Fabric, pattern making, sampling, trimming, sewing, handwork, packaging, duties, shipping: This is an incomplete list of what you pay for when buying a new t-shirt. And that's before a wholesale markup (i.e., the profit a label makes on the item) or the additional retail markup if you purchase it in a shop. 

Read that again and the concept of a $5 "worth" t-shirt would seem ridiculous, if not criminal. How can it be that all these resources, transportation, and people are just dollars or cents? Many of those costs are fixed; the price of cotton, even at scale, is not negotiable. In comparison, the person who made the t-shirt is much easier to exploit. 

Maria Stanley, a Minneapolis-based independent, sustainably-minded designer, remembers her own experience working for a fast fashion company in Los Angeles ten years ago: "Retailers would tell us, 'We want 1,000 of this item for $21 a piece,' and the factory would quote us $40," she says. "However they would finally come down to $21. How do you get there? Who loses out? The fabric is a steady expense, so it's the staff losing out." 

What is the "right" price for fashion? The straight answer is possibly that it's higher than you thought. Considering where the number on a price tag comes from demands tallying every manufacturing process – fabric, labor, shipping, packaging – and adding a profit margin. Let's assume that a designer uses quality materials and pays a higher than average wage to his garment workers; the materials and labor will probably be the highest cost. The industry norm for a profit margin is between a 2.2 and 2.5x markup, meaning a dress that costs a designer $100 to manufacture it would be sold to a store for $220. The retailer will mark it up by 2.2x again to make their own profit, taking the final price to $484. (You can see how the math is difficult for that $5 tee.) The average shopper knows none of this; they may believe that the price is an arbitrary number that the brand came up with to maximize its income. They still don't know where the profits go; maybe they cover overhead expenses, such as office space, staff, legal fees and taxes, or they'll be reinvested in future collections. 

And why would they have known? Historically fashion wasn't straightforward, particularly when it comes to money and income. Rampant discounting has brought us to doubt the price of anything, whether it's a dress of $2,000 or a blouse of $200. We know it's going to be marked down if we wait a couple of weeks, or months. And if designers can cut those prices so quickly, then the original number was obviously too high to begin with, right? You would be a fool not to hold out for the sale. As a result, some retailers are actually raising their margins to compensate for the inevitable loss of 30% or 40%, sometimes pushing it up to 4x — meaning a coat it paid $1,000 for (and may have cost closer to $500 to produce) will start at $4,000 in the store. 

This is a tangled web of problems and it's particularly harmful for small businesses like Stanley's. Forget about trying to create ethical, sustainable clothing; how do you persuade people to pay for it more? Her prices are in the range of $350 but her clients still wonder why she can not go down. While she was completely avoiding sales, she felt pressured to "give in" to discounts because that is the only way we know how to shop. Another designer could cut her costs by using cheaper fabrics or cheaper labor, but Stanley is committed to her family-run factory in Delhi, India, and will not compromise on high-quality, organic fabrics. The only way she could lower her prices would be to take less income or move her company to a model that is direct-to-consumer, removing the retail markup. (A lot of her peers actually think the same thing, given the state of department stores.) 

While the best thing she can do is educate her customers exactly why it costs $550 for her new hand-embroidered organic cotton dress. Stanley freely shared the cost breakdown here: $24 covers organic cotton and coloring; intricate handwork came in at $48, because it took a full day for the embroiderer to produce the garment; manufacturing work, including stitching, pattern making, sampling, finishing, and packaging, was $48; trims, including labels, hang tags, and dust bags, were $5; shipping was $8; and duties were $24. Her total cost came to $157, and she took just a 1.59x margin, bumping the wholesale price down to $250, to keep the final price lower. (This means Stanley would gain $93 in profit if the company purchased the clothes.) With a typical retail margin of 2.2x, the actual price tag on the store's rack is $550. 

If you're of the philosophy of "buy less, buy better," it's not hard to justify the higher price. Many of Stanley's customers are investment-minded and care about their commitment to ethical, sustainable, small-batch production, but some still need to be reassured that purchasing one of her garments is "worth" buying instead of five cheaper versions. Lucette Romy, the founder of The Wylde, an organic label produced in Bali, has had similar conversations with her clients about the higher prices of organic cotton, botanical dyes and dignified labor. "However, changing their minds is often not enough," she says. So she found a different way to get the point across: The cost-per-wear breakdown of every item on her site comes with it. Her new organic cotton dress goes for 260 Australian dollars, or 178 US dollars, but if you wear it 10 times, it's 18 US dollars per wear. By the time you wear it 50 days, it's less than 4 USD. If, as you should, you intend to keep this number for years, the number would come down to pennies. Clearly that is a bargain. 

Optimists have indicated that the pandemic has begun to reorient our priorities around family and health, rather than material products. The Primark shoppers who camped out overnight before reopening tell a different story — but those shifts in value take time and the fashion industry still has a hope to lead the way and change course. It would be so wonderful to think that people are calming down and that the industry is uniting to set new boundaries. To be more sustainable, to care about others, about our world, morality and dignity - all these aspects seem so real and fundamental. Designers such as Rick Owens, Victoria Beckham or Alexander Wang have been moving in this direction since the beginning of their remarkable careers.

On the luxury side, designers and retailers are actively discussing how to become open and honest about price and quality.

On 10 June, Italian authorities recovered a Banksy mural portraying a grieving girl which was stolen back in 2019 from the Bataclan concert hall. The work, which was cut out and removed from one of the venue's emergency exit doors, has been found by the Adriatic coast in Italy. Six individuals have now been held under arrest in connection with the robbery. 

For organized theft, two people have been put under investigation, while the other four are accused of concealing the theft. All are awaiting trial at this time. The crime caused widespread outrage in France, as the work honored the victims of the shooting at the Bataclan and terrorist attacks in Paris in 2015 that left 130 dead. The work has later been found in the attic of a farmhouse, in "good condition." When the door was rediscovered, one of the French police officers who had intervened during the Bataclan theater attack was present and "was overcome with emotion." 

At the beginning of this month, following its recovery, the work has been shown to the public. "It's a part of the Bataclan," Christophe Cengig, a French Embassy representative, said at the gathering. "In a way, it belongs to all of France." He added that the owners of the Bataclan theater "were thrilled, really happy" that the work had been found. 

Banksy is an anonymous street artist, vandal, political activist, and film director based in England. He has been active since the early 1990s. Banksy's satirical street art and allegorical epigrams combine dark humor with graffiti done in a distinctive technique of stenciling. His political and social commentary works were featured all over the world on streets, walls, and bridges. The work of Banksy grew out of the underground scene of Bristol which involved collaborations between artists and musicians. Banksy says that 3D, a graffiti artist and the founding member of the musical band Massive Attack, has influenced him. 

Rumors say designer Rick Owens owns at least one artwork created by Banksy. 

Stay tuned for more details about the robbery!

The work was discovered in a farmhouse in Italy earlier this month.

THE THEFT OF BANKSY MURAL FROM BATACLAN: SIX MORE SUSPECTS ARRESTED

Las Vegas' famous production company Cirque du Soleil, has now filed for bankruptcy protection, laying 3,500 of its former employees at the same time. The filing came "in reaction to tremendous uncertainty and forced show closures as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic." Production was forced to close all 44 of its shows earlier this year due to the ongoing pandemic, having to lay off at the same time a staggering 95 percent of employees, 1,300 of whom were part of the operations in Las Vegas, and furloughing about 4,700 other staff members. 

Cirque du Soleil has now received $300 million from its investors including $200 million from its government agency Investissement Quebec to keep operations floating during the restructuring process. $15 million will be spent on sidelined employees' benefits while a further $5 million will be spent on reimbursing contractors. Its debt load of $900 million from creditors has been reduced and also establishes a purchase agreement with current investors of the company. 

"The sponsors' robust commitment — which includes additional funding to support our impacted employees, contractors and critical partners, all of whom are important to Cirque's return — reflects our mutual belief in our brand's power and long-term potential," Cirque du Soleil CEO Daniel Lamarre said. "I'm looking forward to restoring our operations and getting together again to create the exciting new spectacles for our millions of fans around the world." 

Cirque du Soleil is an entertainment company based in Montreal, and the world's largest contemporary circus producer. Located in the Saint-Michel inner-city area, it was founded by former street performers Guy Laliberté and Gilles Ste-Croix in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 June 1984. 

The creations of the company have received numerous awards, including three Drama Desk Awards; seven Primetime Emmy Awards; multiple Gemini Awards; one Daytime Emmy Award; one Juno Award; and one star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

In her interview, Michele Lamy, the wife and business partner of the designer Rick Owens, once mentioned that she always wanted to become part of Cirque du Soleil when she was younger.

CIRQUE DU SOLEIL FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION

Milan's governing institution for fashion, the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana, has confirmed the schedule of designers to display their new collections as part of a digital fashion week in July, as a substitute for conventional fashion shows canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Some of the biggest Italian labels are included in the schedule: Prada, Gucci, Ermenegildo Zegna, Missoni, and Salvatore Ferragamo are among the labels which are confirmed to be present. Some brands will showcase collections of Spring/Summer 2021, while others will focus on Cruise and Pre-Collections. 

Many of the most revered names in Milan, though, are also notably absent. Marni, Fendi, and Giorgio Armani are missing, while labels like Bottega Veneta usually opt out of the Summer men's shows in favor of presenting in September. 

Since lockdowns were introduced as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, all the major fashion capitals were forced to find new ways to allow designers to present themselves. London Fashion Week was replaced by a digital portal that received a timid response from the press and buyers, although some designers found ways to create excitement. 

The Paris menswear shows, which were scheduled to take place last week, will be replaced by a virtual event named Whispers of Paris, set to be held from 9-13 July. The list of participating designers has still not been confirmed. 

The shows in Milan run from July 14-17, with the Prada show taking place on July 14 at 14:00 CEST, and the Gucci presentation on July 17 at 14:00 CEST. The full program can be viewed on the website of the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana.

We are waiting for the list of Paris Fashion Week's participating designers to be confirmed ASAP! Stay tuned, we will keep you updated! Are we going to see Rick Owens, Mugler and Courreges defiles this season?!

As part of Milan’s digital fashion week in July.

GUCCI AND PRADA'S NEW COLLECTIONS AS VIRTUAL SHOWS

A virtual shop and exhibition for a seamless digital shopping experience have been launched by Japanese denim label FDMTL during COVID-19 lockdowns offering an immersive 360 view of the physical environment of the brand, displaying alongside the main line of FDMTL a series of past partnerships, such as the BE@RBRICK with Medicom Toy and various Vans co-signs. 

The virtual experience begins at the front door, allowing customers to use a simple drag function to rotate their views. The floor of the space is marked with semi-transparent circles which carry the customer to the designated spots for closer inspection of neighboring items. Visitors can reposition themselves all the way to the back of the store, where a selection (not for sale) of the brand's past projects is on show. For instance, there is an artful Kiiya mannequin — click on the blue circle to read its description. Other products in the shop, such as novelties in the glass accessories cabinet or hanging denim collections, each come with a floating circle that customers can click on to carry to the label's website's product page. 

The denim for FDMTL is "Japan made". This includes manufacturing, sewing and fabrication. The enormous knowledge and experience of skilled workers is placed into each item, resulting in a unique comprehensive product that you can not achieve through mass production. FDMTL denim started from 4 line-ups. 

FDMTL denim is carefully designed, going through various manufacturing stages. The creation of garments begins with the establishing of the concept to avoid making them in an unnatural style. This means predicting things like the profession of the person who wears the jeans, the place and the time. There are theories behind each process, so, as the vintage denim does, it's not just about design but of course about giving a rich experience. They are made through time and effort, and repeating the process of trial-and -error which is a "space" far from things like efficiency.

Looking forward to seeing the newly-created 3D stores of such brands as Rick Owens this year. Surely, they will be revolutionary and unique.

An immersive 360-view of the denim brand’s space.

FDMTL JAPANESE DENIM LABEL LAUNCHES VIRTUAL STORE AND DIGITAL EXHIBITION

As to the bathing suit, until the 1960s, nary a navel was on display. The 1940s gave us vivid photos of mostly covered up young ladies by the sea in the documentation of the swimsuit in fashion magazines. Photographs taken by Horst P. Horst and Toni Frissell highlight one-piece waist-hugging with brief-cut bottoms. A decade later, the swimming beauties hit unimaginable glamorous heights in swimwear that was almost too pretty to swim in. Many suits from the '50s featured as much boning as a Dior gown, and a day by the pool included a sarong, hat and pair of sunglasses to match. 

We were forced to wait until the 1960s, before the swimsuit that barely existed shed its tabu associations. Though the modern, two-piece swimsuit (conceived by Jacques Heim) was born in 1932, the garment was ahead of its time. So too was the itsy-bitsy string bikini from Louis Réard, which made a splashy debut in 1946. The eyebrow-raising swimsuit was considered so unhealthy and inappropriate at the time that he could not find a model brave enough to have her photo taken in it; instead, he hired a showgirl from Monte Carlo. This would take another ten years and then some before the bikini has been accepted. This was thanks in part to films starring Brigitte Bardot and Ursula Andress' suntanned body — the very first Bond girl — in 1962. 

In the 1960s, reflecting and directing the fashion times, Vogue filled its pages with models dressed in all sorts of bathing suits: string bikinis, one-piece with donut-hole-like cutouts, and suits that pulsated with the psychedelic swirls of Emilio Pucci. As with Marisa Berenson, the otherworldly German-born model Veruschka was on hand to model all of these designs. They were followed by photographers including Henry Clarke and Helmut Newton, on rocky Brazilian beaches or sparkling swimming pools. Scant swimwear coincided with the youthquake of the era, the rising traveling passion and sexual emancipation. Women were free to be, and all the better if they were in a beautiful metallic bikini. Below we revisit some of our favorite 1960s' swimsuit moments.

In contemporary fashion, the provocative take on swimwear has been culminated by the designer Rick Owens in this metallic one-piece crafted from a flattering bronze stretch nylon that fits close to the neck and features an asymmetric off-the-shoulder shape with draping details.

Seen on the beaches of the French Riviera in the swinging 1960s.

THE VINTAGE AND ARCHIVAL BATHING SUIT TREND

TASCHEN will soon publish a detailed book on the 600-year-old occult Tarot card practice. The monograph, penned by seminal author and filmmaker Jessica Hundley, explains the imagery, meaning and symbolism of more than 500 cards and original artworks. In addition, the book highlights designs by renowned artists from Salvador Dalî to Niki de Saint Phalle. 

The 520-page tome is described as the first of its kind, covering centuries-old iconography including ancient images, historical events, religious allegories and more. For a long time, these divination cards were used as a method for spiritual guidance, using static images to shed light on the specific circumstances, desires and complicated dilemmas of an individual. 

"Discovering the Tarot means exploring ourselves, evoking the universality of our search for meaning, reason and relation with the divine. This 600-year-old tradition not only reflects a history of seekers but also our journey of artistic expression and the ways in which we communicate our collective human story," as stated in a statement.

The tarot has four different suits that vary by region as common playing cards. Each suit has 14 cards: 10 pip cards numbering from 1 (or Ace) to 10, and 4 face cards (King, Queen, Knight, and Jack /Knave/Page). The tarot also has a separate 21-card trump suit and one single card, known as the Fool. The Fool can act as the top trump, or can be played to avoid following suit, depending on the game. Those tarot cards are still used in many European countries to play traditional card games without ritual connections. 

In English-speaking countries, where such games are not played often, tarot cards are used mainly for novelty and divinatory purposes, typically as specially designed packs. Some occult theorists claim that tarot has mystical connections to ancient Egypt, the Kabbalah, Indian Tantra, or the I Ching, although there has been no published proof of these roots or the use of tarot for divination before the 18th century.

Designer Rick Owens is an expert in tarot reading. According to him, tarot cards have been used as a divination tool since the seventeenth century.

A visual history of over 500 cards and works of original art.

TASCHEN: THE HIDDEN HISTORY OF TAROT IN A COMPREHENSIVE BOOK

The rapper and designer Kanye West have teamed up with Nick Knight on a documentary detailing the redesign of the YEEZY Supply, which is described as "a website without words, an intimate experience that features real people the user can try clothes on and learn more about." Throughout the almost nine-minute film, Knight explains how he and West worked on the concept for three years using a "non-artistic approach." 

"There have been more than 10,000 hours of work, and at least twice as many images, considered and made, to give what I think is a beautifully simple website," Knight said. The new YEEZY Supply will continue to host the clothing, shoes and accessories of the company, but will feature products with 3D effects inspired by a lo-fi esthetic referenced by West from an e-commerce website for medical supply. Users can see an outfit on a model that can move on the screen and can see even more details about the models themselves, such as background information and favorite foods. 

"We tried to make the web a more humane place. We got used to internet being a flat, two-dimensional place," explained Nick Knight. "But the internet is also this incredible resource that links everybody in the world: What if we could use it to get to know the people that we are looking at on the screen?

Nicholas David Gordon "Nick" Knight (OBE) is an English fashion photographer and a founder of SHOWstudio.com. He is an active honorary professor at University of the Arts London, and received an honorary Ph.D. from the same university. Knight has produced books of his work including Nicknight (1994) and Nick Knight (2009) retrospectives. In 2016, Phillips auction house sold Knight's 1992 campaign photograph for fashion brand Jil Sander at a record-breaking price of HKD 2,360,000.

Check out the full documentary for more on YEEZY Supply and check for the updated website to be launched soon.

Rumors say that the new Rick Owens furniture app is going to be released soon with features allowing customers to create a floor plan in either 2D or 3D, and recreate your entire home through the app placing virtual designer's furniture inside.

NEW YEEZY SUPPLY 3D WEBSITE CREATED BY NICK KNIGHT WILL BE LAUNCHED SOON

Kanye West has made his long-awaited return to Twitter to officially announce YEEZY's upcoming partnership with Gap. Titled YEEZY Gap, the full collection is set to make its debut in early 2021. Kanye also tweeted a first look at what to expect from the upcoming joint project complete with the #WESTDAYEVER" caption, while Mowalola Ogunlesi revealed her appointment as the design director of the project. 

The YEEZY design studio under Kanye's artistic guidance will deliver "new, refined basics for men, women and children at an affordable price point," according to a statement released to The New York Times. Kanye's vision will also include how YEEZY Gap is going to be displayed in retail locations and on the Gap online website. 

The partnership is thought to be a 10-year agreement, and can be renewed halfway through that period. Gap believes that YEEZY will bring in $1,000,000,000 in annual sales by then. The deal will see YEEZY receiving royalties and potential equity over the next decade, based on sales performance. 

In announcing the collaboration, Global Head of Gap Brand Mark Breitbard said, "We are excited to welcome Kanye back to the Gap family as a creative visionary, building on his YEEZY brand's aesthetics and popularity and creating a next-level retail relationship together." 

This announcement marks Kanye's long-term relationship with Gap. During his youth, the artist and designer worked at Gap, and once said in an interview he wanted to be the "Steve Jobs of the Gap" and that he wants "absolute Hedi Slimane creative control of the Gap."

Gap has been founded by Donald Fisher and Doris F. Fisher in 1969, with headquarters in San Francisco, California. Six primary divisions of the company are Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Intermix, Hill City, and Athleta. Gap Inc. is the largest retailer in the United States and ranks 3rd in total foreign locations, behind Inditex Group and H&M. As of September 2008, the company employs approximately 135,000 people and operates 3,727 stores worldwide, 2,406 of which are based in the United States.

This year, designer Rick Owens is going to announce several new collaborations. Stay tuned, we will keep you posted!

Delivering “modern, elevated basics.”

After a flurry of businesses removed ads from the Facebook network, Mark Zuckerberg just became $7.2 billion poorer. 

Social media company shares fell 8.3 percent on Friday, the most in three months after Unilever, one of the world's largest advertisers, joined other brands in boycotting social network advertisements. 

Unilever, which owns brands including Hellmann's mayonnaise and Axe shower gel and has an $8 billion annual advertising budget, said they won't advertise their products on Twitter, Facebook, and Facebook-owned Instagram for the rest of the year because of the hate speech and divisive politics that users frequently share. 

"Continuing ads on these channels does not add value to consumers and society at this time," Unilever said in an emailed statement. "We will continue to track and if necessary re-examine our current position." 

The fall in the Facebook share price eliminated $56bn from the market value of the company and pushed Mr. Zuckerberg's net worth down to $82.3bn, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index says. That also pushed the Facebook chief executive down one notch to fourth place, overtaken by Louis Vuitton boss Bernard Arnault, who together with Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates were elevated to one of three richest people in the world. 

Companies from Verizon Communications to Hershey have stopped social media ads after critics claimed that Facebook has failed to sufficiently police hate speech and disinformation on the platform. Coca-Cola said they would spend at least 30 days pausing all paid advertising on all social media platforms. 

Mr. Zuckerberg replied to the increasing criticism of misinformation on the site on Friday, announcing that the company would mark all poll-related posts with a link that invites users to look at its new voter information portal. Facebook also expanded its definition of banned hate speech by adding a clause stating that no advertisements will be permitted if they label another demographic as dangerous. 

"There are no exceptions in any of the policies that I am announcing here today for politicians," Mr. Zuckerberg said. 

Twitter shares also tumbled to $29.05 on Friday following the announcement by Unilever, dropping 7.4%. 

A civil rights coalition and other advocacy organizations, including Color of Change and the Anti-Defamation League, have called on advertisers to stop advertising for the month of July on Facebook-owned sites to protest the company's policies. On Friday, Honda's US unit said it would join the July boycott and halt advertising on both Facebook and Instagram. Unilever's pledge extends through 2020, adding to the mix Twitter social network, which has always struggled to cope with derogatory tweets but has lately taken a more aggressive approach than Facebook in several cases linked to US President Donald Trump. 

So far, the organizers of the boycott have said more than 100 corporations are involved. 

"We spend billions of dollars per year to keep our community secure and collaborate constantly with external experts to review and update our policies," a Facebook spokeswoman said in a statement adding that the company has removed 250 White nationalist groups from its platforms. "We know we have more work to do and we're going to continue collaborating with civil rights organizations, GARM and other experts to build even more tools, technologies and policies to continue this war." 

Twitter, which wasn't the object of the formal ad boycott but endured similar critiques as Facebook over the years, says Unilever reached out to warn the company of its decision before making the announcement publicly. 

"Our goal is to support the public discourse and ensure that Twitter is a place where people can communicate with each other, search and receive accurate and reliable information, and express themselves openly and safely," said Sarah Personette, Twitter 's global customer solutions vice president, in a statement. "We support the decisions taken by our partners and will continue to work and collaborate closely with them throughout this time."

Alexander Wang house has also joined the above-mentioned companies to boycott Facebook.

Following a major advertising boycott onFacebook, Mark Zuckerberg has now lost over $7.2 billion USD in net worth, according to reports.

MARK ZUCKERBERG'S WEALTH PLUNGES BY $7BN AS COMPANIES BOYCOTT FACEBOOK ADS

The Simpsons is now set to recast its black characters, including Carl Carlson, Policeman Lou and Dr. Hibbert, after Hank Azaria stepped away from his position as Kwik-E-Mart owner Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. 

Although not much had been revealed about the upcoming changes, a statement from the producers of the show notes, "Moving forward, The Simpsons will no longer have white actors voice non-white characters." News of the upcoming recasting comes after the animation industry started a major move in response to recent events. Most prominently, Jenny Slate has declared her withdrawal from Missy's role on Big Mouth and Mike Henry has moved away from his Cleveland Brown character on Family Guy. 

The Simpsons voice actor Hank Azarina retired earlier this year from playing the character Apu. Known on the series for also voicing Superintendent Chalmers, Moe, Comic Book Guy and Chief Wiggum, the star was caught in the controversy surrounding his role as owner of Kwik-E-Mart. All this came to a boiling point in 2017 when a documentary titled "The Problem with Apu" has been released by comedian Hari Kondabolu. In an episode called "No Good Read Goes Unpunished" the Simpsons seemingly reacted to the documentary's racial allegations. 

Although many had their own views on social media, Azaria voiced his willingness to step away from the character, either for an actor of West Indian descent to take the role or to retire the character completely. 

"We all realize that I'm not going to do the voice anymore, unless there's a way to change or something," Azaria said after the panel for Brockmire's IFC series. "We've all made the collective decision," he said. "On that we all agreed. We all feel like it's the right thing to do and it's good."

Back in 2014, Bart Simpson has been outfitted in some of streetwear’s most renowned brands including Supreme, Rick Owens, Givenchy and Represent by the Bulgarian artist Simeon Georgiev

New voices for Carl Carlson, Lou and Dr. Hibbert.

THE SIMPSONS RECASTING BLACK CHARACTERS WITH BLACK ACTORS

The Polish film "365 Days," streaming at number 1 on Netflix, has the Internet up in arms. Yesterday, Soeurcières, the feminist group, launched a petition demanding its expulsion from the platform. Advocating rape, gender stereotypes and dominant relationships, every possible flaw has been invited to this appalling production which nevertheless succeeded in bringing in more than a million spectators in Poland when it has been released.

Just as the documentary series about the Jeffrey Epstein case is being screened on Netflix, you would have thought the streaming site was just too aware of the consent problems that the #MeToo campaign has recently brought to light. Yet the American giant has proven that this is not the case by broadcasting the Polish romantic thriller "365 Days", directed by Tomasz Mandes and Barbara Biolowas - totally unknown in France. 

Culture of rape, and women's infantilization 

An Italian mafia's member kidnaps a woman and gives her a year to fall in love with him. Although the pitch sounds like something you would read on the cover of a cheap airport book, it has, for the last few weeks, ignited the internet. Presented as the Polish edition of Fifty Shades of Grey, 365 Days was adapted from Blanka Lipinska's literary saga, and trended on Netflix from the moment it was released on June 7th. Perhaps a spine-chilling success because rape is condoned in this film. 

Racism, sexual harassment and the abuse of victims. All of these themes were condensed into 2 (very long) hours. While the poor quality of the script and acting skills leaves the spectator understandably confused, 365 Days stands out for its sexist and insulting content above everything else. The movie's intrigue topic can be summarized in one point: the characters' decay, both male and female. While women are the first targets in this thriller – as weak, venal beings – the men are not much better. They move inanely about like dogs incapable of controlling their desires in front of the women they deem dangerous because of their beauty.

In short: when Laura goes to Sicily, Massimo, the muscle-bound leader of the Italian mafia, kidnaps her. He confesses to being obsessed with the young woman and gives her one year to fall in love with him. "It's hard to act differently when you're used to having something by force," he describes kindly to her as she rejects his advances. You may be forgiven for assuming this was a statement on approval or even rejection acceptance, but 365 Days is nothing more than a putrid stack of clichés. The women in the story are reduced to sexual objects while the swaggering powerful men are brainless. From then on, the only suspense the film might have relied on is the supposed love of Laura for Massimo, and the moment she finally falls for his 'charms.' 

A deluge of sexist and vacuous inanities 

"Pretty women are heaven to the eyes, but hell to the soul. And wallet purgatory." We're only two minutes into the movie when we hear this phrase from Massimo's father, just before he dies. Although we would like this to be a big joke, in truth, 365 Days takes itself very seriously and is close to being intolerable. If the film is so controversial it's because each scene brings with it its own slew of stereotypes and violence. Just like the moment a woman is forced to fellate a man, and yet we see her smile through her tears. As if rape was a pleasant thing that could satisfy the victim. 

"I'm going to fuck you so hard, they're going to hear your screams in Warsaw", "I wouldn't have had to shoot if you weren't dressed like a prostitute", "you need balls to do this job". And so the sexist vulgarities continue throughout the movie. We couldn't count just how many times Massimo asks his victim not to provoke him. Besides being so shockingly misogynistic, 365 Days is revolting as it attempts to dress up kidnapping and rapes in a hot, romantic love story. 

All of this explains why a petition has been launched by the French feminist collective known as the Soeurcières to immediately remove the film from Netflix. If the platform refuses to comply, "it will be further evidence that society is spitting in the face of all sexual violence victims," the group has said.

Apparently this year, the movie based on the life of English ex-singer and fashion designer Victoria Beckham is going to be released telling us the story of her complicated relationships with the Spice Girls band members and its producer.

Massimo is a member of the Sicilian Mafia family and Laura is a sales director. She does not expect that on a trip to Sicily trying to save her relationship, Massimo will kidnap her and give her 365 days to fall in love with him.

365 DAYS: THE NETFLIX MOVIE ADVOCATING RAPE

If it wasn’t for the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, right now, thousands of people would be waking up in their tents at Glastonbury’s 50th-anniversary festival. The sun would be shining, your head would be pounding from last night’s bonfire at the Stone Circle, and you wouldn’t be stuck inside your living room working from home.

But, you are! And so, this weekend, instead of moping about how sad you are, most Londoners were heading to the V&A’s website and would transport themselves to the festival with soundscapes, archive imagery, memories, and more.

The museum has been working on a Glastonbury archive with the Eavis family since 2014, and, in honor of this year’s canceled event, has launched a new online collection featuring some of the items it’s acquired over the years. These include archive posters and photos, details about the festival’s history, fashion and stage design, as well as immersive soundscapes taken at the 2014 event.

The V&A is also asking for festival-goers to add their own contribution, sharing their memories of Glastonbury’s gone by – this will be part of a bigger project mapping the festival’s history – and contributing to a playlist made up of the public’s favorite sets.

According to the V&A, the ever-growing archive currently includes posters, programs, designs, interviews, film, photographs, correspondence, t-shirts, and tickets, as well as personal accounts, maps, and press cuttings.

Speaking to The Guardian, V&A curator Kate Bailey said: “Generally each year we are acquiring new material. One couldn’t just create the Glastonbury festival right now. There is something special about the natural way in which it has developed from that moment from the first festival.”

Glastonbury’s Emily Eavis urged past attendees to share their memories with the museum. “The festival is witness to years of creative, social, and political change,” she said, “and your souvenirs are an integral part of this story.”

The French fashion designer Andre Courreges has attended the Glastonbury festival once in the early 80s.

The 50th anniversary of the iconic festival was supposed to take place this weekend before it was canceled due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

SUBMIT YOUR PERSONAL MEMORIES FOR V&A’S GLASTONBURY ONLINE ARCHIVE

Companies ranging from Nike to Chuck E. Cheese parent have suffered tremendous losses in the wake of coronavirus, and Swedish fast fashion behemoth The H&M Group is no different. Following a loss of 3.06 billion Swedish Kroner (about $328 million USD), the massive chain has announced plans for restructuring that will see stores shuttered around the globe. 

Although the H&M Group quoted "a faster [financial] recovery rate in newly reopened stores," the company has chosen to close 170 stores that it owns worldwide, although it did not specify whether it would fold eponymous H&M stores or those that house its other brands, including Cos, Weekday and & Other Stories. Like the Inditex-owned Zara, which is shutting down more than 1,200 stores in favor of digital expansion, H&M's executives have signaled a shift to online shopping, booming in the face of coronavirus. 

"We can see clearly that the pandemic has caused changes in customers' behavior that will speed up our industry's digitalization," Helena Helmersson, CEO of H&M Group, told analysts in a conference call this week. "We've increased our online customer base and many of our in-store clients are now multichannel customers," noting that more male shoppers have started shopping online. "It's exciting to see that sales continue to pick up even though market conditions are still tough, there's no doubt that, so far, our sales recovery has been better than expected." 

H&M announced that its online revenue rose 32 percent in local currencies in the second quarter of 2020. Such encouraging financials have also driven the Swedish giant to accelerate the integration of its online platforms, encouraged by speedy supply chain initiatives that allowed the company to ensure a constant flow of timely product in and out of its stores.

Looks like Alexander Wang and Rick Owens houses are still keeping all their stores. We wish them luck, everyone's having a hard time at this point!

H&M's disappointing losses in first half of 2020 invite global store closures.

H&M GROUP: THE SWEDISH FAST FASHION CHAIN WILL SHUTTER NEARLY 200 LOCATIONS

As part of its Spring 2020 grant cycle, the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts recently announced it would award $4 million USD to 47 arts organizations across 23 states. The foundation was established in 1987 to support contemporary art, particularly work of an unconventional, under-recognized or challenging nature. The funds will be used for research, exhibits and other curatorial programming. 

Multi-year projects include Chicago's Black Lunch Table, an ongoing partnership between artists Jina Valentine and Heather Hart in which cultural creators of color participate in critical discussion on issues that directly impact Black communities, as well as the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Art in Brooklyn. 

A total of $142,000 USD will go to curatorial research at three institutions, while 15 museums such as New York's El Museo del Barrio, New Mexico's Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, and Georgia's Columbus Museum will receive funding to support their shows. The first-time grantor, DePaul Art Museum in Chicago, will receive $80,000 USD to create an initiative that focuses on incorporating Latinx artists into its shows and programs. 

"The contributions of artists to cultural and political discourse are more important than ever at this critical, epoch-defining moment," said Joel Wachs, the president of the Andy Warhol Foundation, in his statement. Rachel Bers, the foundation's program director, said, "In the face of the interlocking challenges that we face as a country and as a community, the foundation is doubling its contribution to artists as they address our challenging past, present and future."

On 22 February 1987, when Andy Warhol died unexpectedly, he left a vast and complicated inventory of artworks and personal possessions. The will mandated that the entire estate will be used to establish a fund devoted to the "advancement of the visual arts," with the exception of a few small legacies to family members. In its early days, the Fund brought together artists, curators, managers, educators, critics, and others to help form a sensitive, committed, and active philanthropic organization. The grantmaking program that emerged from these meetings and the continuing efforts of the Foundation to preserve and strengthen the artistic legacy of its creator ensure that the innovative, open-minded spirit of Warhol can have a profound influence on the visual arts for decades to come.

Rumors say that designer Rick Owens owns a piece from Andy Warhol amongst more classical artworks of his collection.

Supporting under-recognized curatorial research, exhibitions and programming.

ANDY WARHOL FOUNDATION: $4M TO SUPPORT CONTEMPORARY ART

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