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Observatory

Fashion

04.01.13: Francesca Granata

“Women’s Work”: An Interview with Judith Thurman
Francsca Granata interviews Judith Thurman about fashion criticism and her own foray into it for The New Yorker.
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12.19.12: Alexandra Lange

Bad Taste True Confessions: Erté
True confessions about my own bad taste. I loved Erté. Did you?
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12.03.12: Alexandra Lange

Reintroducing the Tilletts
If you are interested in textile design, mid-century style, or creative partnerships, I would urge you to go visit “The World of D.D. and Leslie Tillett” at the Museum of the City of New York.
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11.25.12: John Foster

Accidental Mysteries, 11.25.12
Accidental Mysteries is an online curiosity shop of extraordinary things, mined from the depths of the online world and brought to you each week by John Foster, a writer, designer and longtime collector of self-taught art and vernacular photography. This week's focus is Motorcycle Club Cuts as American Folk Art.
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11.02.12: Rob Walker

On Dapper Dan
A look at the spectacular logo-remix aesthetic of rap-culture style pioneer Dapper Dan.
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07.22.12: John Foster

Accidental Mysteries, 07.22.12
Accidental Mysteries is an online curiosity shop of extraordinary things, mined from the depths of the online world and brought to you each week by John Foster, a writer, designer and longtime collector of self-taught art and vernacular photography.
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06.04.12: Michael Bierut

I Love the 80s
Miami Vice: the quintessential postmodern design artifact, in all its glory and all its disgrace.
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05.30.12: Alexandra Lange

Dress Your Family in Formica and Faux Bois
The materials of architecture and interiors in the fashions of Schiaparelli and Prada.
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04.05.12: Alexandra Lange

Frank Lloyd Wright + Katniss Everdeen
On photographing architecture as sculpture and telling stories via architecture.
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03.25.12: John Foster

Accidental Mysteries, 03.25.12
Accidental Mysteries, a weekly cabinet of visual curiosities curated by John Foster, highlights images of design, art, architecture and ephemera brought to light by the magic of the digital age. This week's focus is vintage clothing labels.
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08.18.11: Alexandra Lange

A Stitch in Time
Sewing for your daughter, circa 1965.
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06.08.11: Rob Walker

Dedigitization
“Digital goods” are increasingly seen as having real value. Increasingly, though, things from the digital world are crossing over into physical manifestations that can be bought and sold.
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03.31.11: Alexandra Lange

Onesies and Crime
Ruffles, butterflies and bows: this is how we ornament our girl babies.
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01.12.11: Alexandra Lange

Bring Back Braids
The True Grit of hairstyles: braids.
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01.03.11: Alexandra Lange

From the Cabat to the City
Is Bottega Veneta's Tomas Maier an industrial designer trapped in the fashion world?
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12.23.10: Chappell Ellison

How Do I Know It's Faux?
If you want to go faux, you might have to call in a fur expert.
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11.18.10: Alexandra Lange

My Marimekko Uniform
Wearing Marimekko is like being a walking work of art.
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09.07.10: Jessica Helfand

The Real Skinny on the Real Skinny
The is the first of two essays on the visual nature of body image.
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08.19.10: Johanna Blakley

The Costs of Ownership: Why Copyright Protection Will Hurt the Fashion Industry
New copyright protection for fashion designs is only going to hurt an already struggling industry.
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06.28.10: Alexandra Lange

Bag Ladies
John Ptak explores the history of the handbag after seeing a photo of 1920 woman, who couldn’t seem to put one down.
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05.02.10: Mark Lamster

Dandies at the Ballpark
What, you ask, did the well-dressed gentleman wear to the ballpark in 1870? The sartorially inclined team outfitter might have turned to the lovely "New York Fashions" lithograph above for inspiration.
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02.08.10: Alexandra Lange

The Extinction of the Unisex
Now I have a toddler of my own, I'm wishing that children's clothes were more simple, without all the trimming.
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12.01.09: Owen Edwards

Busted by Colombo, or, the Impediments of Style
The restrained high style of the ad men in Mad Men has revived a painful memory of one of my life-changing moments.
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02.17.09: Mark Lamster

Michael Jackson, Automotive Designer
I know, Michael Jackson has done some terrible things. Tax evasion. Absconding with the Beatles catalog. Child molestation. We Are the World. But this — is design even the word for it?
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10.03.08: Rob Walker

Subconscious Warm-Up
The Speedo LZR Racer suits worn byMichael Phelps and other world-class swimmers. Promoted as a design breakthrough and worn by the most victorious Olympian in history, it offers a potent blend of functional promise and emotional aspiration.
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