S/S 11

All pictures by me

BACKSTAGE AT RICHARD NICOLL S/S 11

A beautifully pared-down collection.











All pictures by me

LONDON FASHION WEEK PREVIEW!

Here's one of the pictures I took at Richard Nicoll's show on Sunday. More to appear on V magazine very soon.

SUBTLETIES

I know I've posted this over a year ago already, but with all the fashion week frolics around, I've been thinking loads about today's notions of 'elegance'. Hence, I was really happy to hear that Tom Ford - a master of all things refined to me - closed his show with "Slave to Love" by Bryan Ferry. It's a beautiful love anthem with a video that is so subtle it's almost unbeatable when it comes to 'chic' appeal.

THE VIEW

I developed some old rolls of film and found this amazing shade of sky as seen from my room. And who said that London was always grey?

LAST DAYS OF THE SUMMER

Today, I took some new look book pictures for Agnes and Nina from the new label A Hundred A Day. It was meant to rain, but turned out to be a beautiful day. Can't wait to post some more when they're ready!





Pictures by me

ANOTHER FAVOURITE MOVIE MOMENT

You've got to watch Hair to know how sad it feels, when Berger accidentally lands on the plane to Vietnam. Still, there's something uplifting about the song. I always get strangely idealistic when I hear it.

SUFFOLK

It might look like I went to Euro Disney, but no, last weekend I went to a folk music festival in Suffolk. The festivities took place in a field in forest near Kentwall - an amazing mansion from the Tudor times, complete with pigs, donkeys and even peacocks! it was really nice to get away from London just for two days. We ate loads, drank loads and danced in the woods in all sorts of get ups, such as rabbits (me), giraffes (Steph) and kossacks (Dori) among others!













Pictures by me

ACT DA FOOOOL

I'm not really a fan of the "fashion film" genre, but the new Harmony Korinne x Proenza Schouler film is so refreshing! I love the fact that clothes don't take the centre stage - it's more about the simple actions those kids take to fight off the boredom in a little town. Plus the atmosphere is very similar to old Spike Lee movies... Love it.