Friday Nights at the De Young are back for another season, and they’re kicking things off with a Jean Paul Gaultier-inspired event! There will be DJs, drinks, and dancing, and you’ll have a chance to walk the runway. Wear your wildest Gaultier ensemble and they’ll provide the accessories and the catwalk – they’re even holding runway lessons, just in case you need a refresher.

So head over to the De Young Museum on Friday evening and get your weekend started right! Admission is free – you only need to buy tickets if you want to go to the special exhibitions.

WHAT: Friday Nights at the De Young

WHEN: Friday, March 30 from 5:00 to 8:45 PM

WHERE: De Young Museum - 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive

Click here for more information.

On Saturday, the De Young Museum hosted a conversation between Jean Paul Gaultier and fashion journalist Suzy Menkes, in honor of the opening of the designer’s exhibit The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk. “Jean Paul Gaultier is one of the funniest, most talented, wittiest, and funkiest fashion designers I know,” Menkes began. The only thing we might add to the list: most charming – he really is wonderful to talk to, which we learned during his visit to the School of Fashion.

During the hour and half discussion, Suzy touched on everything from his early love of fashion inspired by the Folies Bergère, to his work with Madonna, and the business side of fashion that is seldom discussed. She was quick to point out how deserving Jean Paul was of the exhibition, saying, “I’d just like to start with something a little bit more serious. In fashion, the real reason that people last – and when it comes to Jean Paul Gaultier is probably talked about the least – is the technique, the skill, the handwork, the knowledge. Sometimes it gets buried underneath the fantasies of the clothes, but if you look hard, you will see the extraordinary craftsmanship.” And it is so true – going through the exhibition, you are able to see the intense attention to detail and all of the hard work – particularly when looking at the couture gowns.

When asked about his early years, creating the corsets and dressing Madonna, Jean Paul cited his mother and grandmother as inspiration, who influenced him from a very young age. “They taught me how women were: strong, clever, human – and sometimes stronger than men. I realized very quickly that women were more interesting and maybe even more clever.” And he sought to portray that through the clothing – it was not about sexualizing women, but about showing their power. He spoke of how much he enjoyed working with Madge – they had similar ideas and wanted to say the same things. He also confessed that the original cone bra was worn not by Madonna, but by his teddy bear, Nana, who had a cone bra made of newspaper, which you can see in the exhibition.

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The Creators Project at Fort Mason. Photo Courtesy of Bryan Derballa.

This weekend, The Creators Project took over Fort Mason, kicking off their 2012 world tour with a bang. The free, two-day festival brought together everything that San Franciscans love: art, technology, music, and even food trucks. If you haven’t heard of The Creators Project, we can describe it in one simple word: awesome. The collaboration between tech-innovators Intel and Vice magazine supports visionary artists around the world working across multiple disciplines and technologies, pushing the boundaries of creative expression in the digital age.

Origin by United Visual Artists and Scanner. Photo Courtesy of Bryan Derballa.

The festival included a number of films, panels, artworks and installations, many of which were interactive – allowing visitors to actively participate in the art. Origin, a 40-foot by 40-foot cubic sculpture greeted festivalgoers as they entered the grounds. The awe-inspiring installation by United Visual Artists fuses light, design, and music – complete with an original score from electronic music artist Scanner. Each individual LED pixel is controlled and programmed to respond to visitors as they enter the cube and are immersed in the audiovisual environment.

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We were so excited when we first heard that The Creators Project was coming to the West Coast, even more ecstatic when we heard they were setting up in SF, and almost fell out of our chairs when we saw the lineup! But before we get into that – lets back up a minute. For those of you who don’t know about The Creators Project, it is a collaboration between Intel and Vice Magazine working to create a global network dedicated to the celebration of creativity, culture, and technology. They support visionary artists across many disciplines who are using technology in innovative ways to push the boundaries of creative expression.

They’ll will be taking over Fort Mason on March 17th and 18th, transforming it into a massive art and technology festival featuring multimedia art installations, live music performances, film screenings, and panels.

Headlining the festival we have the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, who put on a ridiculous show – not to mention Karen O always has the raddest outfits. James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem will be also be DJing alongside some “special visual surprises”. And rounding out the day there will be performances from HEALTH, The Antlers, Zola Jesus, Shabazz Palaces, The Hundred in the Hands, and Teen Daze.

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Last night, Refinery29 hosted yet another event in the city gathering the artistic and fashionable alike at the fashion-forward store, Bastille in Union Square, for an artist series showcase with denim brand THVM.

A street style photographer from Refinery29 was snapping shots of the most fashionable and eye-catching guests in attendance, which was virtually everyone, while the DJ spun tunes along with live music from Giraffage. Complimentary drinks from Kanon Organic Vodka were also being served. The crowd was mellow yet fascinating, making for intriguing conversation and great networking.

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Last semester, students from the School of Fashion’s FSH 374: Applied Textiles 3 class created textiles whose purpose was two-fold. They were asked to design textiles that could applied to large portfolio cases, but also function as works of art – the idea being that once you were done using the case, you could cut the seams and hang it on your wall! We absolutely love what they came up with, and lucky for us, you can buy their bags at the Atelier at 79 New Montgomery. Be sure to stop by and check them out!

Andrea Nieto.

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L – George Hoyningen-Huené (Russian, 1900–1968), Portrait of Elsa Schiaparelli, 1932. Hoyningen-Huené/Vogue/Condé Nast Archive. Copyright © Condé Nast. R – Guido Harari (Italian, born Cairo, 1952), Portrait of Miuccia Prada, 1999. Guido Harari/Contrasto/Redux.

They have just released a preview of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s upcoming exhibition, Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations – and we like what we see. The exhibition points out similarities in the imaginative designers approach to fashion, focusing on seven specific themes. For each theme, a fictional conversation has been imagined and created by film director Baz Luhrmann. The exhibition will open with the fashion industry’s version of The Oscars - The Costume Institute Gala’s Met Ball – taking place on May 7th, 2012. Now, if we could just snag an invite to the Met Ball!

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Jean Dujardin as Geroge Valentin in The Artist. Silent film star Douglas Fairbanks.

At the 84th Annual Academy Awards, Jean Dujardin took home the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his work in The Artist. The film follows the fictional silent film star George Valentin as silent films fall out of fashion and talkies hit the big time. The character is a composite of several stars from the 1920s and ’30s, but was largely based on famed silent film actor Douglas Fairbanks, whom Dujardin has often cited as a personal inspiration – he was certainly the inspiration for the mustache.

During his acceptance speech, Dujardin referenced the famed actor – and someone else, as well: “It’s funny because in 1929 it wasn’t Billy Crystal, but Douglas Fairbanks who hosted the first Oscars ceremony. Tickets cost $5 and it lasted 15 minutes – times have changed. Thank you Douglas Fairbanks. Yes, Melissa, your grandfather’s spirit and joie de vivre inspired me for this role.”

At that moment, Gladys Perint Palmer perked up. Melissa Fairbanks is the granddaughter of Douglas Fairbanks, and happens to be a personal friend of GPP – she’s even attended a few of our San Francisco fashion shows. Though very proud of her grandfather’s accomplishments, Hollywood was not for her – she preferred a quieter life and had worked as homeopathic healer in Fairfax. So then, why would Jean Dujardin mention Melissa? GPP immediately sent her an email, asking if he had indeed been talking to her. He was.

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In Nob Hill Gazette’s December Issue, their column Icons of Style gathered quotes about personal style from some of the industry’s (and San Francisco’s) biggest names – including our very own Gladys Perint Palmer. When asked how she would define style, she replied:

Style is confidence, not camouflage – I love blue nails.

Wonderful words of wisdom from GPP to inspire your weekend adventures.

For more from Gladys Perint Palmer, click here.