MONDOmagazine

Magpie

By Helen Fylactou

The energy on the second day of Toronto Alternative Arts and Fashion Week was playful, silly, and just straight-up fun. All the artists, designers and audience members let loose and everyone was interacting with each other. The theme for Day Two was Lust. The designers tackled issues of sexuality, desire, the body, identity and gender. Music and the art were fantastic — DJs Daniel Wilson, Curtis Santiago and Jet Phynx set the seductive mood of the evening.

Evan Biddell opened the 9pm runway show with his newest collection, Refined. While keeping his signature edge, Biddell managed a more wearable collection that was sci-fi inspired (certain outfits resembled Lady Gaga’s get-ups). Biddell never fails to impress. His designs were unique, well-tailored and colourful, keeping a simple colour palette: ghetto gold, black, brown and blue, with a few graphic printed pieces just for fun. One favourite ensemble was a full POP graphic, hooded cape with a white head cap and red Read the rest of this entry »

Ado Les Scents

By Helen Fylactou

Last night marked the fifth anniversary of one of a Toronto fashion-lover’s favourite event: Toronto Alternative Arts and Fashion Week, also affectionately known as [FAT]. The event showcases over 200 designers, performing artists, musicians and photographers. In recognition of the passion and devotion that’s part of every creation, this year’s edition is titled Made with Love. The four-day event, being held in Liberty Village this year, is a vast array of designers and artists, ranging from debuting artists to seasoned designers.

Day One of [FAT] challenged designers and artist to focus on Longing, and called on collections to represent the hopeful reflection of fashion through design, art and performance. Read the rest of this entry »

Work by Anahita Azrahimi.

MONDO is ecstatic to be covering Toronto Alternative Arts and Fashion Week [FAT], one of Toronto’s most exciting fashion events. The [Pre-FAT] series features short and sweet interviews with some of this year’s participants. Stay tuned for coverage throughout the week, and click here for current and previous MONDO [FAT] articles.

By Helen Fylactou

Anahita Azrahimi is one of the featured artists at this year’s [FAT]. No stranger to the world of art and fashion, Azrahimi is currently the producer and art director of Sparrow in the Room, an artistic collective. Studying with some Iran’s visual artists, Azrahimi began her art endeavours at a young age. Beginning with drawing Disney characters to eventually painting Monet’s art, Azrahimi has always challenged herself to do more.  Her paintings are complex, dominant, and richly textured — her work demands a constant negotiation between the piece and the audience. Azrahimi kindly answered a few questions for MONDO in advance of the show. Read the rest of this entry »

Paria Lambina

MONDO is ecstatic to be covering Toronto Alternative Arts and Fashion Week [FAT], one of Toronto’s most exciting fashion events. The [Pre-FAT] series features short and sweet interviews with some of this year’s participants. Stay tuned for coverage throughout the week, and click here for current and previous MONDO [FAT] articles.

By Helen Fylactou

A recent graduate of the Ryerson University fashion design program, Paria Shirvani has done nothing by excel in fashion industry. She has been featured at the Holt Renfrew flagship store, has interned with designers such as Arthur Menonça and is actively involved with New York Fashion Week. Debuting in Toronto on [FAT] Day One, Paria Lambina is a ready-to-wear collection for women. The designs are body-conscious, classic and elegant. The collection worked both structured and flow in her 2009 Fall/Winter collection and audiences can expect a similar collection for Spring 2010. Read the rest of this entry »

youth.inAsia

MONDO is ecstatic to be covering Toronto Alternative Arts and Fashion Week [FAT], one of Toronto’s most exciting fashion events. The [Pre-FAT] series features short and sweet interviews with some of this year’s participants. Stay tuned for coverage throughout the week, and click here for current and previous MONDO [FAT] articles.

By Helen Fylactou

Last year’s debut of youth.inAsia’s collection at [FAT] was theatrical, outlandish and experimental. It was a collection that boldly mixed pattered pencil skirts with short fur jackets. The complexity of the collection was impressive and the couture-based signature creations of youth.inAsia are unforgettable. Aidan Mayner and Josh Shier are the creators behind the label.

Collaborators since art school, Mayner and Shier’s geometric designs caught the eye of Sandra Robert, the editor-in-chief of IMAGOzine. Roberts loved youth.inAsia and helped propel them into editorials, television and fashion shows. The designs are beautifully sculpted with architectural shapes and help enhance the female form. Read the rest of this entry »

MONDO is ecstatic to be covering Toronto Alternative Arts and Fashion Week [FAT], one of Toronto’s most exciting fashion events. The [Pre-FAT] series features short and sweet interviews with some of this year’s participants. Stay tuned for coverage throughout the week, and click here for current and previous MONDO [FAT] articles.

By Helen Fylactou

Christabel Couture is one of the most dramatic and intriguing artists in Toronto. Creating risky clothing lines, starring in hilarious videos and leading an extraordinary daily life, Christabel’s creations are one-of-kind and are, without a doubt, on the way to be a ‘household name’ in couture.

How to explain Christabel’s style? Take the alien aspect of The Fifth Element, add a hint of Alexander McQueen (with emphasis on the Queen), and maybe drop some acid. The light-hearted and multi-disciplined artist is one of the featured photography and video artists  at this year’s Toronto Alternative Arts and Fashion Week. My interview with Christabel had me laughing out loud, and here’s how it went. Read the rest of this entry »

Ravi Jain. Photo by Mina Mikhail.

I’m So Close…
Created and performed by Ravi Jain, Katrina Bugaj and Troels Hagen Findsen
Co-written by Nicolas Billion
Runs until April 3 @ The Theatre Centre

By Helen Fylactou

Since the beginning of time, destruction has gone hand-in-hand with pairing — beginning with the pairing of particles, explains one of the show’s writers, Ravi Jain, at the start of I’m So Close…. Jain opens with the story of the Big Bang Theory, and we leap into a story that explores relationships and technological advances, and the effect they have on each other.

Steve (Findsen) is an entrepreneur who has invented an eco-friendly way of charging cell phones, iPods and laptops. Using available light to charge electronics Read the rest of this entry »

Denise Fujiwara's solo Lost & Found. Photo by John Lauener

DanceWorks presents
Denise Fujiwara and Susie Burpee
Part of Harbourfront’s NextSteps Series
Runs until March 6, 2010 @ Enwave Theatre

By Helen Fylactou

Choreographed and performed by Fujiwara, Lost & Found is the story of the slow progression of a woman losing her mind. Fujiwara exclaims to the audience, “I know I have issues, but who would I be without my issues.” It’s a heart-wrenching performance examining the duality of a woman dealing with mental instability; she’s struggling to find herself while trying not to lose what defines her. Fujiwara appears in multiple outfits and with an empty nest on her head. As the performance continues, Fujiwara begins to shed the layers, enacting different stages of her depression.

Fujiwara expresses so much without much movement — Read the rest of this entry »

image via harbourfrontcentre.com

confluence
Presented by Peggy Baker Dance Projects
Part of Harbourfront’s Next Steps series
Ran February 24-28 @ Enwave Theatre

By Helen Fylactou

confluence is loosely inspired by scientist Lewis Thomas’s essay “Lives of a Cell” and Sylvia Safdie’s artwork on insects. Divided into three contemporary dance works, confluence results in a complex interconnectivity between isolation, embodiment and performance. An original evening of dance, it features two works choreographed by Peggy Baker herself – a new solo and a trio for three dancers, plus a duet by legendary New York choreographer Doug Varone.

The first work of the evening was the solo piece performed by Baker. Titled earthling, it exposes Baker on a dimly lit stage, crouched on the edge of a sloping platform.  She takes the form of some unidentified creature that is drained of all emotion. Her movements are reptilian-like and as she rocks back and forth, she begins to resemble a beetle stuck on its back. Considering Baker’s age, her athleticism and strength is remarkable. Her infamous extensions did not fail to impress. Baker’s tightly choreographed solo reflects how solitary one person can feel despite the fact that they are part of something much larger.

The world premiere and centrepiece of the evening Read the rest of this entry »

Obsidian Theatre’s Intimate Apparel
Presented by the Canadian Stage Company
Written by Lynn Nottage
Directed by Philip Akin
Featuring Raven Dauda, Kevin Hanchard and Alex Poch-Goldin
Runs until March 6 @ Bluma Appel Theatre

By Helen Fylactou

Intimate Apparel, a love story set in New York City in 1905, follows Esther (Dora Award winner Raven Dauda), a 35-year-old seamstress living in a boarding house with a bunch of teenagers. Esther has found financial independence sewing wedding-night undergarments for women. Unfortunately, the riches of her work belie the loneliness in her life. Esther begins an exchange of romantic letter writing with George (Kevin Hanchard), a stranger that is working with a deacon from her Church. George is a good-looking Caribbean man working on the Panama Canal. He spends his free time wooing Esther and eventually makes her his wife. Esther illiteracy prevents her from reading or writing letters, but she turns to her friends, who are battling their own demons, for help. George’s letters inspire Esther to jeopardize her freedom and independence at the fantasy that she will live a life of passion and intimacy. Read the rest of this entry »

Esmeralda Enrique

¡Lorca! In Search of Duende
Choreographed by Esmeralda Enrique and Juan Ogalla
Part of Harbourfront Centre’s NextSteps 2009-10
Ran November 12-15th @ Fleck Dance Theatre

By Helen Fylactou

Last week saw the second of two recent Lorca-inspired performances in Toronto (see Daina Valiulis’ review of Des Walsh’s Rocking the Cradle). This dance event, however, fused Lorca’s poetry with passion-infused flamenco.

Lorca, a Spanish poet and dramatist, was involved in the Generation of ’27 — a group of artists famous for their avant-garde art movement in Spain. As his work became more successful, Lorca’s personal dichotomy between his fame and love-sick self intensified. Lorca’s better-known plays and poetry explore love, pride, passion, and death. The sold-out performance of ¡Lorca! In Search of Duende connected with Lorca’s intensity and radiated passion, strength and love.

Choreographer and dancer Juan Ogalla opened the evening with the sensational performance entitled Jinete/Rider (Soleta por Buleria). The prominent theme of passion and sex made Ogalla’s presence unavoidable. Accompanied by a live flamenco band, he maintained a rhythmic dialogue between himself and the musicians, and exuded sexual energy that was palpable, commanding attention with rapid footwork that followed the intricate melody. He expertly wended through the music, showing off the control of his upper bodywork and sculpted arm movement. Oozing with masculinity, Ogalla is a dancer of raw talent and virtuosity. Read the rest of this entry »

Fashion Week: Interview with Jason Meyers

Interview and photos by Helen Fylactou

Jason Meyers may not have been the winner of Project Runway Canada, but being on the show definitely helped establish him as a fierce competitor in the world of fashion. Meyers recently unveiled his Spring 2010 collection at Toronto’s LG Fashion Week, exciting his fans and surprising the skeptics with street-savvy-meets-old-Hollywood designs. Although the collection was not flawless, the evolution in the types of designs and craftsmanship of Meyers was remarkable. This season, Meyers’ eclectic style incorporates his signature fishtail hems, busy fabrics, and explosion of ruffles. Refusing to stop until he has made his designs a household name, Meyers continues to educate and grow his collection.

MONDO: In comparison to last year, how did you prepare differently (if at all) for this year’s Fashion Week?

Jason Meyers: This year I really focused on quality of fabric, workmanship, and price point. I wanted this collection to be very marketable to get to the market place with customer satisfaction. Read the rest of this entry »