MUSE & BOOTS: Find a woman who can do both: be the creative director of a new label of essential, timeless wardrobe staples and the face of a buzzy brand in a seductive advertising campaign.
After launching her own brand Helsa in collaboration with Revolve Group last week, Elsa Hosk appears in the new ads of GCDS, which identified in the former Victoria’s Secret Angel its sensual muse for fall 2022.
In the role, Hosk joins the likes of Pamela Anderson, Caroline Vreeland and “Élite” star Arón Piper, who all fronted campaigns for the hip Italian brand in the past.
In the colored images photographed by Pierre-Ange Carlotti and dropping Tuesday, Hosk is portrayed wearing a hot-pink mesh catsuit and key accessories of the collection, ranging from logoed furry boots and hat in matching pink shade to striking thigh-high vinyl boots with heels in the shape of fangs. Dubbed “Morso,” or “Bite” in English, the latter style is indisputably the key item of the season from the brand, having already generated buzz on social media when first unveiled on the GCDS runway in Milan in February.
At the time, the brand’s creative director Giuliano Calza elaborated on the inspiration behind the collection, revealing he watched plenty of movies during the pandemic and that Bram Stoker’s 1992 film “Dracula” was among them. Hence he decided to reimagine the gothic tale and its costumes with his own fantasy, fetish-y twist, which led to the edgy footwear styles nodding to vampire teeth, among other creations.
In keeping with the show and collection, the advertising campaign reprises the seasonal theme in some props, too. These include a bed vaguely reminiscent of Dracula’s casket, where Hosk lays down next to the new GCDS bag “Comma,” a moniker inspired by the design’s asymmetric curved flap.
Shot in Paris, the images also offer a generous dose of high-glam beauty looks. Conceived by makeup artist Masae Ito and hairstylist Tomohiro Ohashi, these span from Old Hollywood makeup and hair waves to Gen Z-friendly, pop eye makeup combining neon yellow and hot-pink liners.
Incidentally, GCDS debuted a makeup line, developed by Intercos, in 2018, when it also introduced kidswear. The following year, the company further expanded its offering by signing a five-year license with Marcolin for the production and global distribution of eyewear.
As reported, earlier this year Calza introduced a capsule collection with Wolford. Other collaborations have ranged from Barilla to Bratz, and all respected GCDS’ signature fun and pop ethos.
An acronym for “God Can’t Destroy Streetwear,” GCDS was founded by Calza and his brother Giordano in 2015. Debuted as a digital project, it evolved into a fashion company, with its first runway show held in June 2016 in Milan. At the end of 2020, Italian private equity firm Made in Italy Fund, managed by Quadrivio and Pambianco, acquired a majority stake in the label. – SANDRA SALIBIAN
A TOUCH OF PARIS: Frame transported its cast of friends and family to Paris, several weeks early, on Sunday night. The brand was toasting the second drop of its collaboration with the Ritz Paris with a dinner at The Nines, and had thoroughly transformed the restaurant for the occasion. A cart of luggage waited underneath the Ritz Paris x Frame awning on the sidewalk, and the immersion continued upon entrance, with guests picking up a key chain from the “hotel lobby” bellhop.
Frame cofounder Erik Torstensson credits friendship for the collaboration.
“I did something small with The Carlyle when I moved to New York and lived uptown, and then Camilla Fayed, who’s a friend of mine and owns the Ritz Paris, was like ‘why the beeeep did you not call me?’ And I was like, I’m too humble to call you, because you’re the greatest brand in the world. She said let’s do something together, and let’s have fun together,” explained Torstensson as Frame’s first capsule collaborator — Karlie Kloss — posed nearby. “Everyone wants a strategic answer, but I do believe that everything around collaborations that are great happens when it’s friends having fun together,” he added.
Inside, the dining room was buzzing with the usual friends-of-Frame crowd: there was Justin Theroux (a partner in The Nines) chatting with Mel Ottenberg by the long bar as Colin Field, the head bartender at the Hemingway Bar at the Ritz Paris, fielded drink orders; Frame cofounder Jens Grede and event cohosts Derek Blasberg and Camilla Fayed were making the rounds, catching up with guests including Imaan Hammam — who created a capsule collection with the brand in 2020 — Cindy Bruna, Jasmine Sanders, James Charles, Nicole Richie, and Noah Beck.
“In a world where everything is very big and very corporate, I think people feel when it’s genuine,” said Torstensson. “We never pay anyone to come to our parties, it’s very organic — this is my family.” The family metaphor was literal; his stepdaughter Isabella Massenet DJ’d the after party downstairs at Acme.
Dinner seating was demarcated by caviar spoons engraved with guest names and embroidered sleep mask pouches (available as part of the Frame x Ritz Paris collaboration). Based on the crowd’s delight, many were looking forward to putting the accessory to good use. – KRISTEN TAUER
DOJA DISHES: Doja Cat, the American rapper and singer, is is one of the cover girls of the latest CR Fashion Book, which comes out Sept. 21 and is its biggest issue to date. The issue is themed “Front Row” and takes an irreverent approach to the frenetic energy, work and creativity required to navigate Fashion Month.
Inside the issue, Doja Cat is interviewed by Matthew Williams, creative director at Givenchy.
In discussing her evolving on-stage style, Doja Cat tells Williams, “I’ve just been so beaten up all the time, like I’m always getting s–t glued to my face and my head. And wearing things that are so tight and so heavy and destructive, so I would love to find a way to be more casual about it. And if I am going to do heavy and destructive, I’m just gonna go even further.”
Tom Kneller shot the Doja Cat covers.
There are several editions of the issue that each have different covers. Other top models on the cover are Mariacarla Boscono, Abby Champion, Rayssa Mederios, and Lina Werner, among others.
The issue explores the industry’s relationship with the metaverse, shows what’s happening behind-the-scenes, the diversifying front row, diets of the industry’s various roles, and what happens when the shows end for emerging designers, along with a host of other themes that Carine Roitfeld, founder and editor in chief of CR Fashion Book, wished to examine. – LISA LOCKWOOD
TOMMY’S TROOPERS: If ever there were a justifiable excuse to stay home and sit out a fashion show, it would’ve been the conditions of Sunday evening: not only was it pouring rain as the evening went on, but the location of the Tommy Hilfiger show was open air seating, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, at that. And yet the celebs turned out in droves to take in Hilfiger’s latest. There was Kate Moss, cheering on daughter Lila Moss, who walked in the show; there was Kris Jenner and Corey Gamble, who joined Kourtney Kardashian and new husband Travis Barker for the show; Barker’s daughter Alabama Luella Barker was also there, as were Shawn Mendes, Jon Batiste, Yungblud, Jesse Jo Stark, Karolína Kurková, Noah Beck, Luka Sabbat, Lisa Rinna and Harry Hamlin and more.
The VIP sightings didn’t stop at the front row. Hilfiger tapped several known faces to walk in the show, including Julia Fox, Amelia Gray, Hari Nef, Duckie Thot, Alton Mason, Winnie Harlow, Paloma Elsesser, Precious Lee and Bob Colacello. The show ended with a surprise performance as well, as Mason stopped by Travis Barker on his final walk, led him to the stage and Barker treated the audience to a live set as the models took their final lap.
The Hilfiger front row was one of the most celebrity-packed of the week, which is saying something given the amount of famous folk who have returned to New York Fashion Week. Friday night’s Fendi show saw Kate Moss, Shalom Harlow, Christy Turlington Burns, Kim Kardashian, Sarah Jessica Parker and more in the front row, while Saturday’s Marni show hosted Madonna, Kendall Jenner and Devin Booker. – LEIGH NORDSTROM
