Wednesday, July 6, 2016

The Amazing Way NYC Is Honoring Bill Cunningham Today

Today at the corner of 57th Street and Fifth Avenue there will be a ceremony to commemorate Bill Cunningham, The New York Times reports. Anyone who traced the legendary photographer's path knew this was a regular spot for him to snap stylish Manhattanites. Upon his recent passing, murmurings of renaming this now iconic intersection began, and thankfully at 12:30 p.m. today the deputy mayor of New York, former curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institiute, and executive editor of The New York Times will gather to rename the corner as "Bill Cunningham Corner."   

Though the renaming will be temporary (this process has become sparse in practice), Mayor Bill de Blasio did acknowledge Cunningham's longlasting impact on the city in a statement, which may lead to something more permanent down the road.

What's your favorite memory of Bill Cunningham? Leave it in the comments, and pick up your copy of the documentary Bill Cunningham New York if you don't already own it!

Opening Image: Ron Galella/WireImage

French Vogue Brings Out the Stars at Paris’s Fashion Museum

Photo The model Anja Rubik at the Vogue Paris Foundation dinner at the Palais Galliera, the city's fashion museum. Credit Agnes Dherbeys for The New York Times

PARIS — If fashion had a prom, it might be the annual black-tie gala held by the Vogue Paris Foundation to raise funds and to showcase major donations to the Palais Galliera, the city's fashion museum.

Now in its third year, the dinner held Tuesday in the museum's courtyard (tented, carpeted and filled with white roses for the event) was hosted by Emmanuelle Alt, editor of French Vogue, and Olivier Saillard, director of the Palais Galliera. It also doubled as a who's who of brands, executives, designers and their muses (model and otherwise), schmoozing and celebrating on the penultimate evening of Couture Week.

Photo The courtyard was tented for the dinner. Credit Agnes Dherbeys for The New York Times

"This is just so beautiful; what a scene, what a setting," Vanessa Paradis declared to Ms. Alt. The actress, wearing a gold jeweled tank top, then whipped out her tobacco and rolled two cigarettes, her crystal glass still in hand.

Other local faces included Clémence Poésy, Joséphine de la Baume, Lou Doillon and Caroline de Maigret (just hours after her official debut as a Chanel ambassador), all of whom gathered for Champagne and foie gras on an open-air balcony overlooking the Eiffel Tower. Nearby, Bella Hadid leaned on a marble pillar in a dusky-pink paillettes-encrusted cocktail slip by Givenchy; and the actress Zoë Kravitz, in a razor-sharp YSL tuxedo combo (with barely a whisper of a sheer top beneath) chatted with the brand's chief executive, Francesca Bellettini.

Photo Vanessa Paradis. Credit Agnes Dherbeys for The New York Times

The summer breeze proved a little problematic for some; "I have to keep my hands clenched tight to my sides. There will be no dancing for me later," said the model Anja Rubik, dressed in a dark tailored suit with a completely open jacket and not much else. Not so for the designer Marc Jacobs, who kept his black leather bomber firmly zipped all night.

After a packed week of shows and events, there was little surprise that some guests were seeking a moment of solace and contemplation. Inside the palais, away from the buzz of the crowd, Azzedine Alaïa and Mario Testino toured the museum's exhibition while Gabriel-Kane Day-Lewis, the model and son of the actor Daniel Day-Lewis, stood in a corner with a friend while vaping intensively on an e-cigarette.

Photo From left, Gabriel-Kane Day-Lewis, Irina Shayk and Youssef Marquis. Credit Agnes Dherbeys for The New York Times

Just before 10 p.m., guests sat for dinner, first applauding Ms. Alt's brief welcome speech: "I am very shy, so I am going to let Olivier Saillard speak." Later, there was the grinding live performance of Mahaut Mondino, daughter of the photographer Jean-Baptiste Mondino, and the appearance of a giant birthday cake for the American Vogue fashion news director Mark Holgate to the room's cheers. For one night at least, fashion was one happy family.

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