Italian photographer and artist Agostino Osio in his project “Spazi-Aree” breaks up landscapes and spaces to compose them in new, dreamlike views made of collages of different images. Choosing first Paris as the main subject for his lens, then Milan, Osio’s evocative cities are tinged with a surreal atmosphere. Resident artist at Studio Maffei Milano, his work is on show in Venice during the 14th edition of La Biennale at the Italian Pavilion as part of the exhibition Innesti-Grafting curated by Cino Zucchi.

Milano Liberty, 2014

arch. Luigi Caccia Dominioni, 2014

VII arrondissement, 2013

Operà, 2013

la Defence, 2013 

XIX arrondissement, 2013

XIII arrondissement, 2013  

Louvre, 2013 

rive gauche, 2013

All photos © Agostino Osio , courtesy of Studio Maffei Milano

Guy Bourdin, Vogue Paris 1969                                               Honer Akrawi for Grazia France, 2014

Guy Bourdin was inspired by surrealism and rejected the traditional codes of photography in favor of atmospheric editorials where the product advertised was often put in the background. He started to shoot for Vogue Paris in the late 50s and his work remains highly influential today. For the March 2014 edition of French Grazia Honer Akrawi  similarly creates a refined atmosphere turning model Sophie Droogendijk ‘s face into a canvas where the jewelry advertised disappears, blending in with the glitter.

“I have always loved telling stories.. stories about people who breathe and feel and suffer and dream. Stories that explore and create different worlds within the world we all live in” Melvin Sokolsky

Bubble on the Seine, Simone d’Aillencourt, Harper’s Bazaar, Paris, 1963

The Story of Solkosky’s whimsical bubbles    

Settings: Paris, 1963

Leading actor: Born and raised in New York City and best known for his editorial fashion photographs for publications such as Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, and The New York Times, Sokolsky lacked of academic technical education which he compensated with sense of fantasy and invention. Surrealism is an influence in his plays with proportion and reality.

Plot: Haunted by a particular image from Hieronymous Bosch’s painting ‘The Garden of Delights,’ where in a particular scene there is a naked couple inside a sphere, Sokolsky had a re-occurring dream in which he saw himself floating in the air inside a transparent bubble. Inspired, he decided to use the idea for the series Bubble he created in 1963 for the spring edition of Harper’s Bazaar. The Bubble was crafted in plexiglass and alluminium  to emulate a Faberge Egg, for which Sokolsky had great admiration. Model Simone d’Aillencourt, with whom he had great chemistry, would get into the Bubble that was suspended a few feet off the ground and hung from a cable on a crane in various locations around Paris. The final work received many appreciations.

All photos © Melvin Sokolsky

Source: Voguepedia

Dinah Fried‘s Fictitious Dishes features elegant photographic recreations of some of literature’s most beloved banquets. From Proust’s fine madeleines to Kerouac’s apple pie with cream, Fried captures the atmosphere of the novels, focusing carefully on every single detail, from the shape of the crockery to the pattern on the table cloth. Each photograph is accompanied by the particular passage in which the recipe appeared, as well as a few quick and curious factlets about the respective author, novel, or food. Truly enjoyable.

The Catcher in the Rye,  by J.D. Salinger, 1951

‘When I’m out somewhere, I generally just eat a Swiss cheese sandwich and a malted milk. It isn’t much, but you get quite a lot of vitamins in the malted milk. H. V. Caulfield. Holden Vitamin Caulfield.’

Alice’s adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, 1865

‘Have some wine,’ the March Hare said in an encouraging tone. Alice looked all round the table, but there was nothing on it but tea.’

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, 1960

”Gracious alive, Cal, what’s all this?’ He was staring at his breakfast plate. Calpurnia said, ‘Tom Robinson’s daddy sent you along this chicken this morning. I fixed it.’ ‘You tell him I’m proud to get it — bet they don’t have chicken for breakfast at the White House.’’

Moby Dick, by Herman Melville, 1851

‘Our appetites being sharpened by the frosty voyage, and in particular, Queequeg seeing his favorite fishing food before him, and the chowder being surpassingly excellent, we despatched it with great expedition…’

The Great Gatsby by  F. Scott Fitzgerald, 1925

‘On buffet tables, garnished with glistening hors-d’oeuvre, spiced baked hams crowded against salads of harlequin designs and pastry pigs and turkeys bewitched to a dark gold.’

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson, 1971

”You goddamn honkies are all the same.’ By this time he’d opened a new bottle of tequila and was quaffing it down….He sliced the grapefruit into quarters…then into eighths…then sixteenths…then he began slashing aimlessly at the residue.’

The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, 1910-1911

‘Roasted eggs were a previously unknown luxury and very hot potatoes with salt and fresh butter in them were fit for a woodland king—besides being deliciously satisfying.’

Swann’s Way by Marcel Proust, 1913

‘One day in winter, as I came home, my mother, seeing that I was cold, suggested that, contrary to my habit, I have a little tea. I refused at first and then, I do not know why, changed my mind. She sent for one of those squat, plump cakes called petites madeleines…’

On the Road by Jack Kerouac, 1957

‘But I had to get going and stop moaning, so I picked up my bag, said so long to the old hotelkeeper sitting by his spittoon, and went to eat. I ate apple pie and ice cream — it was getting better as I got deeper into Iowa, the pie bigger, the ice cream richer.’

Chicken Soup with Rice’ by Maurice Sendak, 1962

Via It’s Nice That

Known as “The Bardot Pose” and considered one of the sexiest poses BB ever struck, this picture taken by the actress in the early 60s half naked, wearing just a pair of black stockings, defines a sexy, glamorous style and has been inspirational for many. The iconic pose has been brought back by models and actresses, sometimes identical or delivered with new twists: bold and sensually-charged Rihanna, elegant Gisele who nonchalantly inverts the crossing of her legs.

Brigitte Bardot, Photographer unknown, 1960 c.a.Elle MacPherson by Herb Ritts for Playboy, 1994

Lindsay Lohan for Entertainment Weekly, 2004

Monica Bellucci by Simon Hawk for Vanity Fait Italia, 2007

Gisele Bundchen by Nino Munoz for Muse Magazine, 2010. The photo was later reused for the cover of Elle Brazil’s May 2011 issue

Rihanna by Simon Emmett for GQ Magazine, 2010

Photos via Pinterest

The Story of G.Kero

Settings: Paris, today

Leading actors: Siblings Marguerite and Philippe Bartherotte are the duo behind G.Kero, a recently born french label of cotton and jersey separates, aiming at bringing art into everyday life. Marguerite,creative mind of the duo, studied at the famous school of art and design, La Cambre, in Belgium and came to fashion through her painting, helped by Philippe, the “driving force” behind G.Kero’s creations.

Plot:  Using t-shirts as her canvas talented Bartherotte perfects her  freehand style on high-quality cotton, creating minimalist designs which reflect her bohemian upbringing in Cap Ferret. : exotic animals, music, love, her watercolors are inspired by anything that embodies joy de vivre . The fresh, sometimes irreverent style of Bartherotte’s design has gained G.Kero a cult following that includes the likes of Marion Cotillard and Kate Moss.

To know more: G.Kero

Photographer Herbert Tobias and his cat, 1962

Iggy Pop and friend, by Bonnie Shiffman 1966

Princess Caroline by Helmut Newton, 1980

Karl Lagerfeld and Choupette, 2012

Buster Keaton and puppy, 1920 ca

Jean Shrimpton by Davud Hurn, 1966

River Phoenix at home, by Michael Tighe, 1987

Rod Stewart by David Steen, 1976

Kate Moss by Herb Ritts, 1997

Leonardo di Caprio by Annie Leibovitz, 1997

Jean Seberg by Philippe Halsman ,1959

Photos via Pinterest

By Sissi Macchetto

“Libera’s Malaparte house is private. It is a house of paradoxes. It is an object which consumes. It is filled with unrequited histories. It is a relic left upon the pinnacle after the seas have subsided. It is a sarcophagus of soft cries. It whispers of inevitable fates” John Hejduk in Domus

Casa Malaparte, Le Mépris

The Story of Casa Malaparte

Settings: Capri, 1938 ca

Leading actor: Brash journalist and political agitator Curzio Malaparte was exiled on the island of Lipari in 1933 for having criticized Mussolini’s regime in his writings. Paradoxically, upon his release, Malaparte longed for more seclusion. In 1937 ca he bought a site on Capri’s coastline and had the noted architect Adalberto Libera draw up plans for a home. Later on the writer substantially reworked the plan so that he himself is considered the house’s true architect.

Plot: “One cannot find the entrance to this house, it is hidden like the tombs” John Hejduk wrote in the essay published by Domus in 1980. Perched atop a promontory where “nature manifests itself with unparalleled brute force” and overlooking the stunning Gulf of Salerno, Casa Malaparte is an ode to solitude. It can be reached from the sea on calm days only and once there one must climb 99 steps to reach the entrance. From land it takes hours of walk on broken ground across the island. Stolid and majestic. “A house like me” Malaparte often said. In 1963 the house was used in Jean-Luc Godard’s Le Mépris,  its vast rooms and never ending stairs perfectly serving as a setting for the progressive estrangement between Bardot and Michel Piccoli’s characters.

Photos via Pinterest

By Bebe Leone

“Those who live by the sea can hardly form a single thought of which the sea would not be part.”  Hermann Broch

The story of Aevo 

Settings: Ostia, June 2014

Plot: One night was enough to revolutionize the appearance of the seafront in Ostia, the so called “lungomuro”. A spot of light among the neglect and the concrete, a sculpture, recalling the shape and posture of the classical statues created during the Italian Renaissance but dressed with the colors of modernity, was deposited overnight, as if it was brought by the waves of the Mediterranean Sea. And as if it was guarding the city, enigmatically pointed towards the horizon, we know the marble lady was not put there accidentally.The gesture of its still anonymous creator was a conscious gesture of passion. Passion towards a place, Ostia, that reunites past and contemporary making it a cradle of arts and history and at the same time a controversial example of Italy’s urban decay. With a mysterious signature at its bottom, Aevo,  reminiscent of some glorious old days, the statue is there to produce an effect: from its arms colorful ropes spread into the surrounding environment, twirling around the pier, reaching for ruins and  beaches, just like a good virus carrying within it a revolutionary vitality.

The Story of Missoni’s aquatic show at Piscina Solari

Photo: Courtesy of Missoni Press Office

Settings: Piscina Solari, Milan, December 1967

Leading actors: The Missonis or to put it with Suzy Menkes’s words “the essence of Italian fashion — as the Italians would like to view themselves: a mom-and-pop show that grew into a global empire with the second and third generations integrated as seamlessly as random-pattern into knits” (in Missoni’s family mosaic)

Plot: 1967 was a crucial year for the freshly born label of Rosita and Ottavio Missoni. The couple was first invited to present their new collection at Palazzo Pitti in Florence. Realizing too late that the underwear chosen was not matching the geometry of the clothes, Rosita sent out the models without any. Under the bright lights of the room the clothes became transparent, accidentally creating a nude look that sent the photographers into a snapping frenzy.This caused a little scandal and the Missonis were not invited back until 1970. This temporary setback turned out to be a great opportunity as they presented the Spring/Summer collection in December 1967 at the Solari swimming pool in Milan with a spectacular aquatic show. The new designs were worn by models floating on the water sitting on futuristic inflatable armchairs and sofas pushed around by swimming champions. The avant-garde furniture pieces that were perfectly fitting the cutting-edge atmosphere of the show, were created by Vietnamese designer Quasar Khanh, husband of Emannuelle Khanh with whom Missoni had launched a collaboration the former year. This presentation was one of the very few in the history of fashion in which pieces of interior design were used during a fashion show. Closed with a collective swim in the pool and with Quasar Khanh greeting the audience from a gigantic floating house, the event marked Missoni’s success but also the beginning of a new trend in fashion: catwalk shows turned into proper performance events.

By Sissi Macchetto

“Card keys—jamais! The key is the tie that binds the client and the concierge.” Philippe Perd,  Director, Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc

The Story of Hotel du Cap d’Eden Roc 

Settings: Cap d’Antibes, 1889-today

Leading actors: It was Hippolyte de Villemessant, the founder of France’s Le Figaro newspaper, who built the Villa Soleil in 1869 for writers seeking inspiration. In 1887, the Piedmontese Italian hotelier Antoine Sella bought the property, and opened the Grand Hôtel du Cap two years later. In 1914, the Eden Roc pavillion was incorporated, built 400 yards away from the main hotel. In 1970 André Sella, Antoine’s son, decided to sell to Rudolf August Oetker a German industrialist, and his wife Maja von Malaisé, who remains the sole proprietor to this day.

Plot: Tender is the night at Hotel du Cap Eden Roc, for American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. In the midway between Cannes and Monaco “The large, proud, rose-colored hotel” on the French Riviera has been a golden retreat for the super famous of the world over the past two centuries A favourite of aristocrats and socialites, artists and writers during the 30s, it has become in recent times the exclusive haven of Hollywood stars and celebrities. The rooms where the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge once honeymooned, hosted Tom Hanks and Cate Blanchett during the Cannes Film Festival; the Cabanas where Marc Chagall sketched his days away, recently served as a set for Nicole Kidman’s rarefied fashion shoot. Time goes by and the now white stain-colored hotel still enchants with its compelling charm. Even if it recently went through a massive refurbishment, efforts and money were implied to make it appear as if nothing had been renovated. The hotel’s strict social codes also remain firmly nostalgic: decorum has always been a hallmark (Kate Moss was once banned from the hotel for wearing a bikini in the hallways). For many years credit cards were not accepted, only cash, an elitist policy that was dropped only in 2006. Rules and codes are part of Hotel du Cap’s own heritage and they make its fortune: “..that white-gloved posture has helped the hotel preserve its most precious asset—the sepia-toned atmosphere that evokes a bygone era of travel, when people dressed up to take a plane”  (The Wall Street Journal)

The Duke and Duchess of Windsor, with André Sella, 1936.

Chanel model Marie-Hélène Arnaud, photographed poolside in 1957 ©Georges Dambier

Holidaymakers at the Hotel du Cap Eden-Roc, Antibes on theFrench Riviera, 1969 ©Slim Aarons

Dani Geneux (left) and Marie-Eugenie Gaudfrin sunbathing at the Hotel du Cap Eden-Roc, Antibes, France, August 1976 ©Slim Aarons

Nicole Kidman photographed inside a Cabana by Patrick Demarchelier, 2013

Rihanna at Hotel du Cap, September 2014

By Bebe Leone

“Slim Aarons shot the kind of life that most of us dream of living” Scott Shuman

Poolside gossip , 1970: shot at architect Richard Neutra’s desert house for E. Kaufmann, Palm Springs The Story of Slim Aarons ‘ poolside photographs

Settings: From Palm Beach to Palm Springs, from Antibes to Porto Ercole, from Mexico to Morrocco, the Jet Set’s pools in between the 50s and the early 80s

Leading Actor: Photographer of the beautiful and the celebrated, the rich and the powerful, Slim Aarons (1916-2006) made a career, in his words, “photographing attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places.” 

Plot:   Through his stylish , flawless images, Slim Aarons takes us on a journey to the Jet Set ‘s most intimate playground: the pool. Notoriously with plenty of time to spend in amusement and leisure, the rich and the famous love to gather around a pool, be it in a 5 stars hotel in the French Riviera or in a charming designer villa by the desert, for an afternoon of sun, or a cocktail party in the evening. As an undisputed star, the pool is often the central element in Aarons’ images: from its blue, crystal clear water unravels a whole world of refined people living a glamorous, carefree life, to which Aarons was given privileged access and of which he gives an unprecedented peek. No stylists, no makeup artists, just iconic lifestyle photos on prosperous WASP America in between the 50s and the 80s, an incredible source of inspiration for the lovers of vintage glamour. “Beyond any anthropological notions, the artist seeks above all to represent a lifestyle that treads the fine line between paradise-on-earth and a fake, fairytale decor..Rather than simply capturing a social milieu, the artist strives to represent a way of living life ‘as spectacle”. (in Yellow Korner)   Nice Pool, 1955. American writer C.Z Guests and her son, in front of their Grecian temple pool on the ocean-front estate, Villa Artemis, Palm Beach.    Penthouse Pool, Athens, 1961 Babe Paley poolside at her cottage Round Hill, Jamaica, 1959 Alvin and Lilly Fuller outside their new home in Palm Beach, Florida, pose with their fashionable European sports car, the Mercedes 190SL, 1970. Flinstone Home, 1973. Carl Hovgard’s home, Arizona, built around the boulders on a desert site Home of architect Arturo Pani in Acapulco, Mexico, January 1971. Keep Your Cool, 1978. Carmen Alvarez enjoying a game of backgammon with Frank ‘Brandy’ Brandstetter in a swimming pool at Acapulco. Poolside at Laguna Beach Rita Aarons, wife of photographer Slim Aarons, on a lilo in a swimming pool decorated for Christmas, Hollywood, 1954.All photos ©Slim Aarons To know more: Poolside with Slim Aarons

By Bebe Leone “Anyone who sees beauty and does not look at it will soon be poor”  African Proverb (Yoruba People) Nigerian born designer Duro Olowu, SS2015 Isienwenro James Iyoha Inneh, Ekegbian of Bénin Nigeria Chicken on a woman’s shoulder, Burkina Headwrap styling by Olga Tupogonova Hermes ‘ Africa inspired prints, SS 2015 Yoruba woman with umbrella, Meko, Nigeria. Photo Eliot Elisofon, ca 1970 Photo by Viviane Sassen Editorial styling vintage Dries Van Noten, Jean Paul Gaultier and African Tribal clothing. Photo ©Filep Motwary Woman from Mali wearing Fulani earrings and traditional dress Junya Watanabe’s Africa inspired collection SS2009 Nyimi Kok Mabiintsh III King of Kuba D.R. Congo. Focus on the fine design of the umbrella All photos via Pinterest

By Bebe Leone

The Story of Balenciaga’s hoodlike hat

Presented as a complement of the single seam wedding dress Cristobal Balenciaga launched in 1967, the monastic-like hood was designed to replace the traditional bridal lace veil. Highly Influenced by the period’s fondness for futuristic cuts and tech fabrics Balenciaga conceived a dress and headpiece void of all the traditional bridal attributes, groundbreaking, ready for the outer space. The iconic hat was reintroduced in 2008 by then-Balenciaga designer Nicolas Ghesquière for the brand’s SS 2008 collection. Four years later, the hoodlike hat was once again brought back to life by Ghesquière for Balenciaga’s SS 2012 show: infamously known as the ‘Darth Veder hat” this time the hood was offered up as a visor, raising controversial critics.

1967: a complement of Cristobal Balenciaga’s futuristic wedding gown

2008: Nicolas Ghesquière romantic re-introduction of the hat, here worn by Jessica Connelly

2012: the visor rendition by Ghesquière, also known as the Darth Veder hat, here worn by Emily Blunt

By Bebe Leone

Photos ©Mark Seliger via The Custom Family

By Bebe Leone

Salvador Dali by Philippe Halsmann, 1954                              Bill Murray by Inez&Vinoodh, 2004

Halsman took numerous photographs of friend and playmate Salvador Dali, all along their unique, fertile artistic collaboration that lasted for more than 30 years, leaving us with plenty of witty, whimsical images to fiddle around with.  Besides flying cats and man-sized eggs, Dali’s distinctive mustache was often the focus of Halsman’s lens, portrayed in shapes of any sort and styled in surreal settings. “Whenever I needed a striking protagonist for one of my wild ideas, Dali would graciously oblige. Whenever Dali thought of a photograph so strange that it seemed impossible to produce, I tried to find a solution.” (Philippe Halsman)

Creative duo Inez and Vinoodh has a penchant for portraits and a penchant for flowers. Known for their artistic ability to create aesthetic dichotomies by combining “the beautiful with the bizarre… the elegant with the extreme” they chose to style Bill Murray with a daisy- sprouting beard to capture him for the New York Times ‘ Great performers editorial in 2004. “It’s all about this idea of finding the one element in someone’s physiognomy, heightening that through the lens and making everyone into a hero” (in Nowness). In the case of Murray, known for his mythical and magical performances in films the likes of The Groundhog Day and Anderson’s The Life Aquatic, the combination between delicate, feminine daisies and a mainly beard works simply fine..

Sausage dogs calling!! Please tell us the secret of your success..From Pablo Picasso to Andy Warhol, from Brigitte Bardot to Peter Jensen, many artists and designers were fond of the clumsy, irresistible sausage-shaped dog, which has been portrayed, painted and designed in any possible way.

The dachshund print stood for witty cosmopolitan elegance in the late 50s. Photo 1955 ca

For a contemporary rendition of the chic sausage dog pattern, check out Luli Sanchez beautiful artwork

By Sissi Macchetto

The Story of Richard Avedon’s Fable 

Settings: The New Yorker, Nov 6, 1995

Leading Actors: Richard Avedon, Nadja Aumermann and a skeleton

Plot:  Back in November 1995, The New Yorker featured Avedon’s beautiful fable of decadence and death, beautifully staged by model Nadja Auermann dressed in lavish designer clothes clashing with a shabby background environment. The characters involved, Mr. & Mrs. Comfort, are represented as a caricature of the high society rich couple Avedon was surrounded by: “they are a violent caricature of a world of thin women and rich men who are — at the end of the day — dust like the rest of us mortals” (Anne of Carversville). Many believed that this reflected Avedon’s disillusionment with contemporary fashion, his farewell to the world of vanity and vacuity that made him a top-tier celebrity.

Photos via My Modern Met 

By Bebe Leone

In 1967 Milanese goldsmith GianCarlo Montebello persuaded a long list of modern artists including Lucio Fontana, Hans Richter, Jesús Soto and Alex Katz to collaborate with him, creating a limited edition of jewels under the Gem Montebello label. Among them,  Niki de Saint Phalle  who designed a surrealist , whimsical necklace with eye and mouth pendants. The witty editorial showcasing the piece and pulled from the pages of a vintage Vogue Italia, features the chocolate eyes and crimson lips of a raven-haired beauty’s mirrored by cleverly placed pendants.The chunky eyes and lips of the necklace will look familiar to the modern jewelry enthusiast; they are strikingly similar to the designs of Fendi’s scion Delfina Delettrez who has made no secret of her love all things vintage. Delfina Delettrez took inspiration from Niki’s design, re-editing it in her own jewellery pieces and in her collaboration for the A/W 2013-14 season with Kenzo, characterized by the eye motif.

Source: Irenebrination