Ode to the stylists. Styling is a job that can be learned by experience, in years of practice, on fashion shootings’ sets. The stylist knows how and when to mix fabrics, prints and colors. He/she knows how to adapt clothing fits to body shapes, according to the proportions. The stylist is the professional that, mixing and matching clothes, creates a final result that pleases, amazes, reassures: in other words it plays a fundamental role for fashion media. Stylists can help photographers building their careers, they can contribute to the success of magazines, editorial campaigns and fashion shows (or they can ruin them as well). It’s an important role that shouldn’t be underestimated. Some of them gained great writing skills through the years and they now write remarkable articles not just for slick magazines but also for widely-read newspapers. When flipping through fashion editorial pages one should consider that behind each single shot there are passion, thoughts, good taste and quite a lot of work.

Gainsbourg Icon. Serge Gainsbourg, the bad boy of french pop, was said to be arrogant and violent and that his lifestyle dissolute; the label of “beautiful and damned” doesn’t fit him that much, because he was certainly not “beautiful”. But “damned”, probably, yes. Anyway the unkempt appearance it’s still somehow quite attractive related to the idea of a kind of devious and eccentric men, defined as artists and uncommon person, so that he’s become a real icon, and his style it’s being re-proposed to represent a certain nonchalant fashion. Tom Ford In 2002, during his time as creative director for Gucci, designed a collection feauturing extremely comfortable silhouettes made from soft and fluid fabrics like jersey and wool cloth. Although the reviews were enthusiastic, the collection didn’t have the expected results. The same thing happened, more recently, for Zegna collections by Stefano Pilati. I have already written about how oversize fashion still can’t find its way to the general public’s heart, for now. I personally like it, but I recognize its limits.