BerlinRocks
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really looking forward !!!!!
cannot wait to went through this.
I believe the inspiration of the issue is one of the most interesting, really.
List of collaborators is pretty interesting since it reunites all the "old underground" parisian scene, with new "raw" scene ... !!!
Cécile and Olivier Bobin ahead !!
LYNA AHANDA ON THE FRANCIS BACON(S)-INSPIRED NEW ISSUE OF LURVE
BY JULIA FRAKES
Lyna Ahanda - founder - and Lurve feature, too, in Le Monde Top Indie Magazine - as a NUMBER ONE !
Impressed !
cannot wait to went through this.
I believe the inspiration of the issue is one of the most interesting, really.
List of collaborators is pretty interesting since it reunites all the "old underground" parisian scene, with new "raw" scene ... !!!
Cécile and Olivier Bobin ahead !!
LYNA AHANDA ON THE FRANCIS BACON(S)-INSPIRED NEW ISSUE OF LURVE
BY JULIA FRAKES
papermag.comLyna Ahanda founded Lurve two years ago, and the magazine has been steadily gaining a loyal readership and rave reviews since. The Spring/Summer 2010 issue -- with a cover featuring Irina Lazareanu photographed by Cécile Boroletti -- débuts tonight in Paris with a launch event at OFR Galerie. Featuring artwork Ahanda curated by Chadwick Tyler, Edouard Plongeon, Cécile Bortoletti, Pamela Love, and Jordan Sullivan, the show celebrates the issue's theme, "Beyond the Body Proper." It will be swiftly followed by a must-attend cocktail fête at La Cave de la Fidélité (likely going on as this is posted), and DJ'd by downtown New York's most sought-after jeweler Pamela Love and Olivier Bobin. I recently caught up with Ahanda, who is based between Paris and Berlin, to discuss the new issue's Francis Bacon(s)-inspired theme, the inspiration behind Terrence Koh's photography in the issue, and who she envisions the Lurve reader to be.
How did you initially come to Sir Francis Bacon's quote -- 'There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion?' Was that eventually designated 'Beyond the Body Proper' as the theme for the third issue of Lurve?
For the past year or so, the fashion industry has been in the center of this "size issue." When I gave birth, I saw my body changing for what I thought was the worst. I was doing research on Francis Bacon (the painter) when I came across that quote (by Sir Francis Bacon, the philosopher). I thought that it was so beautiful how two people with the same names and completely different associations could share the same ideas: on one hand there's Bacon the painter with his distorted portraits, and on the other hand there's Bacon the writer, defining beauty in a way that very few could understand. With Lurve's third issue, I wanted to try to push the size issue even further. My research led me to this anthropology essay, "Beyond the Body Proper," and I soon understood that body image was a subject so deep that by, for example, doing an editorial with a plus-size model, we could not translate anything of significance. So we tried to propel the issue further by just showing "special" beauties and trying to find something beautiful in every person.
What made you choose the cover image of Irina Lazareanu by Cécile Bortoletti?
The last time that I worked with Cécile was only last year, when we did this beautiful editorial with (the late) Daul Kim styled by Romain Kremer. For some reason at the time, I did not want to use Daul's image on the cover. I was under the impression that people would have a hard time understanding Cécile's work because her images are not polished or otherwise commonplace in a fashion magazine. After Daul passed away, Cécile and I spoke a lot on the phone... there was something special that was linking us. We talked often about what I liked in a photo and she somehow completely understood me. Irina's cover photograph very directly reminded me of one of my favorite paintings, Francis Bacon's "Three Studies for A Self-Portrait." Just as in Bacon's painting, Irina appears ageless -- almost faceless -- but still beautiful.
Terrence Koh's photographs in this issue were inspired by that late German modern dance choreographer Pina Bausch, who died suddenly of cancer this summer. Did you have her death in mind for this? Why did you decide to use designer Damir Doma's Spring-Summer 2010 collection in the photos?
Lurve is a sort of play between darkness and lightness, so death is always a big source of inspiration. Begum Boré art directed that story; she wanted the models to be photographed in a fashion similar to Caravaggio's clair-obscur (chiaroscuro) style -- a style which renders both dramatic tension and depth while freezing movements at a precise moment. The idea was to have a story that would be a visceral depiction of energy and drama that emphasized intensity through shadows, movement and facial expressions. Begum was very precise about what she wanted and she choose Damir Doma's designs for his bucolic pieces owing to the fluid fabrics. Red, which was the key colour in Pina Bausch's choreography, was also an intensely present color in Doma's collection. For me, the essential idea was to do something on a more artistic level: and who is better than Terence Koh for that? I don't think Terence really considers himself a photographer, but he was very interested by the project and involved in the casting. The result is absolutely beautiful.
How do you think Chadwick Tyler's two editorials, one of which includes me, embody the "Beyond the Body Proper" theme of the issue?
I like the fact that Chadwick's images are not for everyone. We have now worked together for three issues and the only thing that Chadwick requested was to have creative freedom. He is also involved in each and every step of the shoot (from the casting to the styling) and most of the time I have absolutely no idea of what I am going to get. With this theme, I knew Chadwick would push his work even further. The model is alone, laying, almost suffering. No one knows exactly why and that is the intent: [to show] that the most beautiful person can suffer, that beyond the person who is photographed in expensive clothes, that you [are looking at] someone with a mind, and that models are not objects. With your editorial, it is very different and also something more personal. I think you are such a unique person and that your writing and this very cute image you have on the web was not doing you justice. Chadwick told me he wanted to work with you for a long time and I knew he was the perfect person for the job. You are almost a different person in those images. They're like a secret, darker side of you and I love it.
Wow, thank you. What was the process like curating artworks by Cécile Bortoletti, Chadwick Tyler, Edouard Plongeon, Pamela Love and Jordan Sullivan for the launch at OFR Galerie?
It was very spontaneous. In fact, I will only be meeting these people with whom I have worked tomorrow night, which is the negative side of having your own magazine. I have very good virtual relationships with them, so I asked if them on impulse if they wanted to have some photos at the gallery. Pamela and her boyfriend Jordan submitted these very nice images from a trip to New Mexico, Cécile presented more images of Irina... and the rest is a surprise.
How did you settle on having Pamela Love and Olivier Bobin DJ the cocktail party at La Cave de La Fidélité?
Again, it was completely spontaneous: I just told them 'we need a Frenchie and someone from New York.' Pamela DJs very rarely but I managed to convince her! I can't wait to hear what she will be playing.
Who do you envision reading and appreciating Lurve?
Lurve should be a biannual exploration of fashion and art: a celebration of diversity and novelty, a visual journey into subjects that could change things. Lurve should be about love and even more.
Lyna Ahanda - founder - and Lurve feature, too, in Le Monde Top Indie Magazine - as a NUMBER ONE !
Impressed !
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Naty's ed is haunting (in the very best way!) Absolutely in love with it. Not too fond of the cover but the rest of this looks certainly impressive.
