EDITOR’S LETTER
Love, light, and spa treats for a month of romance
Sequinned bag, Givenchy
NOW LOVE I WHAT
When it comes to real-life style, the big question often is what’s sexy over what’s in season. Short-tight-slinky it’s not; fashion has a new vision of va-va-voom, a relaxed sensuality that began when women started dressing as men. The prevailing menswear aesthetic delivers the same provocative idea as when Coco Chanel first put women in men’s trousers, and, as 50 years later, when Helmut Newton took that iconic photograph of Vibéké suited up sexually, ambiguously, in Yves Saint Laurent’s Le Smoking. Today, we aspire to dress like French fashionistas in oversized men’s clothes that amplify the motif. It’s not only about the r rise of women to being the ones who “wear the pants”; rather, it alludes to a different sexual liberation. The subtext of the boyfriend jean jeans, the man’s shirt, his belt and jacket, conveys beautiful in intimacy: lovers freshly rolled out of bed, the scent of the other, so soul mates right down to our shoes. How sexy is that?
Sensuality, to me, is a womanliness that is natural, not glamorised or concocted by clichés. It’s the real deal, based on visible qualities of silhouette, skin, and style complemented with the intangibles, of intellect, emotion, and imagination. “The body says what words cannot,” said legendary dancer Martha Graham – to which “The New Sexy” (page 52) looks at new erogenous zones and the art of conceal/reveal, with four looks that capture these very subversions. Then play up your pass passion with gorgeous Valentine’s gifts, red beauty statements, and scen scents to make you express like a woman.
This issue also showcases eight rising stars who competed in the BAZAAR Asia New Generation Fashion Designer Award. The four participating Southeast Asian editions of BAZAAR mentored two winning representatives – Malaysia had over 30 entries. Meet the winner on page 144: Malaysia’s Harvee Kok receives an MA scholarship to the famed Istituto Marangoni in London, and will show his Spring/Summer collectio collection at KL Fashion Week RTW 2014. We’re proud to be a part of his su success, and look forward to you wearing his clothes someday.