Fashion Scoops
Winnie’s New Home
Model Winnie Harlow is now signed to Creative Artists Agency, the Los Angeles-based talent and sports agency that represents some of Hollywood’s biggest names. She will, however, continue to be managed by First Access Entertainment.
“I am supportive of the new voice CAA is bringing to the conversations around both fashion and beauty, and I am excited to join them,” Harlow shared in a statement to WWD.
The public was introduced to the 25-year-old after she appeared as a contestant on Tyra Banks’ “America’s Next Top Model” in 2014. Harlow, born Chantelle Brown-Young and originally from Canada, noticeably stood out from the other young women on the reality competition; at 4 years old, she was diagnosed with vitiligo (when pigment-making cells stop producing melanin, which creates a loss of skin, hair or eye color). Harlow, whose symmetrical white spots can be seen throughout her body in her modeling campaigns, has become the face of the autoimmune disorder as she showcases a new standard of beauty in the industry.
Since the TV show, she has walked runways for brands such as Marc Jacobs, Moschino,
Prabal Gurung, Tommy Hilfiger, Coach and modeled for Victoria’s Secret, Nike, Swarovski, H&M,
Dior Beauty, MAC Cosmetics and Sprite. In 2014, she appeared in Diesel’s spring campaign, and two years later, she was featured in Beyoncé’s visual album “Lemonade,” became the face of Desigual and received “Breakthrough Model of the Year” at Daily Front Row’s Fashion Media Awards. She has graced the covers of Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar and Elle magazine, and this year, she was nominated for Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit rookie. — RYMA CHIKHOUNE
Modern Queen
Marking 226 years of her death — to the day — a Marie Antoinette exhibit opens Oct. 16 in the very place she spent her last days in confinement, the Conciergerie in central Paris.
Bringing together rare historical artifacts like her trial papers and modern artworks, “Marie-Antoinette, Metamorphoses of an Image” focuses on the myriad representations of the ill-fated queen, an endless subject perceived differently depending on the era and country.
The unique setting emphasizes her status as a legend, through all genres from classical portraits by Elisabeth Vigée Le Brun to cult movies — Sofia Coppola’s 2006 romance an obvious one — and memorable runway shows – by Vivienne Westwood and John Galliano, among others.
Hated by French people at the time of her reign, loved as a pop icon in the past 20 years, in this day, Marie Antoinette could have perhaps become an Austrian influencer or hair tutorial YouTuber: more contemporary than ever, her image comes as one of female empowerment in a world of overexposure.
The exhibition runs through January 26.
— ANNE-AYMONE GHEERBRANT
Keep The Fire Burning
No one at the Gagosian gallery in Paris seemed fazed by the fact that Leonardo DiCaprio was visibly burning.
The Hollywood actor was chosen by Swiss artist Urs Fischer as the subject of his latest candle portrait, titled “Leo (George & Irmelin,”) in which he is depicted simultaneously hugging his mother, Irmelin Indenbirken, and gazing toward his father, George DiCaprio.
The three-figure composition could have been mistaken for a slightly larger-than-life statue were it not for the thick flame burning from the top of Leonardo DiCaprio’s head, trickling ominous black wax along its pink and white body.
“It lasts as long as you want,” shrugged Fischer during the preview of his exhibition at Gagosian on Monday, which coincides with Paris art fair FIAC and also features screen prints by the artist as well as “Smalls,” a selection of paintings by New York artist Spencer Sweeney.
“You could make it last about eight months if you burn it very slowly.”
The plan is for the wax candle, which is snuffed out every evening at closing time, to gradually melt over the course of the exhibition, which runs until Dec. 20, symbolizing a meditation on the passing of time.
It’s not the first time Fischer has created a wax candle based on a member of his entourage. In 2016, he created a wax replica of artist Julian Schnabel, followed by another one of art patron and collector Dasha Zhukova in 2018.
“Leo asked me to do this project,” said Fischer, who met with DiCaprio and his parents in his New York studio to create the piece. “We installed multiple cameras to get them from every angle, and mixed different techniques to get to this result.”
The replica, which is filled with black wax, is strangely life-like: Hands, facial expressions and creases on clothing are particularly haunting. The wax figure of DiCaprio is split in two: The side of him that hugs his mother is done in light pink wax, while the other, looking over to his father, stays pristinely white. At the time of press, the back of DiCaprio’s white head was only slightly melted, leaking streams of black wax.
“It was a bit complicated to read before I changed the color,” said the artist, gesturing to Leo’s two pairs of legs, each pointing in different directions. “It caked together and got a bit lumpy. As soon as you introduce a bit of differentiation, it helps you understand.”
It’s useless to try to find any particular meaning in the characters’ postures, according to Fischer.
“It’s just how they were,” he said, gesturing to the two Leos, one warmly embracing his mother, who he is well known for being close to, the other seeming quite distant from his father. “I just looked at what is and put it together. I didn’t make it up. Everything you do in life is always an interpretation, but this is based on real moments.”
— FLEUR BURLET