FASHION WEEK
Suzy Menkes is fashion's authority. As fashion editor of the International Herald Tribune - the only daily newspaper with a global reach - her reports on the international collections are read around the world. Frank, fearless and free from editorial constraints, Menkes has built a reputation for being a fashion picador. But far from seeking to be controversial or to claim a role as a fashion critic, she sees herself as reporter or observer and is inspired by an enthusiasm and a passion for her subject. She covers the universe of style, from haute couture to talent spotting and store openings, including both women's and menswear. She also interviews leading designers and fashion executives in the luxury market, which is the focus of the International Herald Tribune. Unique among fashion editors, Menkes - trained as a historian at Cambridge University in her native England - looks beyond the immediate trends to analyze changing style in a social context. She has examined the phenomenon of the working mother as it impacts on the burgeoning branded baby wear market; she has studied Italian family fashion houses and questioned the future of La Famiglia. Her incisive reporting includes the jousting of fashion tycoons and industry facts and figures for the IHT's financial pages; and reviews of museum exhibitions in the arts section. She is based in Paris, France, but traveling both in the caravanserai of the international collections and as a reporter, Menkes's beat includes New York, European capital cities and Asia, from Tokyo and Hong Kong through Beijing, Shanghai and Singapore. Two other areas of expertise and fascination are jewelry and the British royal family. Menkes is the author of "The Royal Jewels" (1985), a study of the private jewelry collection of Queen Elizabeth; "The Windsor Style" (1987), an exploration of the lifestyle of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor; and "Queen and Country" (1992), a journey through the private rural world of Queen Elizabeth and the ecological interests of Prince Charles. Menkes has been named an officer of the Order of the British Empire for her services to journalism and also a chevalier of the Legion of Honor by President Jacques Chirac of France.
Wanderlust in a 40th Year
PARIS — The wanderlust that framed the early years of the Japanese designer Kenzo Takada was brought back to life for his 40th anniversary. Chris Moore/Karl Prouse Kenzo, by Antonio Marras, spring/summer 2011 Multimedia Slide Show Spring 2011 Collections Related Paris Fashion Week: Camping It Up in Old Shanghai (October 7, 2010) Urban Trek to Sailor Style (October 7, 2010) Chris Moore/Karl Prouse Kenzo, by Antonio Marras, spring/summer 2011 The fashion travelogue was displayed not just on a giant screen, as groups of models in vibrantly colored ethnic clothes walked the many runways, but also on the circular stage of the Paris Cirque d’Hiver. Antonio Marras, the Kenzo designer for the past six years, sent out a group of vintage and reconstructed outfits that caught the spirit, not just with their tiers of hats and layers of skirts, but also with the background music from Federico Fellini’s surreal ecclesiastical fashion show in his 1972 movie “Roma.”