On Thursday, School of Fashion Executive Director Gladys Perint Palmer gave a presentation on fashion inspired by her recent travels to London, Paris, Istanbul, and other parts of Turkey. She had some amazing pictures from her travels to Turkey – gorgeous jewels that belonged to the former Grand Vizier, beautiful woven carpets, and intricate patterned tiles. It seems there is beauty everywhere you turn in Turkey – and some irony, too. Genuine fake watches at the bazaar?

One of GPP’s drawings of a Maharaja’s gold belt adorned with emeralds.

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Please join us for a conversation between Academy of Art University President Elisa Stephens, School of Fashion Executive Director Gladys Perint Palmer, and School of Fashion Director Simon Ungless – as they discuss the origin and mission of the university and the rise and growth of School of Fashion.

Gladys Perint Palmer will also take us on a visual journey through the history of fashion inspired by her travels to London, Paris, Istanbul, and other parts of Turkey – where East truly meets West. She will delve into the global nature of fashion and the ways in which designers re-interpret concepts rooted in Old World ideas. Additionally, she will discuss her unusual involvement in a new fashion film, We’ll Take Manhattan, as well as show highlights from the Academy of Art University Fall ’12 Fashion Show at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.

All Academy of Art University students and faculty are encouraged to attend!

Karl Lagerfeld’s collection for Net-a-Porter, simply titled Karl, launched yesterday with pop-up stores and parties in Paris, New York, Sydney, Berlin and London. In an interview with Vogue’s Hamish Bowles, Lagerfeld explained that the collection was an expression of his style and taste – he designed clothes that he likes.

The collection of mostly black and white sleek separates flew off shelves yesterday, and several designs are already sold out online. The price-point is much more accessible than Chanel, but it will still set you back a few (average price for an item is around $250). Proving that the line really is all about Karl, he even interviewed himself in a promotional video.

Which items are you coveting? Tell us in the comments below!

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Today’s Monday Morning Photos features some of the standout looks from the Dior Spring ’12 Haute Couture Collection. Since John Galliano’s departure last spring, there has been a flurry of speculation as to who would replace the talented designer. For the past two seasons, Bill Gaytten, Galliano’s right hand man, has been at the helm, but many felt he lacked the vision and confidence to carry the iconic brand – but this collection may prove otherwise. He turned out stunning gowns and cocktail dresses, and wearable day suits referencing the signature Dior look. “It’s meant to be x-ray Dior,” Gaytten explained. “All of the structure of iconic Dior… but all of it see-through.” Does this mean that the speculation as to who will fill Galliano’s shoes is over? We’ll have to wait and see!

What are your thoughts on the collection? Tell us in the comments below!

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Photo Credit: Wist Thorpe

In April 2007, Loulou de la Falaise visited the School of Fashion. She spoke to fashion students, reviewed portfolios and sat front row at the Graduation Fashion Show and Awards Ceremony where she was honored with a Doctor of Humane Letters for her contribution to the world of art and design from Academy of Art University president Dr. Elisa Stephens.

She gave students valuable advice on a panel discussion for the fashion students with Robin Givhan, fashion editor of The Washington Post, Titti Matteoni, editor-in-chief of Fashion magazine in Italy, Ceslie Armstrong, award-winning editor, TV host and editor-in-chief of ceslie.com, Elizabeth Varnell, style director of San Francisco magazine, Charlotte Lurot, director of Bacchus PR in London, and fashion designer Zac Posen.

Loulou de la Falaise was a close friend, muse and designer of Yves Saint Laurent for nearly 30 years. She began as a model for Vogue, designed prints for Halston, and worked on Saint Laurent’s couture and RTW collections building her reputation as a designer. She was born into a highly aristocratic family that would predispose her to a life directed by fashion and art. She was considered one of the best-dressed women in the world. After a thirty-year partnership, Yves Saint Laurent retired and she began her own label in February 2003. Her boutique at 21 rue Cambon was a fanfare of color and rich materials, reflecting her passion for her flower-filled country garden and her travels to far-flung destinations. She created collections of jewelry, ready-to-wear, accessories and decorative objects for the home. Her collections were carried in boutiques and department stores in Tokyo, New York, Casablanca, Toronto, Hong Kong, Brussels, London, Berlin, Geneva, and Zurich. In California, her jewelry retailed at the home store of ‘At Home at Sweet Things’ in Tiburon.

Rest in peace dear friend. You will be missed.

Jamie Mihlrad, 2005 MFA Fashion and Knitwear graduate, was selected by 2005 Guest of Honor Carla Sozzani for an internship in Milan that grew into Jamie becoming the sole designer responsible for the signature 10 Corso Como line of apparel and products, including collaborative projects with MAC, Converse, Diesel Jeans and Mackintosh of London. For a year, she designed the private label line as well as the signature cashmere sweaters, trench coats, handbags and various other apparel and products under the direction of Signora Sozzani. Jamie’s collaborative senior collection with textile design student Kia Faulkenberry-Lewis was shown at the first Academy of Art University Fashion Show during New York Fashion Week. A year later she later returned to New York to become an associate wovens and knitwear designer for L.A.M.B collection under the creative direction of Gwen Stefani and Zaldy Goco. She later became the designer for Ready to Wear and Soft Goods for Kate Spade, a Senior Designer at Milly New York, and is now the Design Director at Shoshanna.

What did you do when you interned for Carla Sozzani?
I moved to Milan for an internship really having no idea what was in store for me but thrilled for the opportunity to work for one of the most important women in the fashion industry. Kia and I were the first interns at 10 Corso Como so we had to pave our own way in the beginning. The boutique is a 13,000-square-foot complex, which includes the Galleria Carla Sozzani (a photography and design gallery), a bookstore (design books from all over the world), a boutique for men’s and women’s designer clothing and accessories, hard-to-find imports, and must-have luxury goods. In our office, I noticed there was a wealth of vintage bags and t-shirts, sweaters, and small accessories that Carla had accumulated over the years. Also, 10 Corso Como has a very signature logo designed by Carla’s boyfriend, the American artist Kris Ruhs. Carla gave me access to his archive of original Corso Como logo artwork, and I set to work using the vintage silhouettes as a starting point for the basic shapes of signature bags, t-shirts, and small goods, working in bits and pieces of Kris’ artwork. Customers from all over the world often make a day of experiencing the store, and Carla realized that many of these customers can’t afford the high-end product, so designing logo product at a lower price point for this customer evolved into a permanent position.

What was Carla Sozzani like?
She is incredible. Not only is she poised, intelligent and confident, she is kind, patient, and unbelievably giving. I didn’t get to work with her every day as she travels quite often to Paris, Miami, etc. so I would create 50 or 100 different versions of whatever product I was working on and then about once a week I would meet with her to edit. She has such a keen eye and knows exactly what works for her store and her customer. The most interesting thing about working with her is that she was never afraid to take risks and try new things. It was so exciting going to work every day because I never knew what I’d be working on next! One day I was co-branding a cell phone with Samsung, the next day I was at the Superga factory designing co-branded sneakers with their head designer; I got to make handbags with Ama (they make Chanel bags) and trench coats with Mackintosh of London. She decided one day that no one was making a good oversized cashmere cardigan that season, so we would! She made one phone call to the sweater factory that makes the amazing Prada cashmere cardigans, and they made ours!

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Job Information
Company Name: Carnet de Mode
Job Type: Internship
Major: Fashion (Any)
Job Title: International Fashion Art Direction to prospect young designers
Key Skills: interest/background in fashion, communication skills, prospection, business, management
Job Description: Internship for 6 months or more as an International Fashion Art Director and Hunter for the most emerging young designers all over the world from our office in Paris:

• Prospect new talented young designers of High-End Ready-to-Wear (W/M) and accessories by using internet, social networks, fashion blogs and Fashion Tradeshows all over the world (Japan, UK, USA, Italy,…)
• Attract these designers to present and sell their collections on CARNET DE MODE
• Check and help the designers to fill their profiles and photos on the website and translating the garments’ description in English or French when needed
• Direct some editorial shootings for the website when needed and organize fashion events (contests, runways, etc.)

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Can you believe that Fashion Month is almost over? Seems like it just flew by! Luckily, we are ending things on a high note with amazing collections coming from Paris.

Isabel Marant’s Spring 2012 collection took all those things you used to wear in highschool but won’t admit to now – jerseys, track pants, tie-dye – and made them oh-so-cool. She mixed prints like nobody’s business: florals, patchwork, snakeskin, you name it. She also created chunky knits that looked majorly comfortable, the perfect transition pieces for spring when there is just a slight chill lingering from winter. Lovely lace also popped up – reminiscent of vintage pieces you might have picked up on holiday to Mexico. The collection hit so many different notes, yet worked in that Parisian way of throwing a million things on that shouldn’t go together – but somehow do.

The Spring 2012 collection from Roland Mouret was ladylike as always, but he sexed things up a bit this season with cut-outs of all shapes and sizes, some even in the form of an eye. Shades of blue stood out in the collection amidst nudes, black, white, and dotted prints. Suits of all sorts could be seen throughout the collection – structured jackets paired with shorts, skirts, and pants. And of course, lots of what Mr. RM does best – beautiful, curve-hugging dresses for the sexy siren in all of us.

Oh how we love Maison Martin Margiela. This Swedish designer created a collection that felt deconstructed – in the best possible way. Seemingly unstructured pieces with exposed zippers and seams came down the runway, but we’re sure that countless hours were spent achieving that just-undone-enough look characteristic of this maison. Margiela was clearly inspired by the column this season, creating dresses, skirts, and pants all with a vertical silhouette. Leather was everywhere as well, adding that hard edge we have come to love from the designer. Another highlight – the oversized outwear that was larger than life!

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Special guest Laure du Pavillon (left) with 2011 French Exchange recipients (from left) Drew Williams, Peter Nguyen, Peter Yang and Lisa Relth at May's Spring Fashion Show. (Photo credit: Randy Brooke)

The Academy of Art University’s exchange students cross continents to learn their art (and craft), and get exposed to the capitals of Europe, the Far East, New Zealand and the four corners of the earth. We will be featuring reports from students (and faculty) about their exciting adventures, here and there.

The first installment comes from Peter S. Yang, a B.F.A. fashion design student who was awarded a scholarship to study at Studio Berçot through the school’s Sister City Scholarship Exchange in Paris. Peter’s report came in the form of a letter to School of Fashion Executive Director Gladys Perint Palmer. It was so sweet, and revealing, we felt compelled to share it with you. More traveler’s tales will be coming your way shortly.

Greetings Gladys Perint Palmer,

I arrived around 10:00 yesterday and met with my friend from high school who lives in the 14e of Paris. Honestly, the language barrier is so severe, without her, I would not know where to go or what to do.

But I am trying to adapt to the language and culture quickly. I am so in awe of this city; seriously, my first day here has felt like a fantasy. Aside from taking care of the essentials like finding an apartment, setting up a bank account and trying to attain a phone, I have been exploring the lifestyle of these beautiful people. My first day here was so relaxing.

I got a chance to see some delightful sites along the taxi ride from the airport – I briefly saw the President’s home, the Eiffel Tower, the Grand Palais (where Chanel shows haute couture) and a few other sites I could not retain. But sightseeing was not my first priority. I just needed to set up all of these errands before school starts on the 7th. We really took advantage of the fantastic Metro system (it seems difficult, but I think I can pick it up quickly) to complete these tasks. Along the way I was familiarizing myself with this magnificent city.

So far the standouts of my first day were the streets and buildings, the gorgeous men and the relaxed lifestyle of the French people. My friend Michelle and I really enjoyed just sitting at a cafe or restaurant for a couple hours having food, a glass of wine and cigarette embracing the weather, architecture and again emphasizing the most beautiful people around us. We did this maybe four or five times yesterday. I enjoyed it very much! It is so different from San Francisco in that the pace is slower and the people just really are enjoying life bit by bit. Why wouldn’t they? It’s Paris! People just love being around people and I love that! Everyone is so polite, greeting others as they walk into places. “Bonjour Monsieur”, “Bonjour Madame”, “Merci Beaucoup” and “Au revoir,” always with a smile.

I’m sure you know what it is like, so I do not want to bore you with my ramblings. I just wanted to take the time to tell you how much I appreciate this amazing experience. I did not have the opportunity to thank you so much for the chance you gave me to go on this exchange program. It feels like a fantasy being here and I cannot thank you enough for this. I really want to immerse myself in the culture and the people. It’s going to be really hard to make friends, I can tell already. But I will persevere! I’ll keep updating you on my journey. Thank you again for everything. I need to go back and cure this jet-lag soon.

Sincerely,

Peter S. Yang

We hope you all enjoyed yesterday’s presentation by Gladys Perint Palmer! The Executive Director of the School of Fashion recounted her experiences from the Fall/Winter Haute Couture shows in Paris this past summer and shared a few tidbits from the fun at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week.

The insightful presentation took students behind the scenes of the maisons de haute couture in Paris. This past July, Gladys took a tour of Atelier Lesage, a famed embroidery workshop that creates beautiful embroideries for many of the top houses including Chanel, Dior, and Givenchy. This “backstage pass” was arranged by Laure du Pavillon, formerly of Christian Lacroix, who was an honored guest of the school last May. According to GPP (and we must agree), it is this dedication to preserve these types of traditional crafts that makes Paris THE center of fashion – where it is still an art. Du Pavillon recommended School of Fashion graduate Hyunjeon Jeong for an internship at Atelier Lesage, after he saw her work at the annual Graduation Fashion Show. After a rigorous screening process, she was offered the position at the Atelier.

Delicately embroidered chiffon and inspiration boards at the Atelier

Stitching the beautiful embroidery and the School of Embroidery next to the Atelier

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