MAY 02 2022

SCI-ARC INTERVIEW

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE DYNAMICS BETWEEN THE PROCESS AND PRACTICE OF FASHION AND THE PHYSICAL SPACE IT INHABITS?

I DO BELIEVE YOU HAVE TO PUT YOURSELF IN AN ENVIRONMENT THAT MAKES YOU FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO LIVE UP TO IT. CREATING AT A DESK UNDER A ROTHKO PRINT IS PROBABLY DIFFERENT THAN CREATING AT A DESK UNDER A REAL ROTHKO. NOT THAT I WOULD KNOW BUT STILL… AND DESIGNING A PHYSICAL SPACE IS JUST AN EXTENSION OF PERSONAL ADORNMENT. I JUST WANT TO CUSTOMIZE EVERYTHING AROUND MYSELF; BE IT SOMETHING I WEAR, SOMETHING I EAT WITH, SOMETHING I SIT ON, OR SOMETHING I EAT OFF OF. I DONT KNOW HOW MUCH OF THAT IS AESTHETICS AND HOW MUCH IS EGO. I’M NOT GOING TO INDULGE MYSELF IN WORRYING ABOUT IT. I’LL INDULGE MYSELF IN IGNORING IT.

LOOKING BACK ACROSS THE ARC OF YOUR CAREER, ARE THERE SPECIFIC SPATIAL AND MATERIAL CONDITIONS (I.E. YOUR LIVING SPACE[S], WORKSPACE[S], URBAN ENVIRONMENT[S]) THAT YOU CONSIDER TO HAVE IMPACTED OR BLED INTO YOUR CREATIVE PROCESS AND THE EVOLUTION OF YOUR AESTHETIC?

I ALWAYS SAY MY RECIPE IS SUCH A DUMB SIMPLE CATHOLIC SCHOOL CLICHÉ — I WAS RAISED AN ONLY CHILD IN A VERY CONSERVATIVE HOUSEHOLD WITH NO TELEVISION, BUT AN EXTENSIVE LIBRARY. MY FATHER HAD ALL THE PHILOSOPHY AND THEOLOGY BOOKS UPSTAIRS BUT IN THE BASEMENT HE KEPT HIS SECOND CHOICE SELECTION, WHICH INCLUDED BOOKS ON HOLLYWOOD’S SILENT SCREEN ERA. THE IMAGES IN THESE BOOKS REPRESENTED SUCH AN EXOTIC WORLD IN SHARP CONTRAST TO THE SMALL UNIMAGINATIVE TOWN WE LIVED IN. CECILE B. DEMILLE’S BIBLICAL EPICS STOOD OUT THE MOST — ILLUSTRATING THE MORALITY I WAS LEARNING ABOUT EVERY DAY AT SCHOOL IN THE MOST GLAMOROUS WAY POSSIBLE. THE GENEROUS SCALE OF THE TEMPLES AND PALACES AND DESERTS WAS EXTRAVAGANT AND EXPANSIVE, THE CLOTHES WERE SUMPTUOUS AND OPULENT AND IMPRACTICALLY DRAGGING ON THE GROUND AND EVERYTHING WAS IN SHIMMERING BLACK AND WHITE THROUGH A 1920S ART DECO FILTER. SAINTS WERE SUFFERING AND SINNERS WERE SINNING AND CHRISTIANS WERE BEING DEVOURED BY LIONS. EVERYTHING I HAVE EVER DONE COMES FROM THERE.

YOU SPENT YOUR FORMATIVE YEARS IN LA: FROM YOUR TIME AT OTIS/LATT, WORKING IN A KOREAN REPRODUCTION FACTORY, YOUR EARLY WORK WITH MICHELE, ALL THROUGH ESTABLISHING YOUR OWN LINE. THESE STAGES SEEM TO RUN PARALLEL TO A LARGER ENERGY CURRENT PASSING THROUGHOUT THE CITY OVER THE SAME PERIOD: PUNK, RAVES, DRAG QUEENS, DRUGS, CRIME, POLICE BRUTALITY ETC. WERE THERE SPECIFIC CONDITIONS OR QUALITIES TO LA THAT PARTICULARLY FED YOUR SENSIBILITIES AND IMAGINATION? DO THESE CONDITIONS SEEM SINGULAR TO LA, IN THE SENSE THAT YOUR VISION WOULD HAVE EMERGED DIFFERENTLY IN ANY OTHER CITY?

I THINK THE CONSTANT DELICIOUSNESS OF THE CLIMATE ON THE SKIN AND THE SCALE AND SPRAWL OF L.A. PUT EVERYTHING INTO A LANGUOROUS CONTEXT FOR ME. ISOLATED IN A CAR FOR LONG STRETCHES TO GET SOMEWHERE IS LIKE BEING IN A SMALL CAPSULE TRAVELING THROUGH A LARGE SPACE FEELING CLAUSTROPHOBIC AND UNTETHERED AT THE SAME TIME. I THINK THIS SENSE OF CONTROL AND FALSE CONTROL AND THE THREAT (OR APPEAL) OF LOSS OF CONTROL REALLY STAYED WITH ME. LOSS OF CONTROL ANGELES

WERE THERE FIGURES AND MILIEUS THAT MADE A PARTICULAR MARK ON YOU DURING THESE YEARS, ON YOUR PERSONAL TRAJECTORY, AFFINITIES, AND AESTHETIC?

I HAD 3 STAGES:

1980-1983

I ARRIVED IN LOS ANGELES TO GO TO OTIS/PARSONS ART INSTITUTE AS IT WAS CALLED AT THE TIME. I LIVED AT THE BRYSON APARTMENT BUILDING ON WILSHIRE AND RAMPART CLOSE TO MACARTHUR PARK. IT WAS A GRAND 1900S BEAUX ARTS BUILDING IN RUIN, WHICH PROBABLY SET THE TONE FOR THE REST OF MY L.A. LIFE. I WAS PRETTY GREEN AND INTROVERTED AND DIDN’T REALLY CIRCULATE THAT MUCH. AT NIGHT MY ROOMMATE AND I WOULD GO ROLLER SKATING ON AN ISOLATED STRETCH OF WILSHIRE BOULEVARD TO THE PARK WHICH WAS PRETTY ROUGH THEN. I THINK I WAS INVITING DANGER THAT NEVER REALLY TOOK UP THE BAIT. ROLLER SKATING IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION I WOULD DROOL OVER BULLOCKS WILSHIRE — AN OPULENT 1920S ART DECO FORTRESS OF A DEPARTMENT STORE THAT HAS SINCE BEEN TURNED INTO A LAW SCHOOL. AND ON THE HORIZON ACROSS THE PARK ONE COULD SEE THE TOWER OF THE EASTERN BUILDING, ANOTHER ART DECO MONUMENT IN A DISTINCT VERDIGRIS COLOR WITH A FRITZ LANG CROWN THAT LOOKED LIKE THE HUNGER TOWER MENTIONED IN DAVID BOWIE’S DIAMOND DOGS ALBUM I WAS LISTENING TO EVERY DAY THEN.

THE ART THEORY CLASSES I WAS TAKING DISCOURAGED ME, I DIDN’T THINK I HAD THE INTELLECTUAL STAMINA TO BE AN ARTIST SO I QUIT ART SCHOOL AND WENT TO TRADE TECH TO LEARN TO WORK IN THE GARMENT INDUSTRY. I GOT A 2 YEAR CERTIFICATE AND WORKED AS A PATTERNMAKER FOR THE NEXT SEVEN YEARS.

1982-1990

AT THIS POINT I HAD A CAR AND HAD MOVED TO HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD, WHICH WOULD FRAME THE GELLING OF MY AESTHETIC. I LIVED ON GRACE AVENUE, A BLOCK ABOVE THE BOULEVARD IN A CRUMBLING MEDITERRANEAN STYLE BUNGALOW WITH A BEDROOM LINED IN A DECOMPOSING DARK GOLD BROCADE LIT WITH GLOOMY BLUE BARE LIGHT BULBS. I DROVE A BLACK T-TOP CAMARO THAT BLASTED WAGNER, SISTERS OF MERCY, AND MARLENE DIETRICH AND I WORE ALOT OF MAKEUP WITH LONG BLACK LEATHER GLOVES THAT I NEVER TOOK OFF. I WOULD HAUNT SLEAZY HUSTLER BARS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD LIKE THE SPOTLIGHT CLUB OR THE BLACKLIGHT AND END UP AT CRENSHAW CLUBS LIKE BLACK GAY DISCOS, JEWEL’S CATCH ONE, OR CLUB HORIZON FOR THE LESBIAN STRIPPER NIGHT IMMORTALIZED IN LEILAH WEINRAUB’S DOCUMENTERY SHAKEDOWN, AND THE SPANISH-SPEAKING DRAG SHOWS AT THE PLAZA SALON. THERE WERE ALSO THE PUNK ROCK BEER BUSTS AT A LEATHER BAR IN SILVERLAKE CALLED THE ONE WAY. I REALIZE NOW IT WAS THE MULTICULTURAL, MULTISEXUAL MILLEU I GRAVITATED TOWARDS AS OPPOSED TO THE AFFLUENT CELEBRITY PARTIES IN THE HOLLYWOOD HILLS OR THE SHINY GAY BARS IN WEST HOLLYWOOD. THEN I DISCOVERED THE GLAMOROUS DARKNESS OF SEX CLUBS WITH ROWS OF KNEELING PISS DRINKERS IN CONCRETE VAULTS AND SETTLED IN THERE FOR A WHILE.

1990-2001

AFTER WORKING IN THE GARMENT INDUSTRY FOR A WHILE, I GOT A JOB WITH MICHELE LAMY, WHO DESIGNED CLOTHES AT THE TIME, FELL IN LOVE WITH HER AND BEGAN MY LIFE AS A DESIGNER. SHE TURNED HER ATTENTION TO DEVELOPING RESTAURANTS THAT WERE HALF CULTURAL SALONS AND HALF NIGHTCLUBS AND I STARTED MY LABEL. WE MOVED DOWN THE STREET FROM MY OLD BACHELOR PAD TO A SERIES OF HIGH-CEILINGED STOREFRONTS ACROSS THE STREET FROM HER RESTAURANT THAT SHE HAD REPURPOSED OUT OF A DILAPIDATED CRAFTSMAN HOUSE. SHE CREATED A HIDDEN GARDEN FROM A PARKING LOT BEHIND IT AND WE HAD SEVERAL MAGICAL YEARS THERE. WE WERE BOTH STARTING NEW VENTURES TOGETHER IN THE WILDERNESS OF A PRE-GENTRIFIED HOLLYWOOD AND IT FELT DANGEROUS AND THRILLING AND PURPOSEFUL... THE PROPORTIONS OF THE CONCRETE STOREFRONTS WE LIVED IN WERE LONG AND HIGH, AND CURTAINED WITH GREY WOOL ARMY BLANKETS WHICH WE ALSO USED TO COMPLETELY INSULATE A BEDROOM. I USED THESE BLANKETS FOR MY FIRST FEW COLLECTIONS AND ADDED JACKETS MADE FROM USED DUFFLES AND PARACHUTES FROM THE ARMY SURPLUS WAREHOUSE DOWN THE STREET. OUR LIVES WERE CENTERED ON THE BOULEVARD AND OUR MAIN HEROES WERE JOSEPH BEUYS, LOUIS BOURGEOIS, AND PIERRE CHAREAU. AFTER MY LABEL STARTED MAKING MONEY, THE FIRST THING I DID WAS RENT A BLACK BABY GRAND PIANO FOR OUR LIVING SPACE ALTHOUGH NEITHER OF US COULD PLAY IT, AND LEASE A BLACK LINCOLN TOWN CAR. BUT AFTER I STARTED MANUFACTURING IN EUROPE AND GOING BACK AND FORTH FROM ITALY TO LA, WE BOTH FELT LIKE STARTING A NEW ADVENTURE IN EUROPE AND JUST LEFT EVERYTHING BEHIND.

WHAT IS THE IMAGE OF LA THAT LINGERS IN YOUR REMEMBRANCE – SPRAWL, AN INFINITELY ENIGMATIC CITY IN ALL OF ITS DIVERSE CROSS-SECTIONS, OR MORE OF AN INTIMATE GEOGRAPHY, CONCENTRATED AROUND SPECIFIC PLACES/NEIGHBORHOODS?

BOTH OF THOSE DESCRIPTIONS ARE EXACTLY WHAT ATTRACTS ME TO L.A. AT MY CURRENT AGE OF SIXTY. NOT THE UNLIMITED POSSIBILITIES OF MY YOUTH, BUT THE POSSIBILITY OF FINDING AN ISOLATED AREA WITH ALOT OF SPACE AROUND IT WITH A METROPOLIS JUST BEYOND AT MY FINGERTIPS. BUT IF YOU ARE JUST ARRIVING, I THINK YOU HAVE TO HAVE A SENSE OF PURPOSE… OTHERWISE WITHOUT AN ANCHOR YOU COULD JUST GET LOST…

HOW DOES AN ARTIST BEGIN TO REDRESS ASPECTS OF THEIR SURROUNDINGS TO SIT IN LINE WITH AN INTUITION OR AFFINITY THEY’RE DRAWN TO THROUGH THEIR WORK? HOW DID THIS COME TO EXPRESSION IN THE SPACES YOU INHABITED AND APPROPRIATED DURING YOUR YEARS IN LA?

IF YOU HAVE TO CALCULATE OR ANALYZE IT, MAYBE BEING AN ARTIST MIGHT NOT BE YOUR CALLING. IT NEEDS TO BE A RAGING DESIRE THAT YOU CAN’T CONTAIN. EXPRESSION NEEDS TO BE UNFORCED AND TRUE AND HONEST TO REALLY WORK — AT LEAST THOSE ARE THE KINDS OF CREATORS I AM DRAWN TO.

WAS LA IN THE 80S AND 90S MORE CONDUCIVE – OR MORE RECEPTIVE – TO RADICAL IDEAS IN ART/CULTURE/FASHION? THINKING ABOUT LA TODAY, IN TERMS OF CULTURE AND AESTHETICS, ARE YOU ABLE TO DETECT UNDERCURRENTS WITHIN THIS PLACE THAT STILL RESONATE INSIDE YOUR WORK?

I AM SURE THERE ARE PEOPLE BEING AS INVENTIVE AS EVER IN THEIR OWN LITTLE CORNERS. I WAS ORIGINALLY ATTRACTED TO HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD FOR ITS LEGEND OF ARTIFICIALLY INVENTED GLAMOUR DURING THE 1920S AND 30S… AND ITS DESCENT INTO CORRUPTION AND DECAY LATER ON... I RECOGNIZE THAT I AM ROMANTICIZING AN UNFORTUNATE STORY BUT IT’S THE STORY OF LIFE — IDEALISM AND ITS INEVITABLE DEFEAT AND ITS REBIRTH.