Happy fall everyone! Grab something pumpkin spiced and get ready for blog post four!
So just general updates before I delve into the specifics:
So just general updates before I delve into the specifics:
- Two weekends ago, I visited Sicily and you can find some pictures here.
- Currently I have an internship as a Male Model Booking Assistant swoons
- Fashion Week happened and by the power of Instagram and peach bellinis, I adopted another persona to get into the Givenchy Milan party
So to follow the order of events, I officially started my internship in a model-booking agency called Nologo Mgmt. As per (persistent) request, I was placed into the male model division. I am not completely sure what will come of it, but it is nonetheless exciting. It’s actually a very strange situation because I will just be sitting at my desk and a hoard of male models will come in just to chat, but it is something I will just have to get used to. Everyone in the office is very nice, but there is a “The Devil Wears Prada” type of energy that is definitely in the air. The other day my manager introduced me to a model and as soon as we walked away he threw his hands in the air and shouted, “Don’t be a cactus!”
Thinking there was some sort of language barrier I said, “…Like the plant?”
And then it began,
Thinking there was some sort of language barrier I said, “…Like the plant?”
And then it began,
Yes the plant, because it is that—a plant. Very pretty to look at, but just sits in the corner for looks. If you want to be a real model you can’t just be a cactus you need to be a person. You need to be a person for everything.”
Some very simple and sincere advice. Make sure you are actually giving back in one way or another to those with whom you spend time. I am still trying to get a grasp on how Italians interact in the workplace, because everyone here is just expected to stay in their role rather than try to evolve into other roles; very different from the United States, where they want us to always ask for what’s next and how we can climb up the ladder.
As for fashion week endeavors, I went to an Off-White collaboration with Virgil Abloh (a creative director that works VERY closely with Kanye West) private showing through responding to a post on Instagram. After finding out that my friends and I were in fact not in the guest list, we found out that dressing in all black, adopting a very thick American accent, and most importantly smiling can pretty much right any wrong situation. Once inside it was everything you’d expect a showroom to be: two shirts, three pairs of shoes, lots of obscure writings, and waiters offering flutes of peach Bellini and some sort of Scandinavian fish delicacy. Probably from our collective energy of being out of place, my friends and I found the other people that were there by way of the infamous Instagram post. This turned out to be one of the most fun experiences I had, mainly because of the fact that I wasn’t hanging out with other American students. It was really the first time I felt a part of the Milanese lifestyle. From this party I met someone who invited us to the Givenchy Milan party if we agreed to take the names of people who were already on the list, but I think I will save that story for another blog.
As for fashion week endeavors, I went to an Off-White collaboration with Virgil Abloh (a creative director that works VERY closely with Kanye West) private showing through responding to a post on Instagram. After finding out that my friends and I were in fact not in the guest list, we found out that dressing in all black, adopting a very thick American accent, and most importantly smiling can pretty much right any wrong situation. Once inside it was everything you’d expect a showroom to be: two shirts, three pairs of shoes, lots of obscure writings, and waiters offering flutes of peach Bellini and some sort of Scandinavian fish delicacy. Probably from our collective energy of being out of place, my friends and I found the other people that were there by way of the infamous Instagram post. This turned out to be one of the most fun experiences I had, mainly because of the fact that I wasn’t hanging out with other American students. It was really the first time I felt a part of the Milanese lifestyle. From this party I met someone who invited us to the Givenchy Milan party if we agreed to take the names of people who were already on the list, but I think I will save that story for another blog.
The calmest portion of my fashion week was when I visited Fondazione Prada. It was a very strange social experiment in itself because they layout of the entire exhibit was formatted like a prison and all of the staff members wore grey guard uniforms while directing visitors through disjointed art pieces. Also since the location itself is towards the outer part of the city, it was eerily quiet but still compared to the lively city center. All of the pieces were very loud; however, I couldn’t really grasp what each was trying to say or the relationship between any of them. It was a very strange experience to have and an even stranger one to reflect on because I can’t give a clear enough description of what I witnessed. Which I guess is a good thing when it comes to art, right?
My favorite part would have to be eating in Bar Luce, the café director Wes Anderson designed for the Fondazione Prada. If you have seen any West Anderson film (and if you haven’t please stop reading right now and watch “The Grand Budapest Hotel”) it felt as if I had just walked on set and could potentially find Tom Hanks sipping on a tea in the corner. Just like the movies, every moment was picturesque and the colors were coordinated down to the font on the napkins. I ordered a passion fruit popsicle and felt like I channeled my inner Suzy Bishop (Moonrise Kingdom). I have been feeling a bit Parisian this fall despite my city of choice, so I have been having a lot of fun with deep vees and neck scarves. Adopting a French wardrobe and only focusing on minimal pieces actually leads to a less stressful morning when picking outfits. Less choices = less stress.