Bananas and Monkey, Stripes and Sequins.

Prada Spring Summer 2011 show in Beijing. Not just any ordinary trunk show, (the Show was in Milan in the Fall)but Prada's special version for Beijing. Exclusively. I love that last year I was in Korea for the Transformer and this time in Beijing to see a show. What vision.

On a very cold Saturday night, Beijing descended upon the new CAA, Centre for Art. One is greeted with an organised queue, not the kind of riot you see at fashion weeks in the fashion capitals, then a corridor of bright green palm trees (it was -10 degrees celsius)and followed by a cameraman . . . every step of the way, not had that before, a man, literally, shadowing my every step.

Once inside you are greeted with people, dressed in black, fur, coats, Prada and an air of anticipation in a dimly-lit museum foyer.

Arnold lit the space, by that, I thought he meant the show, what he meant was he transformed the normally neon space into a glowing interior with brighter coloured lights shining through at certain points in space.

Stephanie and I followed Arnold to see the pre-show set up. The set was identical to the show in Milan. Prada had literally rebuilt everything.

After more drinks downstairs, we climbed up the ramp to the show. The little orange plastic seats made me think of big football pitches and the tremendous lights that shine on it . . . there had to be connection.

After a wait, in this case for the ravishing Gong Li to arrive . . . the show started with a brightly clad model . . . all sharp lines, bright colours . . .classically sporty and minimal yet so quirky. The music which accompanied this suggested as much the colours a throw back to exotic Mexican, Latino vibes and the jungle, the monkey clasp on the purses an exotic tough. Then the banana print blouses. My fave look was the neon sequined stripe dress with the platform brogues, silver platformed brogues with pink rubber and rope braid. It was such FUN. So noncholant . . the boys too in the same brogues, bags with the varsity logo. The bits I also loved were the striped sombreros and fur stoles. Then there was that added maximalist quirkiness. The looks felt a bit toned down but we were informed before that they were specially made for China and would be available the next day - China-wide.

my fave look

It was like they were walking on the panels that enclose those giant neon lights. It was an ELECTRIC show.

Going back down stairs to dinner (I loved the mud chicken - chicken wrapped in leaves and buried in mud), I realised that it was seamless, the look, the feel. . . tropical cococabana meets Mexicana in a high tech super future rave set at a neon lit football pitch with monkeys in the audience throwing bananas and perfectly coiffed 1950's socialites laughing away. Litteraly, the place felt like this though the blasts of mega freezing cold air destroyed this illusion from time to time.

mud chicken

Then the next moment we were all waiting for. . . The Petshop Boys. So appropriate, so Prada - quite amazing that aesthetically, it felt completely compatible. The colours, the vibes. A slick, quirky, geeky camp-as-hell performance. I loved it.

A bit cliched but really, Go West with Chinese Gymnasts in the background was tremendous. So glad they are still around, a revival! And the crowd DANCED.

Go West

New York City Boy

King of Rome

Mrs Prada

After-party and more drinks, lofting around and taking it all in. I loved bumping into the Thai crew :), Ed and Victoria Tang who I had not seen in AGES and also making some new friends.

I was completely mesmerised by the graphics on the huge screen, by 2 by 4 from london, genius coming to life of the show's moodboard . . .seamless editting of Josphephine Baker, the Caribbeans, the three Caballeros, Prada models dancing and being a bit sily in a very strong graphic manner. Fab. The dj who spun as this visual feast went on was this guy Dan Lywood that Jan Kennedy brought from London, what he played went perfectly with that moving moodboard. I loved it.

I thought the night would end when the lights came on and but as we were getting into the car, Sebastian was leaving too and there I was confronted with whether to retire or stay out . . .and seeing as Beijing is just so HOT, I went along with Sebastian, the Prada crew and Mrs. Prada herself (she is an amazing, an amazing woman) to another new Beijing hot spot - D-lounge.

What fun . . .what a weekend . . . Maison Boulud recovery with Carol, Arnold and Alan Yau then off back to Bkk.

As Ed Tang said, thank you Prada for bringing us all together.

What next . . .I just hope those silver brogues are available soon . . . :)

New Order 2010

I wrote an article for Thailand Tatler . . .called New Order 2010.  It's about the hotspots in 2010 and has a little calender at the end.  I'm not saying I am the expert nor a futurologist but it does not take much to notice that there is a "new order" and the circuit has changed.   It was originally in direct reference to Vanity Fair where Thackeray talks about a fair of vanity - the participants attending the fair to increase their knowledge, connections etc . . . a reflection of their vanity.  

Vanity Fair at Yao Noi

This is however a bit sinister though there might be an inkling of truth but what I suggest is that it is no longer about going to parties for the sake of them . . .it is about something more . . .to have an input and take with you a little bit from a collective creative knowledge.  I suppose this was my little insight . . . especially into the lives of some of my dearest friends who in their own way contribute significantly to this little circuit.  Andre and Nat Sarasas . . . our time in Yao Noi with little Cleo was hugely inspring. I hope this year I get to spend more time in Chiang Mai, it is after all our artistic hub and go to the dessert, probably not Essakane this time but maybe Rancho Mirage. In Paris - Andre, OLT and Alex de Betak really add to the place. . . In Bkk - Piyatat for his sublimely beautiful photographs that adorn the streets of Bangkok - very excited for his school R.M.A to open. I cannot wait to see Arnold's new lighting projects and am to this day inspired by the Prada Transformer.  Venice and Basel - always on the circuit. . .and it really was this experience with friends in 2009 . . .the shared moments . . .the funny ones (piggy backs and flood in Venice) and the not so funny ones (missing flights) that I hope will be repeated in 2010.  And we can't forget London - never! 

Now that we are in a new decade. . .it's definitely not a time to kick back and have pina coladas on a island - they say the golden tiger roars and moves things . . .if anything that is what this new order - making things happen and making changes.

Here are some outtakes from that did not make it into New Order 2010 . . . 

Andre, Cleo, Me, Nat

Venice

Phuket

Hong Kong

Rirkrit Tiravanija at Venice

New York

Paris

New Order 2010 in Thailand Tatler, January 2010, on newsstands now. 

Singapore F1 Grand Prix - The Qualifiers

The Saturday of the Qualifiers - Lynn had an invitation for me from M-Lounge or the Phillip Morris/Ferrari lounge at the Grand Prix - their hospitality package required registration downtown and yielded a lovely goody bag of Puma satchel, Ferrari cap and jacket and of course access to the Paddock Club . . .  instead of the tour that they provided from town to the track I opted to go with Arnold to the Maclaren press conference to meet Lewis Hamilton.  Yes, a shameless switching over of teams - at the conference I learnt about the cars and some of the things that goes on - even though it was my 3rd Grand Prix I never did get the jargon right.  Oh and of course a photo with Lewis Hamilton, the world champion. 

Lewis Hamilton and I

Arnold and I then went on to the track, he was also a guest of Mrs. Ong, of Club 21 who had a suite at Turn 2 - a fantastic turn as unlike the grandstand, you see the cars TURN rather than drive past alone.  

Arnold and I

Yes, more champagne and canape.  My friend, Sonia was the MC of the entire gig so every hour I would see Sonia on the screen and would hear her voice throughout . . .both of the MC's this year were Thai!Go Thailand! 

 Sonia on the screen

Sonia and I

I finally wandered over to see the others at the Paddock Club, ridiculous (rude) security to say the least, even with a pass and registration.  The Paddock Club was good food, access to the Grand Stand - pretty cool to see the cars do a pit stop and visits to Nobu.

Grandstand view

We skipped the qualifiers to go F1 Rocks to see Black Eyed Peas, unfortunately missing the beginning, so many people - a different deal from Pharrell for sure . . . and of course we stayed on to watch Beyonce! 

Beyonce

With news from Lynn that Lewis finished top poll - after Beyonce I had every intention to go to the Fuel party at the art museum but with a drained battery and pure exhaustion I went home after a wholesome bowl of fish noodles.

Singapore F1 Grand Prix - Before the race

The weekend of a Grand Prix one often finds that it is the race and solely the race and perhaps the after party which is the main attraction, in the case of Singapore - the lead up to the race and entertainment carefully planned around it was worth being centre stage itself.

My little sejour could hardly be normal with my little sister, Trustfun founder Lynn in charge, made even more exciting with Michelle Eng (a friend from boarding school) being in town and my mentor, Arnold Chan flying in.

Upon arriving at the new ION mall, Lynn and I bump into Pharrell - seeing as I see him everywhere I was able to invite him to Nat's Hideaway - how fun would that be!

That night, Michelle and I had our usual sake fest then went to the first night of the Fuel F1 party where Underworld played.  

Michelle and I

I am not a fan of Underwolrd but there is a sense of nostalgia there especially with that refrain from Trainspotting and trying to hit those giant balloons. 

Then off I went to rejoin Lynn at Erol Elkan and then for late night customary Hainanese Chicken rice at the legendary Boon Tong Kee.

The next day was about recovery and Pharrell at F1 rocks - thanks to Earn Chen of Surrender who hooked me up with a pass. . . so the 'entourage' we saw at ION with Pharrell was actually his band, it was n*e*r*d.  Cute performance especially when they let the kids go on stage and dance with them.  

n*e*r*d with kids from the floor dancing on stage

What happens when they do not want to come down??? 

Pharrell

cute little girls at the entrance

Then it was dinner at lovely place called Taste Paradise (again at ION) then the Ferarri dome, I counted 12 bottles of Moet consumed. . . 

Arnold and Lynn

giant Elmo and I

the dj's were these weird dudes from Paris - they were dope - Back to the Future and Baklava's . . . 

- rock on - especially as this was only the beginning.

Still June - Part 4 - Seoul . . . Prada-Transformer . . .

Well, forces beyond our control have a way of working themeselves upon us. . .through my second week of despair/procrastination whichever one you wanna call it of my indeterminate gardening leave (yes, the Bkk Interval) of which I am to write as well as commence projects . . . my mentor makes another appearance and this time, well, I did not ask for it but I suppose my head in the clouds let's go around in circles state of mind has people wondering and he said I need to make a choice . . . between 3 things. . . 

Well, it's always about choices isn't it? Before I recap what the choices are, I found myself with an invitation to Seoul for the Prada-Transformer phase 2 opening.

www.prada-transformer.com

After watching Twilight on repeat on the redeye flight to Icheon,a rather long transfer to the Grand Hyatt, then being confronted with this view from my room . . .

 

View from my room 

 

The Transformer is a project in Seoul, a cultural one, on the grounds of  a palace, where Rem Koolhaus designed a structure that transforms into 4 shapes with 4 functions.  It is genius. Really. 

 

The Transformer

The Palace in the Background

The Transformer in the daytime upclose

This second phase is called Cinema, Alejandro Innaritu curated the movies, there will be 3 screenings a day of a movie for the public(for free!) every day for 100 days till it transforms again for Nathalie Djurburg (of the clay animated very funny and surreal video art fame).. .. In its second phase, it blew me away. My mentor lit the Transformer, it shines. . . . I saw the flutist rehearse to a black and white classic, the 5 minutes standing there, my hairs stood up and I got goosebumps, it moved me.  

But-for Seoul friday night traffic I would have seen the opening screening with flutist but of course that should not happen.  It was magical when we did arrive though.. . .with the lit palace in the background. 

sublime

The campaign animation film from AW '08 - remember this?

check out the reflection across the screen

Upclose on the interior

Back to the 3 choices, I explained to my mentor that I finally made a choice, of the three things which were 

1) to get married and build an empire with my husband - probably a design empire of sorts; 

2) fashion; 

3) art.  

I choose fashion (which still relates to my PhD!), see, what I witnessed in Seoul is how fashion can be used as a tool, a tool for expression.  It defeats itself when it becomes to serious and takes itself too seriously but there is skill, labour and love in the industry, not to mention talent and vision.  Prada is a rare example and Mrs. Prada is a visionary with integrity, style and grace - she shows someone like me that anything is possible - it is an industry by its very nature, that moves, that changes and MUST evolve, it can never stay still thus if one can grasp that, what it means that it has the power to change and innovate what is around it.  Of course it also employs a lot of people, 400 million or something . . .so it is not so trivial. 

 

As for me, well you gotta do what you love and who am I fooling, I was making fisherman trousers when I finished highschool and did support myself desiging uniforms, my own label and then nsha. . . so yes "She's in Fashion".

Oh, but do let me regress just a little, the husband and empire thing, before that can happen it is important to figure out somethings for myself first.  I know my Howard Roark (I am adding Edward Cullen the vampire in Twilight to this idea of the ideal man too) is out there, just hope the road to him is not as difficult as Dominique Francon's was.

   

As for third choice art, I love art, it moves me, it inspires me, Art makes things make sense for me.  So I want art to look forward to, to keep learning and keep seeing and finally one day to collect and patron. Hey, a girl can DREAM!

Meeting the Grande Dame of the Korean Contemporay art scene and spending time with her made me realise that you can really do something you love as a career and be happy.  I know she has been through a lot and had her share of difficulties . . .Imagine the response of  a relatively conservative society to Judd, Giacometti and Twombly 20+ years ago.  They were finding the likes of Judd and Flavin difficult in NY in the early 80's, she was showing this stuff at the same time in Seoul.  Brave and inspiring woman.  Her fine art gallery Seomi and Tuus is a testament to great taste, a curious eye which appreciates beauty in its purest sense, movement and also humour.  Upon enterring, you are greeted by an Anish Kapoor.

Seomi and Tuus Gallery

Arnold and I had dinner with her and her son PJ and his lovely wife Carolyn at a great restaurant . . .had no idea Korean food was so pure and varied! Yummy.  Tried summer kimchi for the first time.

Korea is different, neither a Tokyo nor a Hong Kong, a unique entity in itself . . . It became very clear very quickly as well how the country is ruled by oligarchs, 3 families in particular that own Samsung, LG and Hyundai.  Pretty crazy.

Wanderings around town with Giorgio (Saloni's hubby). . .

Yes, THUNDER BURGER . . . .

Ho Lee Chow  - Chinatown diner . . . kinda funny Holy Food - hehe

pink paint job

I avoided the shopping area as my priority was to see the Leeum Museum (or the Samsung Museum)which was amazing - Botta, Koolhaus and Nouvel all in one place holding a spectacular collection of Korean historical The collection in there also makes sense, but reminded me very much of the lady I had dinner with the night before, it was her speaking to me, the combination of Judd, Bourgeoise, Twombly, Eliasson and an amazing early Stella - defined HER!  Also greeted by an Anish Kapoor upon enterring Contemporary section.

Botta Dome from inside

Bambook stair rails leading to Judd

Koolhaus' education centre - part of Leeum Museum

Me with Bourgeoise's baby to Maman spider

Back to Prada . . .

Of course there could be no fashion event without a party, Jan Kennedy, producer and event organiser extraordinaire and Prada's go-to man scoped out a nice location with a rooftop with a view and ready for midnight burgers, it was called Space. 

 

Getting ready for the party . . . .

Space 

While Mrs. Prada and movie people dined, I was with Mimi Xu, amazing hot quirky chick and DJ for the night . . .thank goodness it was Mimi! Prada flew her out from Paris, whilst having a drink with Jan earlier, who I met in Venice 2 years ago with Matteo and I had bumped into on the lift, she popped in to say hi. . . Hurrayy - I was not alone (Arnold left earlier)! Olivier (Alex de Betak's friend) from Paris was around too. 

Mimi and I

Olivier and Mimi

All in all, Prada people rock and the party was fab . . . would have loved to keep going but at a certain point the champagne will  knock you out. . . 

as it did to this poor girl - "Is this real life?"

I rode back with Sebastian Suhl of Prada - super nice and funny guy . . . next day he helped me find my phone that I temporarily lost . .. told me what I had missed Seoul nightlife at its most debauch and hilarious :( and also invited me to watch a screening on Sunday - so so so bummed I could not stay.

So all in all, Seoul was wonderful, to spend time with my mentor, with old friends and make new ones . . .  I even managed to get my friend Yeop's number on my last day, he came over to the hotel to have lunch with me - he is another very creative kid, galleries, design projects and property development. 

So yes, totally got Prada'd in Korea and Seoul's got soul!!!!