IN THE SPOTLIGHT
London exhibit to celebrate Naomi Campbell’s career
LONDON — After four decades in fashion, the queen of the catwalk is getting her own exhibition.
The Victoria and Albert Museum in London is launching “NAOMI: In Fashion,” a celebration of Naomi Campbell’s enduring career. The exhibition, which opens in June, will showcase memorable designer outfits worn by Campbell, one of the most recognizable models and Black women in the world.
“I’m honored to be asked by the V&A to share my life in clothes with the world,” Campbell, 53, said in a statement.
Sonnet Stanfill, a fashion curator at the museum, called Campbell “one of the most prolific and influential figures in contemporary culture.”
The exhibition will include some 100 looks and accessories from the biggest names in fashion, from Chanel and Dolce & Gabbana to Versace, Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander Mcqueen and many others.
Highlights include a 1989 Thierry Mugler car-inspired corset made from plastic and metal, a bubble-gum pink Valentino gown and feather cape Campbell wore at the 2019 Met Gala and staggeringly high Vivienne Westwood platform shoes worn by Campbell during her famous 1993 catwalk fall.
The London-born Campbell attended stage school from a young age and started her career at 8, when she began performing in music videos for Bob Marley and Culture Club.
The aspiring dancer was approached by a model agent when she was 15, and within two years she was strutting down catwalks in Paris and Milan. She was the first Black model to appear on the cover of Vogue France in 1988.
Part of the exhibition focuses on Campbell’s personal and professional relationship with the late Tunisian-born designer Azzedine Alaïa. She inspired his work, while he helped advance her career.
Curators said that the show will recognize Campbell’s advocacy for equity in the fashion industry and support for emerging creative talents.
Los Angeles Opera music director to retire
James Conlon will retire as music director of the Los Angeles Opera at the end of the 2025-26 season, ending a 20-year run that will have spanned half the company’s history.
Conlon made the announcement Wednesday, five days before his 74th birthday. He will become conductor laureate in 2026-27 and intends to return to the LA Opera as a guest conductor.
“It will be my 20th anniversary as the music director. It will be the 40th anniversary of the company. We wanted to do that together,” Conlon said in a telephone interview.
The LA Opera began performances in 1986 and Kent Nagano became principal conductor in 2001-02, then was promoted to music director in 2003. Conlon replaced him for 2006-07 and has led more than 460 performances in LA of 68 operas by 32 composers.
Pierce Brosnan admits he broke Yellowstone rules
MAMMOTH, Wyo. — Actor Pierce Brosnan, who pleaded guilty Thursday to stepping off a trail in a thermal area during a November visit to Yellowstone National Park, got caught after posting pictures online, court records said.
Brosnan, who called in to the court hearing in Mammoth, Wyoming, was fined $500 and ordered to make a $1,000 donation to Yellowstone Forever — a nonprofit organization that supports the park — by April 1, court records said. Prosecutors had recommended a $5,000 fine and a two-year probationary sentence.
A second petty offense, for violating closures and use limits, was dismissed by U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephanie Hambrick.
Brosnan’s attorney, Karl Knuchel, did not return a phone message left with his office seeking comment.
Brosnan, 70, walked in an off-limits area at Mammoth Terraces, in the northern part of Yellowstone near the Wyoming-montana line, on Nov. 1, according to citations issued by the park. He was in the park on a personal visit and not for film work, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Wyoming has said.
However, he uploaded images of himself standing in the snow on the thermal feature to his Instagram page, court records said.
Mammoth Terraces is a scenic spot of mineralencrusted hot springs bubbling from a hillside. They are just some of the park’s hundreds of thermal features, which range from spouting geysers to gurgling mud pots, with water at or near the boiling point.