Get Ready for the 13th

2046

In this sequel to Hong Kong-based filmmaker Wong Kar-Wai's In the Mood for Love, Tony Leung Chiu-wai returns as struggling writer Chow Mo-wan, but now he's a boozing womanizer who writes soft porn. Through time travel and parallel worlds, this lushly photographed romantic drama explores Mo-wan's relationships with various women, including the one he truly loves, Su Lizhen (Gong Li). 2046 premiered at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.

From its jagged leading edge and faceted air intakes to the terraced-glass engine louvers and improbably angled tail, the Lamborghini Aventador LP 700-4 is one menacing machine.

Its sharply creased body melds a series of striking sculptural shapes that bring to mind the venerable Countach and wicked Diablo. Beneath those angled creases lie all manner of bleeding-edge technology confirming the car’s malicious intentions, including a carbon-fiber monocoque weighing just 325 pounds, Formula 1–inspired push-rod suspension and an ungodly powerful V-12 engine. How quickly the late, great Murcielago has become a low-slung relic.

Lamborghini’s new flagship is, in a word, nuts. Nothing else describes a 690-horsepower projectile that shoots from zero to 62 mph in 2.9 seconds. Yet Lamborghini has managed to build a 217-mph machine with surprisingly approachable handling.

Don’t get me wrong. The Aventador is still one mean beast. But it’s a mean beast you can control, if not quite tame.

Insistent Forward Motion
All that frantic computing governs everything from the torque distribution of the all-wheel-drive system to the level of traction-control intervention. Typical among cars of this caliber, a launch-control system enables maximum acceleration: In corsa mode, mash the gas and brake pedals to the floor until the engine hits 5,500 rpm, then let off the brake. Lamborghini officials discouraged us from engaging launch control, but suffice it to say that hard acceleration in the Aventador offers a rush of insistent forward motion that makes it nearly impossible to move your head forward. The sensation is accompanied by the synchronous shriek of one dozen angry cylinders.

Approaching 140 mph on Vallelunga’s back straight requires some fortitude, but you’re in good hands as you approach the sharp right-hander; massive carbon ceramic brakes are poised at all four corners, ready to scrub off speed with alacrity. Repeated deceleration reveals that the brakes, in fact, work even better when warmed up, as evidenced by weight transfer that lightens up the car’s tail. Pull into pit lane, and a slight charred smell is the only clue to their extreme stopping capabilites.

Boys of Bonneville: Racing on a Ribbon of Salt Trailer

Boys of Bonneville Movie Trailer from Price Museum of Speed on Vimeo.

As seen over at Kinfolk, Boys of Bonneville: Racing on a Ribbon of Salt is a new film that tells the story of Ab Jenkins, a pioneer of the race car driving phenomenon. Famous for plowing his custom-built speedcar through the Bonneville Salt Flats, Jenkins is a legend whose speed and endurance records remain unbroken down to this very day. Voiced by Patrick Dempsey, the film features interviews by current land speed record holder Colonel Andy Green and Jenkins’ son, Marv, who has undertaken the task of rebuilding his father’s vintage racing car.

Mercedes Benz: The History of AMG

Mercedes Benz run through its storied history involving its relationship with tuner AMG with the following video. With a history dating back to 1967, the dramatic video chronicles both the initial racing-based exploits between the two German companies. The foundation of a co-partnered company in 1999 effectively carried on the legacy of the brands which has yielded some of the world’s greatest driving experiences.

NewspaperWood

Mieke Meijer of Design Academy Eindhoven has set out to reinterpret the concept with the creation of the material NewspaperWood. Reversing the whole technique and concept, she set out to take stacks upon stacks of newspaper and through a gluing process was able to create a relatively robust material suitable for industrial design. Her efforts were recognized by Vij5 who helped bring NewspaperWood to the world of lifestyle products as several pieces of furniture were subsequently created and showcased at Ventura Lambrate during Milan Design Week 2011.

ksubi “kolors” Film by Daniel Askill

ksubi kolors from ksubi on Vimeo.

Australian fashion label ksubi toast the long-awaited return of their colored denim range, with a short film directed by Australian director Daniel Askill. “Kolors” is a fume-fuelled, slow-motion battle between three color-clad models and a trio of ‘80s cars. With the ksubi team securing the very last sets of limited edition-colored tires by Kumho available in Australia, they enlisted Askill and his team at Collider to fuse the vivid smoke with the spectral denim range. The colored denim will land in stores worldwide on May 5, 2011 with maximalised “kolor” dyes in white, blue, orange, green, black, purple, red, plum, aged blue, aged green, aged yellow, aged black and aged pink.

Henrik Vibskov Is a Rock Star, Dresses Them

                                                      PHOTO BY MIKKEL BACHE
Designer Henrik Vibskov's first American retail space, recently opened on Soho's avant-garde-friendly Broome Street, is deceptively compact at 850 square feet. Fitting of the Danish maverick's style, its neat and narrow interior is adventurous and multi-ranging in its scope. Of course, front and center are Vibskov's own wacky wares, which gleefully defy staid Scandinavian stereotypes: his omnipresent colorful "Duy" knee socks are well-stocked, as are his sprightly fringed and raw-hemmed frocks and drop-crotch shorts for both men and women.

Vibskov's distinctive off-beam designs provide the perfect pretext for collaborations, as well: he's now an ambassador for eccentric Scandinavian brands. Interspersed throughout his boutique are a plethora of idiosyncratic styles from Cosmic Wonder, Stine Goya, Walter Van Beirendonck, and his friend Peter Jensen. Beyond its merchandise selections, the store's décor reveals the intimacies of Vibskov's inner universe; he has described the Broome Street interior, which features stylishly re-imagined Danish furniture, as reflecting both his own kitchen and bedroom—cherished personal spaces he regards as hubs of both comfort and creativity. And for Vibskov, who is equally comfortable on runways, galleries, and onstage—he would have been drumming for Trentemøller in New York City this weekend, had fatherhood duties not intervened—that ingenuity extends further than most.

A noted installation and multimedia artist who has presented at both MoMA/PS1 and MoMA, Vibskov channels all of his aesthetic capacities into terrifyingly inventive runway shows that often border on profane performance art. He describes his recent "Last Pier Performance" collection, presented in Paris, as a "blasphemous LSD trip." Over the course of his ten-year career, in which he's produced seventeen collections, other genre-shaking designers, such as Thom Browne, have taken a few cues from the Vibskov's shock and awe presentation methods. More surprises are in store, he assures us—Spring 2012 will be a game-changer.

Nestled back in his studio space outside Copenhagen, Vibskov caught up with Interview to discuss making inroads into American fashion, his radically varying upcoming music and art projects, and why he's relieved fashion is emerging from its Dark Age.


COLLEEN NIKA: You've finally erected your first American boutique in Manhattan. Why is the ideal time to do it?

HENRIK VIBSKOV: It might not be the right time, I just wanted to do it. [laughs] We sell to a handful of boutiques in New York anyway, but I always wanted to have my own space. A few factors came into place that made it possible this year. Why not now?

NIKA: Did you design the space yourself? What was the process?

VIBSKOV: I designed it myself, the same as I designed the previous retail spaces in Copenhagen and Olso. The inspiration for the interior is similar to those, as well. Of course, I also build sets for my shows and other personal projects, so I think about how to design "space" often. I also do a lot of installations for other companies, have done pop-up projects, so transforming environments the Vibskov way is always a fun challenge.

NIKA: Are you going to be doing design projects outside of fashion between seasons?

VIBSKOV: Yes, I'm actually working on a landscape for an exhibition on "Dutch Creativity" that is happening in Berlin this summer. I'm from Denmark, so I'm on the wrong side of the tracks, but there you go. [laughs] Also, I'm doing another installment of "The Fringe Project" [a textile-based performance series] with artist Andreas Emenius this summer in Holland.

NIKA: Are you a designer or artist first?

VIBSKOV: I would say I'm a musician first, actually. I started playing music when I was 10—I've been playing the drums for 28 years now! Then I started designing about 17 years ago, went to school, set up a proper business about 10 years ago—our anniversary coming up. But I've played music throughout and still am.  I should be on tour in the US right now with Trentemøller as their drummer—but I became a dad.

NIKA: Does Trentemøller's style reflect your own musical palette?

VIBSKOV: Well, if you know his music, you know it's very electronic and programmed, almost rave-y. I love sequencing and programming, and I'm drawn to drum 'n' bass music. I love James Murphy's productions—and hey, he wears my socks! But the other musical project I'm doing is radically different. I'm working with a poetry-based performance group called "Vi Sidder Bare Her" [translated: "Just Kind of Sitting Around"], with whom I'm doing a Scandi tour in May and June. Basically, my musical life is split between raving with drugged-up kids and reading obscure 75-year-old poetry, drinking very nice red wine with aged, graying men. [laughs]

NIKA: You missed Coachella to open your NYC boutique. Are you fan of Denmark's own Roskilde, and musical festivals in general?

VIBSKOV: Of course. I love Pukkelpop, Lowlands, and Glastonbury. But Roskilde is great—it's one of the things Danes try to be proud of. Actually, I usually try to set up a clothing pop-up shop at the festival every year. Working out how to do it this year. Who knows, maybe I'll end up on stage, too!

NIKA: What's your mindset for spring 2012?

VISBSKOV: I'm just working on some new ideas in the studio. New patterns, new color ideas. We make the patterns on the computer, but we also paint them by hand—it's a combination of digital and screenprints. I'm trying to do as much as I can myself in the studio. I'm thinking about doing dusty colors—we definitely are doing as much color as we can. It seems that fashion is back on track with color—I hope. It's been very black for awhile.

NIKA: Your designs definitely don't fit the Scandinavian standard of grim monochromes.

VIBSKOV: No, I'm not really very Scandinavian in that way. I'm not a black, grey, beige type of guy. I was a kid on a playground that loved colors. But I can also do some dark-minded shit. [laughs]

NIKA: What inpires you?

VIBSKOV: Just by walking or sleeping, things hit you. Inspiration comes from everywhere. Western, Non-Western cultures—I'm open-minded. I love to travel. But not only for inspiration. Alas, timewise, I have a problem with that. Touring, museums, designing, babies.

NIKA: What are the unique advantages of growing up creative in Denmark?

VIBSKOV: Because we're on the outside of everything, and we're a small group of countries, we have a unique vantage point. We are extremely good at focusing our ideas into art and music and design that fits a global state of mind. Being observers of the rest of the world allows us to express something pure that goes beyond borders, beyond planets.

NIKA: What about disadvantages?

VIBSKOV: Well, because it so small, you can also feel limited and short-sighted. We may move our women's show to New York City from Copenhagen. It might be nice to present to for a new crowd—that goes beyond a group of friends!

NIKA: How important is humor to fashion?

VIBSKOV: Very. Humor is a good way in general to get people together, I think. Of course, Danish humor is more ironic and sarcastic altogether.

NIKA: What's a dream design project?

VIBSKOV: I think it would be cool to build some houses or something that could endure for more than 20 years. I had a dream about building a house on a dock, composed from 100 triangles. You'd have to sail from room to room. And maybe the entrance would be the mouth of a whale.

NIKA: What was your art school experience like?

VIBSKOV:  I was educated in London [at Central Saint Martins] and had this whole thing about getting together with a lot of international students. Twenty-three languages were spoken during our lunch breaks! The school was very open minded, you could do whatever you wanted. Some people loved that freedom, others got lost. Gareth Pugh was a classmate, and so was Peter Jensen. The original Central St. Martins is moving its campus this year. I'll be there for some lectures soon. I think the British government's cutting back of arts funding is such a crime. I bet it will happen in Denmark soon, too.

NIKA: You just had a baby girl—congratulations. Do you hope she follows a creative path?

VIBSKOV: It's up to her. I think all artists secretly hope their kids might do something safer and straitlaced: maybe she'll be a banker. [laughs]

A Look Into the Ralph Lauren Car Collection

Following up on our previous coverage we take a look into gems from the Ralph Lauren Car Collection, a masterful assortment of vehicles that are being showcased during a special exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris. Featured models include a 1929 Bentley Blower, 1930 Mercedes-Benz SSK “Comte Trossi,” 1938 Bugatti 57 SC Atlantic Coupe, 1954 Ferrari 375 Plus, 1955 Jaguar XKD, 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing Coupe and 1958 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, amongst others. The showcase is now on display through August 28, 2011 at the famed museum in Paris. Further looks into the collection is offered here.
Musée des Arts Décoratifs
107 rue de Rivoli 75001 Paris
France

Odin Home Fragrance Series

New York-based Odin continue onwards with a range of scent-based products with its new Home Fragrance Series. Comprised of slate-colored wax individually hand poured, the candles are nestled within slick black glass with a dual purpose protective lid that also serves as a stand. The four scents as part of the debut collection include 01 Sunda, 02 Owari, 03 Century and 04 Petrana. Available now at Odin.

Pave Culture Cycliste Barcelona

Here we take a look into Pave Culture Cycliste, a cycling shop out of Barcelona, Spain. Devoid of any dirt and grime, the place is quite organized for a shop of its kind, featuring both a solid array of bike choices as well as gear from some of the top names, including Rapha, Brompton, Pasculli and more. For further information check out their website here.

Shabazz Palaces - Blast It (from the Village Beat film, Tough Bond)

Shabazz Palaces - Blast It (from the Village Beat film, Tough Bond) from Sub Pop Records on Vimeo.