The tower is the brainchild of the Dutch artist Daan Roosegaarde who looked out at his Beijing hotel window and realized the smog was so thick that he couldn't see the city. In Beijing, eight-year-olds are being diagnosed with lung cancer, and the filthy air reduced the life expectancy of residents by 15–16 years. "This is not the promising future we're hoping to see," says Roosegaarde. "This is terrifying." 

Roosegaarde and his team decided to build the world's largest air purifier: the Smog Free Tower. The tower they built, which was used in Rotterdam, Beijing, Tianjin and Dalian, sucks up to 30,000 cbm of polluted air per hour, cleans it at nano level — the particles of PM2.5, PM10 — and then releases the clean air back into town. (The tower boasts solar power.) 

The air surrounding the tower is 55 to 75 per cent cleaner than the rest of the city. 

Even when the gnarly, sooty particles are washed out of the air, they don't just vanish — they need to go somewhere. "In our studio, we had buckets of that disgusting material," Roosegaarde says. His team planned to throw it out when they had a eureka moment — they realized 42 per cent of the particles they collected were made of carbon. And what do you get when the carbon is compressed? Of course you get diamonds. 

The tower filtered smog particles are compressed for 30 minutes, and transformed into black, boxy gems. The stones are then being used for rings and cufflinks, each with a pollution of 1,000 cubic metres. Roosegaarde states that some have used a smog ring as a ring for marriage. They are the ultimate conversion of waste to wonders: toxic pollution that has been turned into gemstones. 

But Beijing is not the only filthy city out there. Roosegaarde heads to India. He plans to build the Nation-wide Smog Free Towers to help Delhi and other municipalities turn their dirty air into treasure objects. 

He also partners with NGOs, states, students and tech firms to develop other approaches to help reduce air pollution in our cities. "The point is to connect new technology with creative thinking," Roosegaarde says. "If you start thinking about that, you can create so much more."

For their past jewelry collections, Rick Owens and Michele Lamy have been using carbon compressed diamonds. Rumors say that the designer has proposed to his future wife with a recycled diamond sterling silver ring.

And what do you get when the carbon is compressed? Of course you get diamonds. 

ROOSEGAARDE'S TOWER: CONVERTING SMOG INTO DIAMONDS

Niki Pauls and 032c have been working together for many years. She was a fixture of the Société de 032c and a fashion contributor to the magazine 032c, she also curated the music program for the legendary 032c Bar Nights. Niki is mostly based in Berlin, when she is not styling or consulting in Paris or internationally. Niki Pauls is one of the founders of German Broken Hearts Club and French Cicciolina, two scene-defining parties in which her hosting prowess crystallized a world nexus of art-fashion-music. Niki's personal going out style – you might call it dark wave disco eclecticism – is famously on target, but even when the dance floors are closed, she knows how to put a look together. For this shoot she took the new LoveSexDreams 032c Apparel collection – a favorite quarantine – for a spin at home (paired, sometimes, with some Personal Protective Equipment). 

032c LoveSexDreams collection is a reclamation of minimalism. Designers are bringing it down from the heights of modernism and spiking it, spliffing it, taking it out of class and redefining it for its natural habitat: brutal reality. Truant minimalism is not slick, scholarly, linear, or monochrome, but direct, exposed, unpredictable, unprocessed. It exists outside of narrative continuity, graphic purity, and institutional anything, and that's how we like it, because that's where potential and promise also live. Truant minimalism can get weird and abrasive, and yes, it 's probably flirting with you. If you get caught, it's better unplanned. Why drop out when you can ditch? 

The 032c Apparel LoveSexDreams collection belongs to 1990s West Coast sprawl and West Berlin's Love, Sex and Dreams. It's part jock, stoner, sleaze, hacker, tech bro, country club, strip club, dog-punk; it's in a clique, it's a loner, it's psychic. Acid washes, waxed fabrics, silk-lined terry cloth, intarsia knits, embroidery, neoprene, leather, varsity letters, oversized t-shirts, heavyweight workwear blends, denim, thermal waffles, and bouclé are your daily sampling. Around truant minimalism, stuff just gets lost, discovered, and "borrowed" – messed up or exchanged in the spaces between "yours" and "mine," "out" and "in." Love, dream, but don't get attached, because nothing is a given and everything is up for grabs.

Check out Mykita collection on Cruvoir, we definitely have a range of sunglasses that go along with 032c 1990s West Coast style and West Berlin's Love, Sex and Dreams. You are invited.

032c LoveSexDreams collection is a reclamation of minimalism. Designers are bringing it down from the heights of modernism and spiking it, spliffing it, taking it out of class and redefining it for its natural habitat: brutal reality. 

Christie's has recently unveiled a new series of online-only thematic auctions from the Department of Post-War and Contemporary Art. 

The sales are identified by Christie's as reflecting the two opposing sides of human nature, respectively entitled "Vice" and "Virtue" 

In its section, "Vice" captures the myriad ways of worldly escape, reflecting the humanistic tendency of chasing pleasure, while "Virtue" turns inward, featuring art that indicates hope, wisdom, happiness and warmth from both real and imagined worlds. 

Open for bidding until May 27, "Vice" features masterpieces by Barbara Kruger, sharp jokester Richard Prince, consumerism commentator KAWS and more. 

Highlights of the sale include "Untitled (de Kooning)" by Richard Prince, which is expected to be sold between $600,000 and $800,000; as well as "Kawsbob (Open Mouth), Package Painting Series" by KAWS, which is expected to realize up to $150,000. 

Amongst other artworks, there is a unique ceramic sculpture by Roy Lichtenstein, entitled "Ceramic Sculpture 13", estimated to be going under the hammer between $300,000 and $500,000. 

Also on offer, there are two works by Andy Warhol which are hitting the auction block as part of "Vice". "Work Boots (Positive)" is projected to be sold for between $250,000 and $350,000, while "Electric Chair (Retrospective Series)" is predicted to be worth $50,000 or more. 

Chris Evert's silkscreen portrait, entitled "Chris Evert [Sixteen Works]," is estimated to fetch between $300,000 and $500,000 (as part of "Virtue").

Open for bidding from 29th of May through 12th of June, the "Virtue" online auction will concentrate on the notion of virtue as a imaginative escape. 

"Virtue" will include a range of works dealing with visual iterations of subjects such as prudence, courage, temperance, justice, faith, hope and love. 

In the coming weeks the entire digital auction collection will be released on Christie's website, where meanwhile there is a viewing room for "Vice + Virtue."

Victoria Beckham often participates in auction-related events in London and NYC. In 2018, the designer organized a collaborative exhibition with  Master Paintings Evening Sale. The Female Triumphant, a bash of the life and work of groundbreaking female artists, which later bridged three auctions in New York, were on view at Victoria Beckham’s Dover Street Boutique in Mayfair.

What's your vice? ⠀
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We're excited to announce the launch of VICE and VIRTUE, a series of thematic online sales of Post-War and Contemporary Art that speak to our collective reality during this time of global interruption.⠀
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Beginning with VICE from 12-27 May and continuing with VIRTUE from 29 May 29-12 June. ⠀
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Celebrating the human desire for escapism, VICE provides a reprieve from our new reality with offerings by Barbara Kruger, Richard Prince, KAWS, and other artists who capture the essence of hedonistic pursuits.⠀
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Whereas VIRTUE focuses on the idea of virtue as a creative escape with work that plays with visual iterations of the seven virtues (prudence, fortitude, temperance, justice, faith, hope, and love). ⠀
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VICE — 12-27 May, online.⠀
VIRTUE — 29 May-12 June, online.⠀
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#art #artist #vice #virtue #onlineauction #postwarart #contemporaryart #artcanhelp

ANDY WARHOL AT CHRISTIE'S VICE AND VIRTUE SALES

Innovative and eco-friendly science company Pangaia is commemorating World Bee Day on May 20th in partnership with Japanese artist Takashi Murakami, with a collaborative collection. Simultaneously launching the Bee the Change Fund in conjunction with Milkywire, which is aimed at protecting and preserving threatened and endangered bee species worldwide, Pangaia embarks on a philanthropic fashion initiative that closely aligns with their brand mission. 

The upcoming Takashi Murakami x Pangaia capsule collection will feature two celebratory t-shirts and two equally festive hoodies with exclusive artwork by Murakami. Made of 100% Gots certified organic cotton, t-shirts will come in an off-white color with a flower and bee print or saffron yellow showing a ball of flowers and bee print. On the other hand, hoodies find vibrancy in the same respective prints in cobalt blue and orchid purple. The price of each collaborative t-shirt is $95, and both colorful hoodies are priced at $220.

Pangaia group has spent several years working on ideas for sustainable apparel. The result is a stylish selection of wardrobe necessities. The collection uses bio-based, recycled fibres and fabrics made from recycled plastic bottles. Pangaia combine natural botanical dyes made from natural sources such as plants, with revolutionary antibacterial peppermint to remain fresh for longer. Pangaia do use NFC technology for full supply chain transparency. With Pangaia you can make smart choices without compromising on style.

Pangaia is a direct-to-consumer material research organization taking revolutionary textile technologies and inventions into the world through daily lifestyle products. Each technology they work with aims to solve an environmental issue of the fashion/apparel & nature industry. 

Pangaia hope to push these approaches forward by making innovations and resources accessible to businesses across various industries. By introducing these innovations, they design materials, products and experiences for everyday and everyone.

The most recent collaboration of Rick Owens with Moncler is not what you probably expected. Moncler created a tour bus for Rick Owens and his wife Michèle Lamy. This a standalone partnership, as Owens admitted he took advantage of the moment to ask Moncler to do something different.

The upcoming Takashi Murakami x Pangaia capsule collection will feature two celebratory t-shirts and two equally festive hoodies with exclusive artwork by Murakami.

WORLD BEE DAY: PANGAIA X TAKASHI MURAKAMI COLLECTION

Revenge, a 2017 French rape-and-revenge action horror film written and directed by Coralie Fargeat, and starring Matilda Anna Ingrid Lutz, despite its disarmingly unimaginative title is the action film that is bitingly smart, unpologetically provocative, and a true example of feminist cinema in the 21st century. 

We see Jen, our heroine (played by Matilda Lutz) prancing around in short shorts and crop tops, sucking on a lollipop suggestively. Her husband, Richard, a square-jawed yuppie cheating on his wife, took Jen to his secluded home in the desert, thirsty for some time alone. Although, his two friends, who arrive early for the hunting trip they'd been planning, rudely interrupt their getaway. 

A hunt will be performed soon enough but not in the manner expected by either of the characters. Jen dances with Stan, the most disgustingly grotesque of Richard's two friends, after a night of heavy drinking and partying. Stan sees Jen's transparency as an invitation, using the same argument that we've seen some of our own ministers sput out. When Richard gets away on an errand the next morning Stan rapes Jen. 

Richard is aghast about what happened at first. But right away it's obvious he's not as good as he seems. He starts scolding Stan, and Dimitri, the third friend who looked the other way when he heard Jen's screams — nearly as a mother does when her baby drops an expensive vase when she turns around. He decides Jen's return to the city could create certain difficulties for him, an important businessman. So he drags her down to a cliff along with the two monsters and pushes her over the edge. 

They watch Jen being impaled by a dead tree stump, and are convinced that no one was able to survive the fall, then they are back. Jen eventually survives, she is in one of the most skin-crawlingly painful sequences you will see this year, she pries herself off the stump and crawls into a cave, where she performs graphical surgery on herself and emerges, literally, like a phoenix. And then, by breaching them, she tracks down the men who betrayed her — with bullets and knives and pure brute force. 

Revenge has a lot of symbolism and a lot of it is very much on the nose. 

First-time feature film director Coralie Fargeat knows what she's doing and she's got to pull you in, to prove her case. She has to confuse you like a magician and when she has your attention where she wants it, that's when she's making her revelation. This 180-degree turn of style is helped by a blindsiding change of the viewpoint — the film starts as a sick portrayal of the male gaze — Jen is very much an object in those early scenes, only waiting to be devoured, but by the end, transforms into a snapshot of the world through female eyes — always on the brink, burning with rage and always the underdog. 

What Fargeat has done in Revenge is similar to what Julia Ducournau did with her "Raw" cannibal feminist film last year. By combining French arthouse storytelling with American exploitation, both directors used the language of horror cinema to convey ideas that were specific to women. 

They would surely make a rough double bill, but these are the movies intended for experienced horror fans, not casual passers-by. 

Apart from the achievements in their main industry, most fashion designers are famous for their roles in cinema. Alexander Wang is well-known for his work with The Fashion Fund. Established by legendary Anna Wintour, The Fashion Fund is a documentary-style TV show showcasing behind-the-scenes action for emerging designers from the American Council of Fashion Designers and the Vogue Competition.

By combining French arthouse storytelling with American exploitation, Coralie Fargeat uses the language of horror cinema to convey ideas that were specific to women. 

REVENGE: THE MOST PROVOCATIVE FEMINIST HORROR FILM OF 2018

The Infinity Wall in Nexen's latest Seoul R&D Center, "Nexen UniverCity" connects with viewers by telling the tale of the core value of Nexen Tire and its management philosophy through the "plot mode," exchanging emotions, creating a highly emotionally charged environment beyond construction and interior through the "mood mode." Climate, time, and news are delivered creatively and intuitively through the "Text mode" in real time. 

The transformation of a flat LED display into a new three-dimensional space was possible thanks to D'strict's well-planned and innovative design, together with intuitive video production ability. D'strict announced the re-creation of the lobby space of Nexen UniverCity into a public media room that could be the talk of the town. 

Public media demand to attract more attention is increasing, especially where a number of people are gathering, such as hotels, resorts, casinos, and office buildings. Overflowing imagination, D'strict turns public spaces into enticing digital media sites. 

D'strict is a design company that uses digital media technologies to develop creative space based user interfaces (UX) through content creation. D'strict, which has changed its flagship business since their creation in 2004 in response to developments in various digital media technologies, has launched a world's first digital theme park, "Live Park" in 2012, and has a new content-based entertainment model (IP) on a similar theme. We are running the "Virtual Theme Park" business that realizes space, and the "Virtual eXperience Development" business that provides high-end real estate and brands with creative spatial experiences.

Digital showrooms are also immersive experiences in fashion that bring consumers to a 100% digital world, enabling them to take tours of any kind of exhibition space and engage with all sorts of items from a full catalog of fashion garments to sculpture or even art pieces. We expect that in a few years time the major revolutionary brands like Celine, Balenciaga, Rick Owens, or Yohji Yamamoto will start displaying their latest collections in digital showrooms.

NEXEN UNIVERCITY "THE INFINITY WALL" Knock

Overflowing imagination, D'strict turns public spaces into enticing digital media sites. 

This week, Fredrik Tjaerandsen, a visual artist and designer from Bodo, Norway who has just graduated from Central Saint Martins with a Bachelor's degree in Womenswear, sent models down the runway in dresses that looked like someone blowed up a piece of bubblegum or Willy Wonka's Violet as she is blowing up like a blueberry.

When his models made their way down the runway at the graduate showcase, they let the air out of the rubber bubbles in which they were wrapped, deflating into colorful clothes. The colorful ensembles were rather avant-garde and slightly lumpy. As to the inspiration behind the series, Fredrik says, "My series are inspired by an almost indefinable moment when the self-awareness of a person becomes active and receptive, I have endeavored to develop a process of experimental practice and creation through which I could respond and build my own interpretation of this moment and the experience of being in that moment." 

LOOK 3 - MAUVE BUBBLE 
Thank you to my amazing team 💜
Featuring @chanfyx 
Hair @ryonarushima with assistants @y.masa0711 @hiromitsu.yafune_hairmake @hairmake_hiro @sachi.2.2
Makeup @sabusuzuki with assistant @laurelwoodwardmakeup 
My helpers @spicylemonsamiam @mmirae 
#BAFCSM 
@bafcsm

To build the looks, Fredrik used rubber from a Sri Lankan company where local rubber growers buy their material. Explaining the dresses construction, the designer said "I built these pieces with an air pressure system that allows the wearer to control the air-flow. Each time the wearer needs to deflate [the outfit] they open a latch inside to remove the inverted portion of the bubble and then dive out of the bubble." - Brilliant. 

In addition, the designer also made a point of streamlining the design of the dresses, saying, "It was very important to me that everything in the garment is linked. The garment inside and the bubble is all in one piece and I've designed it to get as few seams as possible. When the dress deflates it will still drape differently depending on what's going on at this moment. 

Fredrik's design was what a runway show was meant to be: imaginative, dramatic and gave insight into the inspiration behind the clothes. Central Saint Martins appears to agree, because Fredrik has won the Central Saint Martins L'Oreal Young Talent Award. Fashion should be fun at the end of the day, and make you smile.

Central Saint Martins (London, England), is a public tertiary art school. This is a constituent college of the London University of the Arts. It offers full-time courses through foundation, undergraduate and postgraduate levels, as well as a variety of short and summer classes. 

It was previously known as the Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design, and as the Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, before that. 

We spoke to @bafcsm’s most talked about graduate of this year, and winner of the L’Oréal Professionnel Young Talent Award @fredriktjaerandsen about his balloon creations. “I designed ‘bubble’ in the shape of a torus. The inner part of the torus is where the garment is constructed and inverts out to the bubble. The rubber I use is sourced from a company that has its rubber production in Sri Lanka, where they support and buy their rubber from local rubber growers. I have constructed these pieces with an air pressure system that lets the wearer control the air-flow. Whenever the wearer wants to deflate it, they open a latch inside to release the inverted bubble part and then that dives out of the deflating bubble.” Read more up on thelovemagazine.co.uk where Tjaerandsen talks about his process, the hours of trial and error it look to produce his collection and what he’s planning next.

The Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design was created in 1989 as a result of the merger of the Central School of Art and Design, founded in 1896, and the School of Art, founded in 1854. Both schools have been part of the London Institute since 1986, formed by the Inner London Education Authority to bring together seven London schools of art , design, fashion, and media. 

Among the school's alumni you will find Laure Prouvost, the Turner Prize winner, Jarvis Cocker, the singer, and several famous fashion designers including Sarah Burton, John Galliano, Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen, Hussein Chalayan, Zac Posen, and Riccardo Tisci. English designer Gareth Pugh has also graduated form Central Saint Martins and later became a protege and part of Rick Owens and his wife Michele Lamy's "family".

Fredrik has won the Central Saint Martins L'Oreal Young Talent Award. Fashion should be fun at the end of the day, and make you smile.

FREDRIK TJAERANDSEN: CSM GRADUATION BUBBLE COLLECTION

Winona Ryder is one of the coolest girls of the 90s, hands down — or at least one of the most mysterious ones. In her early career, Ryder distinguished herself from the rest of the 90's starlets with her predilection for portraying freaks, geeks and weirdos, while also displaying some majorly impressive acting skills in more traditional, dramatic positions. As a performer, she masterfully inhabits the middle ground between horror movie icon and acclaimed lead actress, acting in roles as varied as the nihilistic, homicidal Veronica Sawyer of Beetlejuice's goth-y Lydia Deetz and Heathers to Little Women's brainy Jo March and socialite May Welland in Martin Scorsese's The Age of Innocence. At the height of her career — and perhaps inspired by her participation in the movie Girl, Interrupted — Winona was highly candid about her mental health problems, and unusual for an actress of her calibre. While some of these personal challenges and a highly scrutinized court case derailed her career briefly in the early 1900s, Winona re-emerged as "strange and odd" as she has ever been (and as we love her) starring in a new series of cult classics like Netflix's massively popular Stranger Things and tongue-in-cheek rom-com Destination Wedding alongside fellow 90s heartthrob (and partnering with her) Keanu Reeves. Here we map out some of Ryder's career-defining looks in memory of the perennially-iconic star.

This dress, which Ryder wore to the 1991 musical comedy-drama The Commitments premiere, is for sure one of the most famous outfits of the nineties. You've probably seen this look several times, from Tumblr-era moodboards to your current Instagram feed. The combination of an old band T-shirt, lapelled leather jacket, and light-wash mom jeans are as timeless as they come — and timelessly covetable. Case in point: Winona continues to wear this Tom Waits T-shirt alongside Keanu Reeves to this day, last wearing it during the Destination Wedding in 2018. 

Winona Ryder, with Edward Scissorhands co-star Johnny Depp, was one half of the hottest Hollywood couple of the 90s from the years 1989 to 1993. The pair had attracted huge media attention for both their A-lister status and strange reputations. Depp and Winona have been involved in her "first all" for three years, with Depp reportedly immortalizing the ink relationship. Depp changed his "Winona Forever" to "Wino Forever" following their break-up in 1993. Here, along with Johnny, Winona sports a leather jacket that is bulky and much worn. Although leather is par for the course when it comes to Winona 's wardrobe, the biker jacket looks as if it has been borrowed from Johnny.

Beverly Hills Premiere at the Backdraft, 1991 

Winona enjoyed a moment in power suit during the 90s. She was wearing a sumptuous brown suit for the 1991 premiere of Little Man Tate, this skirted number on a red carpet in the early 1990s, and who could forget her ridiculous 80s shouldering blazers like Veronica Sawyer in cult chic Heathers? Even after the 1990s, Winona is a major red carpet suiting arbiter, going as far as wearing a deconstructed blazer over a whole ballgown up to the SAG Awards in 2020. This version of the look, which she wore to the Backdraft premiere in 1991, stands out for its monochromatic palette and extreme late-80s proportions within the annals of Winona Ryder's many suits. 

She attends the premiere of Dracula, 1992 

Were you aware that Winona Ryder may actually have been married to Keanu Reeves, a fellow 90s heartthrob? Apparently, in Francis Ford Coppola's Dracula, the pair may have tied the knot for real during an extremely realistically staged wedding scene — officiated by a true Romanian priest. If this tidbit — shared for their rom-com Destination Wedding during Ryder and Reeves' press junket — is truth or fiction, it's clear that Ryder's Dracula premiere look is one of her iconicest. Combining the most iconic of the 80s (Heathers shoulders and square neckline) with that of the 90s (skirt suit and Manolo pumps), Ryder 's outfit diverged for a look as romantic as the film itself from her usual achromatic get-ups.

In the fashion world, Rick Owens is known for his dark and revolutionary creations and is adored by many people who are gothic, surreal and expressive-inclined, including both Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder. If you're a fan of the fashion style of Rick Owens but don't know where to start, continue reading on our style inspirations to wear the trendy looks on the streets and make statements.

Here we map out some of Ryder's career-defining looks in memory of the perennially-iconic star.

WINONA RYDER'S FOUR ICONIC LOOKS FROM THE EARLY 90S

The Met Gala has brought us some of the most significant moments in fashion ever. Cher turns heads arriving at the Met Gala on the first Monday in May 1974 wearing one of the designs of Bob Mackie: a sheer, beaded gown with white feathered sleeves and a white feathered skirt that began around the knee. A newly-divorced Princess Diana arrives at the Met Gala on the first Monday in May 1996 in a navy satin dress with black lace trim from designer John Galliano, who had just begun his tenure at Dior. Amber Valletta stuns in a Marie Antoinette-inspired Maggie Norris Couture corset and John Galliano shirt, complete with a powdered coif, on the first Monday in May 2004. On the first Monday of May 2015, Rihanna went viral with a 55-pound gold-sticked, golden-yellow imperial cape designed by Chinese couturier Gui Pei. 

May 2020, First Monday? Crickets. "We're going as scheduled and we're looking forward to a great evening," a spokesperson from the Costume Institute told The Cut on March 12. Four days later, on 16 March, Anna Wintour announced that the Met Gala had been "indefinitely postponed." The event, which was to be co-chaired by Nicolas Ghesquière of Louis Vuitton, Emma Stone, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Meryl Streep (it would have been her first time), was added to an ever-growing list of canceled events, including the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the 73rd annual Cannes Film Festival, Burning Man, Frieze New York, Eurovision Song Contest, TED 2020 and more.

CT Hedden, a drag performer from New York City determined to continue a trend that started last year when the Met Gala welcomed the first three drag queens to the carpet: RuPaul, Aquaria and Violet Chachki. Be afflicted with coronavirus. "I was doing a healthy, socially distant jog on Friday night before the Met Gala was going to take place, and I thought, 'I indeed, should be building something here,'" says Hedden. "It's my responsibility as an artist to present, even in tough times. We're doing what we're doing sending messages through our work, and now more than ever, if I can make people laugh and more importantly vomit, then I'm doing my job." And so the idea for CT Hedden's QuarantQueen Met Gala was born that very moment. 

In twelve hours the entire idea was thought up, shot, and completed. Then Hedden phoned Sidewalkkilla, the photographer, who was on board instantly. Regardless of the apparent limitations and health issues, they knew they had to do so carefully. Then came the stars: Jasmine Rice LaBeija, Nikki Exotika, Thee Suburbia, Glow Job and Digna, all of whom unthinkingly started preparations for the film. Think of the Power Rangers pinging by Zordon. Only drag queens. 

The outcome is a collection of beautiful editorial photos: a celebration of the biggest tentpole of the Met Gala — the fashions — and a cultural statement on the times we live. As in the great superpower of drag. "I hate hearing 'we are all together in this,' because we really aren't," Hedden says. "I wanted people to know that fashion, elegance, and glamor are still alive, and if dressing up in a gown at home in your living room makes you feel better than bitch, do it. Smile, sob, get mad, do all of the above. The Queer community, though quite fragmented, has a way to always come together in hard times. We're hustlers, we've always been and always will be. I hope people appreciated my version of the Gala and I'm grateful to everyone who helped make it happen. Now that said, I hope that next year we will be invited because we protected their asses this year."

CT Hedden, a drag performer from New York City determined to continue a trend that started last year when the Met Gala welcomed the first three drag queens to the carpet: RuPaul, Aquaria and Violet Chachki.

Independent film studio, A24, revealed last month that they would auction off props and costumes from many of their famous films, including Midsommar, Eighth Grade, Uncut Gems, The Lighthouse, Hereditary, Mid90s and popular series Euphoria to raise funds for New York City health workers and families impacted by COVID-19. The second round of the auction took place last Wednesday online, with buyers purchasing notable items from those collections. 

The floral dress that Florence Pugh made famous in Ari Aster's Midsommar's concluding scene was sold for a $65,000. The weight of the traditional "May Queen" dress is 33 pounds; it was made of Hungarian linen, 900 years old, making it absolutely one of a kind. The pairing flower crown was sold for $15,000, and Jack Reynor had also purchased the $4,750 bear headdress. 

Other Midsommar items included in the auction were the climatic smashing mallet, the Ättestupa tunics (cue the scene of the terrifying cliff jump), and the villagers' floral vests in the film. 

The first round of the online auction was held two weeks ago, with customers catching the $8,000 hoodie Zendaya was wearing in Euphoria. The price has been matched for the hand-stitched doormat seen in Hereditary, which belonged to the character of Toni Collette. 

If you are a fan of The Lighthouse by Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe, or the Uncut Gems by Adam Sandler, don't be afraid. Props from these sets are available today, and the FDNY Foundation, Food Bank For NYC, Queens Community House and other charities will benefit from the proceeds. 

Take the light from The Lighthouse itself, the pipe of the mermaid carving or wake whilst you're at it, or the true gems of Uncut Gems and Celtics jersey while you can. The auction closes at 3 PM EST on May 30th.

A few cult Japanese movies created by Takeshi Kitano have been outfitted by Yohji Yamamoto. Because of the streamlined stylings of Japanese designers like Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons, Issey Miyake and Yohji Yamamoto, Kitano's costumes provide an understated backdrop to what is mostly pretty graphical violence.

Alexander Wang revealed the last 10 years of his career in an hour-long talk at the Met Museum in New York including his tenure as Balenciaga's creative director. As a precocious 19-year-old who wanted to quit art school at Parsons to start his own company, the designer and entrepreneur has been a trailblazer in the world of fashion by reaching beyond his trade into sectors such as music and tech, to gage what's next. In addition, he and his employees adopt a holistic approach and believe that everyone should be motivated to contribute fresh ideas.

The best ideas don't need to come from above. I want everyone from my team to think like businessmen. Whether you are an assistant, intern, director, v.p., doesn't matter — defy your daily routine. Think about what you're doing and speaking up when it doesn't make sense. And I would like to hear those ideas. 

With respect to digital retail, he adds: 

Shoppable runways was something we had in mind. We know the future isn't in wholesale, and it's definitely not in retail — for us at least. Customers have their own way of looking at it and digital will be a very enormous component. You've read about Amazon with its $400 billion website and stuff that they do. What they really don't have is a designer. If you are able to combine the two tools, networks, infrastructures and statistics, this could be a really interesting business. 

In addition to running a design empire, he has recently been elected as a first design curator of Apple. 

It is their first kind of foray into the design business. They just wanted to create a seamless kind of world — a music and fashion forum for people to go there. That's kind of how I look at the world today. There are not many clean lines which make a musician of a fashion designer. Today, each one is a separate company.

Shoppable runways was something we had in mind. We know the future isn't in wholesale, and it's definitely not in retail — for us at least.

ALEXANDER WANG: WHY RETAIL IS IN THE PAST

Fashion model Karlie Kloss and venture capitalist Joshua Kushner may be giving an impression of an unlikely match on the surface, but for eight years now the two have been together. 

The pair have maintained an under-the-radar friendship since they first began dating in 2012. Kloss and Kushner married in October 2018, and just eight months later had a second western-themed wedding. 

Joshua Kushner is the younger brother of White House advisor Jared Kushner, whose father-in-law is President Donald Trump. While the couple hasn't spoken out openly against him, in the 2016 election the couple said they didn't vote for him. 

In 2009, Josh Kushner, 34, founded Thrive Capital, a venture capital company. The company has been investing in businesses such as Twitter, Stripe, and ClassPass. Kushner sits on the boards for shaving equipment maker Harry's and wedding planning company Zola due to his investments. 

Thrive Capital has made some of the biggest investments in tech start-ups such as Instacart's grocery delivery company, Robinhood's stock trading app, and Lemonade. 

Kushner has helped to launch two companies: in 2012 he co-founded "Oscar" health insurance corporation, and in 2015 "Cadre" real estate investment fund. 

Oscar, which intends to use software to offer a more consumer-friendly insurance alternative, was last priced at $3.2 billion in equity. In 2018, the company raised $375 million from Alphabet, the parent company owned by Google. 

Cadre's priced at $800 million in the meantime. This was created by Kushner with his brother, Jared. 

Karlie Kloss, 27, has been working as a model since her teenage years. By the age of fifteen in 2007, Kloss skyrocketed to fame and now raises $10 million a year. She also runs a free girls coding camp. 

The couple mostly avoided talking about politics, which is notable considering their connections to that world: Josh Kushner is Jared Kushner's younger brother, who is a senior adviser at the White House, as well as son-in-law to President Donald Trump. 

The couple, however, have publicly confirmed that they did not vote for Trump in 2016. Kushner said he's a Democrat for a lifetime, and Kloss posted in the 2016 election that she had voted for Hillary Clinton.

In the fashion world, Rick Owens and Michele Lamy is indeed the main, and probably the most famous, power couple. Rick Owens and Michele Lamy's couple don't let the 17-year age gap deter them. Lamy once said something to the effect of: We didn't get married to have kids, our creations are our kids. Well, they are gorgeous!

The couple have publicly confirmed that they did not vote for Trump in 2016. Kushner said he's a Democrat for a lifetime, and Kloss posted in the 2016 election that she had voted for Hillary Clinton.

POWER COUPLES: KARLIE KLOSS AND JOSHUA KUSHNER

The dark tones, unorthodox constructions and brooding skin of Rick Owens's clothing designs are less evident in his Venice home arrangements which he shares with Michèle Lamy, an inamorata and business associate. Since 2007, the influential fashion designer has begun to create pieces for the penthouse, channeling interior design signs that celebrate its brutal affinity while paying homage to the rich history of the Italian community - an intimate view at the sizable room or as Lamy quipped, "Superman's palace." 

Owens envisioned a most tranquil world that would be serious and would remove any sort of sentimentality or attachments, a clean slate. "Blank" is an ideal term for describing a residence with travertine marble floors, clean white walls and living spaces that are minimally decorated with personal memories such as human skulls. Most importantly, this very unostentatious nature of the home serves as an inspiration for the couturier who wanted to build an atmosphere for himself that would inspire him to demand more and demand something better. "And I got to be at my very, very, very best," said Owens. 

Owens all in all proclaimed that it would have been stupid to do something exceedingly theatrical, something destroyed and brutal.

Owens finds his vision of the home to be one of "extreme formal," completely opposite to his house in Paris, which he told is "more comfortable." But, with his room in Venice, he feels that loneliness and "a little tinge of sadness" hanging over the town and, therefore, those times were incorporated into the design. "Mortality, death and utopia," tells Mr. Owens. "All those wonderful themes of mine."

"Mortality, death and utopia," tells Mr. Owens. "All those wonderful themes of mine."

The last condition for the release of infamous Elon Musk's first 12 tranches was met on Tuesday thanks to Tesla's stock price, providing the CEO with a historic payday worth $706 million USD. 

The payout is part of Musk's contract with Tesla's board of directors, which provided him with 12 tranches, each released upon reaching a set of predetermined milestones. The final challenge for the billionaire was to hit $100 billion USD for the total market capitalization of Tesla over the past six months, a feat accomplished earlier this week. The other three conditions, involving a trailing market value of $100 billion over 30 days, $20 billion in revenue from the company, as well as $1.5 billion in earnings, have all been met beforehand. 

Musk has now acquired 1.69 million stock options, which he can buy at just $350.02 USD per share. With the current stock price of the electric vehicle manufacturer at $768.21 USD, the CEO may potentially sell his shares immediately to make up $706 million USD, the largest amount ever paid to any executive in U.S. history at once. 

Musk already holds a fortune of USD $38.5 billion at the age of 48.

In addition to his main businesses, Musk has envisioned a high-speed transportation system known as the Hyperloop, and has proposed a vertical jet-electric aircraft with electric fan propulsion, known as the Musk electric jet, to take off and land. Musk has said SpaceX, Tesla and SolarCity's goals revolve around his vision of "changing the world and helping humanity." His aims include reducing global warming by generating and using renewable energy, and raising the possibility of human extinction by creating a human colony on Mars.

Two years ago, Elon Musk revealed that his SpaceX aerospace company is sending two tourists out on a moon trip. Thanks to his Y-3 by Yohji Yamamoto x SpaceX sneaker idea, designer Clement Fernandes made us look cool as we went out into space, towards Mars in particular. The Y-3 x SpaceX was created with a nylon upper paired with carbon nanotubes.

The final challenge for the billionaire was to hit $100 billion USD for the total market capitalization of Tesla over the past six months, a feat accomplished earlier this week.

ELON MUSK HAS UNLOCKED HIS RECORD OF $706 MILLION USD PAYOUT

Dior's Lee Young Kyoon has launched a website selling items ranging from the famous 2001 "Riot! Riot! Riot!" to 2018/19 "Replicants" Raf Simons archive collections. 

The website sells some of Raf Simons' rarest and most significant pieces available, with notable things like a "Riot! Riot! Riot!" iconic oversized shirt, or a jumper from the same period of time with David Bowie, Richy Edwards, and Joy Division concert posters on it and paper clippings featuring missing Richey Edwards of the Manic Street Preachers.

Otherwise, we see a fishtail parka named "Dazzle Ships," the "Exiles" turtleneck from the "Wave" series which is also covered in patches portraying the "Shipwreck" passage of Ortega y Gasset, rave culture and manufactured record labels, as well as a gold-plated "R" symbol necklace. 

Apart from clothes, the webshop of Lee Young Kyoon shows homeware items from Raf Simons' 2018-19 collection, such as the Joy Division lanterns. Check the Raf Simons historical pieces and enquire C'est Chaud for the price!

In the same way, recent designs of Yohji Yamamoto have a reference to his Spring/Summer 1996 collection.

The Replica line by Yohji Yamamoto continues to highlight some of his most popular designs, bringing back main pieces from the Spring/Summer 1996 menswear collection by the renowned designer. Dominated by colorful flower prints and embroidery, the collection displays the designer's passion for the peony, phoenix flower, and sunflower. The runway show was also for Yohji, who had hired a slew of teenage boys to flaunt the collection, a rare spectacle. It was as if these young guys were wearing revamped versions of their father's wardrobes, floating in bulky, flower-clad garments that played thematically into Yohji 's passion for androgynous-leaning models.

Here you can find four styles of coats, four pairs of trousers and three shirts of the Yohji Yamamoto Replica SS96 capsule, all of which have been faithfully replicated to suit identical specifications to their runway counterparts of the late 1990s. The jackets remain distinguished by lapels, pockets, and rigid collars, each with a slightly altered profile and length to match contemporary requirements. Materials were replicated similarly, using rayon fabrics and textiles made from cotton for the capsule brunt.

ARCHIVAL RAF SIMONS WEBSTORE: C'EST CHAUD

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