A Final Plea for the Department Store

by MilesJuly 7, 2020July 7, 2020Architecture / Fashion

May 7

Here we are again, only six months after writing my farewell to Barney’s, discussing yet another potential luxury department store bankruptcy. Acknowledging now that the closure of major department stores is less a compilation of random retail flukes and more a trend that will continue well into the future, I feel that it is important to give a very biased argument in favor of luxury department stores.

Neiman Marcus Chicago, on the famed Magnificent Mile. Image Via

Before I launch into my pro-department store attack in a bid to make you sentimental for the era of brick and mortar shopping, I feel it is necessary to touch on Neiman Marcus’ presence in the world of fashion and shopping, as well as the economic conditions which threaten it with bankruptcy. First, it’s important to note that Neiman Marcus represents a sizable piece of the luxury retail space, operating 42 premier locations, 30 Last Call (outlet) locations, and of course the two iconic Bergdorf Goodman stores which have been Manhattan staples for more than a century. Neiman Marcus Group has long been fiscally unsound, and was subject to a leveraged buyout in 2013 which helped the company earn it’s nearly $5 billion debt. Despite this formidable financial burden, Neiman Marcus, and companies like it, operate fairly normally in times of economic growth because they balance their large debt with a consistent cash flow to pay towards the debt. In times of economic stasis or instability, though, companies like Neiman Marcus lose nearly all of their revenue, leaving only the mounting debt and nothing with which to pay it. Unfortunately, the telltale signs of liquidity issues have already started to emerge for the company, which missed a nearly $6 million interest payment on debt in April. The additional and unprecedented burden that the coronavirus has placed on the retail market doesn’t help either, as UBS reports that around 100,000 stores may face closure before the end of the decade, and retail sales fell nearly 9 percent in March according to the Washington Post.

Neiman Marcus Hudson Yards opened March 15th of 2019 and holds 188,000 square feet of retail space. Image via — Neiman Marcus Hudson Yards opened March 15th of 2019 and holds 188,000 square feet of retail space. *Image* *via*

While the coronavirus outbreak will no doubt have ramifications for the foreseeable future, it is true that we will one day return Michigan Avenue, Wilshire Boulevard, or Hudson Yards, and it is in anticipation of this return that I implore you to explore the magic of the department store. Even as there are many reasons to shop online, stay at home orders being but one, the benefits of browsing in person are so much greater; for us Chicago-based fashion enthusiasts, is there a joy greater than walking down the Magnificent Mile with coffee in hand and a few friends in tow, browsing stores and trying clothes on in real time? If the social experience that physical shopping offers doesn’t excite you, at least think of the practicality and wonder of the prospect. Department stores offer the chance to seek out the brands which you already love, whilst simultaneously discovering new ones. Often one can shop, eat, and relax within the same retail space, Althea at the top of Saks being a particularly tasty example from Chicago. All of this is simply to say that I believe the department store, and brick and mortar shopping more generally, deserves to live on. Many established and formidable fashion houses either started at, or had significant help from, American department stores. To this day, whimsical shrines to garments remain the place to see and be seen. Where would Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and The City, Cher from Clueless, or Blair Waldorf of Gossip Girl be without the department store?

Bergdorf Goodman, a Neiman Marcus owned Manhattan staple for more than a century. Image Via

With potential purchasing interest from Saks Fifth Avenue, the current question is, will Coronavirus finally sound the death knell for luxury department stores, and if not, will they remain after the distant return to normalcy? By now, my position on the matter is painfully obvious. While it’s clear that my affinity for blazing through floors and floors of clothing is not shared by consumers in general, I hope that I’ve at least made a few people curious.

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Five Thoughtful Designer Storefronts

by MilesApril 27, 2020June 12, 2020Architecture / Fashion / Travel

Before my interest in fashion and handbags really took off, my main aesthetic concern was architecture. As my interest in fashion began to develop, I found myself making pilgrimages to the various physical locations of the designers whose work I most appreciated, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that many of them take great care to create sophisticated, often playful, facades for their stores. In an effort to exalt the connections between architecture and fashion, I am excited to share with you five thoughtful designer storefronts.

1. Hermès, Amsterdam

Customer leaves Hermès in Amsterdam with the coveted orange bag. Image Via

Hermès made headlines in 2019 when, in Amsterdam, it opened a two-storey boutique in a building with a facade composed of glass bricks. Designed by MVRDV as a townhouse, and once occupied by Chanel, the glass facade of the store immediately fascinates passersby who can look through the wall and make out shapes and colors inside of the store. The structure known as Crystal Houses, which occupies a prominent plot on one of Amsterdam’s most well-known retail streets, seems to challenge both the architectural homogeneity of the street as well as Hermès’ own conservatism.

2. Dior Flagship, Paris

Pedestrians pass under the frosted limbs of Dior’s Christmas installation in Paris. Image Via

Dior’s Paris flagship store, located on the Avenue Montaigne, is known for reinventing its facade with each passing season. Though every iteration of the store’s facade is worth talking about, Dior absolutely shattered expectations with it’s Christmas 2018/2019 installation; an elegantly proportioned, yet all-consuming white Christmas tree which glowed a warm yellow at night and shielded customers as they entered and exited the boutique. Though I’ve attached my favorite photo of the tree, I think it’s well worth your while to Google this one and browse further.

3. Louis Vuitton, New York and London

Three-dimensional Louis Vuitton monogram in London. Image Via

Two storefronts well known for their constant reinvention are Louis Vuitton’s New York and London flagships. As with Dior, it is certainly true that every Louis Vuitton location adopts a universal, seasonally changing design language to keep each location recognizable and current. But while Dior makes its biggest statement in Paris, Louis Vuitton goes all out in Manhattan and London. Under the visual creative direction of Faye Mcleod (@fayedreamsaloton instagram), a new, colorful, three-dimensional explosive look was created for the LV monogram.

This new visual was painted onto the 10+ storey facade of Louis Vuitton’s Midtown Manhattan location, and was rendered in metal and attached to scaffolding at LV’s New Bond Street location in London for a genuinely three-dimensional experience. This 3D rainbow monogram motif was also installed in Louis Vuitton boutique windows across the world, taking the shape of hearts, orbs, and even a full size Christmas tree in LV’s Place Vendôme location in Paris.

4. Goyard, Monte Carlo

The facade of Goyard’s Monte-Carlo flagship, fronted immediately by the Monaco Grand Prix circuit. Image Via

Having had an intermittent presence in Monte-Carlo since the end of the 19th century, Maison Goyard has recently returned, opening up at an address along the city’s famed Avenue de Monte-Carlo. While I am appreciative of the storefront itself (a pared down, monochromatic single-storey glass and stone facade with immaculate white awnings printed with “GOYARD,” the whole store topped by a lush pedestrian walkway), the store’s location is much more interesting. As can be seen in the photograph, the store sits right along the famous route of the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix—perhaps the single most important circuit in Formula 1 since its inauguration by Prince Pierre in 1929. The physical situation of the store not only implicates it in the excitement of nearly a century of sporting history, but also ensures that the Goyard banners will be seen anytime filming occurs along the track.

5. Burberry, Chicago

The Burberry storefront situated on Chicago’s famous Magnificent Mile. Image Via

Finally, as MODA is based in Chicago, I feel that it is only fair to include a storefront from our very own city. It may not come as a surprise to Chicagoans that I have selected Burberry on the Magnificent Mile. Positioned across from The Roastery, the largest Starbucks location in the world, is the glossy, midnight black Burberry boutique. At first glance, it appears to be simply a large and tall volume, cut up the center by windows that display products and ad campaigns. What one finds upon closer inspection, however, is that the building is actually festooned with the historical Burberry check, rendered three-dimensionally to stand out slightly from the building itself. Even more spectacular is the bright white light which emanates from behind the check at night, casting an elegant yet whimsical glow against the polished structure.

The next time you find yourself window shopping or looking for something in a store, take some time to appreciate your physical surroundings, because someone spent a great deal of time designing the visual impact with you in mind.

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Tagged : architecture / fashion / travel

PHX Gallery, Where Exception Becomes Convention

by MilesApril 8, 2020May 28, 2020Architecture / Fashion

PHX Gallery is a must-see for people whose love of Comme des Garçons reaches deeper than PLAY T-shirts and Converse collaborations.

Established in 2014 by Joachim and Carly Lapotre, PHX Gallery undoubtedly stands as one of Chicago’s best kept secrets, and is a must-see for people whose love of Comme des Garçons reaches deeper than PLAY T-shirts and Converse collaborations. Located in Chicago’s River North neighborhood, the gallery sits inside an unpretentious—yet clean and airy—warehouse, which is also home to other small galleries and studios.

An unassuming set of glass double doors, framed with crown molding and a set of Venetian blinds, diligently protected the gallery from prying eyes. Image: PHX Gallery

A warm, intelligent, and funny Parisian, Joachim led me to an unassuming set of glass double doors, framed with crown molding and a set of venetian blinds that diligently protected the gallery from prying eyes. The moment Joachim opened the door, I was immediately immersed into a world where fringe fashion and furniture are the rule, not the exception. A small, intimate space looking out onto the street and the building across the way, the room is the perfect setting in which to learn about Comme des Garçons and post-modernist furniture. Immediately to the left of the doors, a set of Prorok rattan armchairs by Borek Sipek for Driade from the late 1980s nestled protectively around a glowing and tactile yellow foam lamp by Masayo Ave for Antonangeli Illuminazione from the 1990s, which itself was perched upon a miniature white ionic column. In one of the chairs rested a sophisticated leather Boston bag from Comme des Garçons, and this entire scene was backdropped by mid-century ceramic wall crucifixes from Belgium.

The feeling and visual gravity of the curious sheer black linen dress by Watanabe for Comme des Garçons from 2014, alternating from mesh to faux leather circles placed seemingly at random, were incredible. Image: PHX Gallery

After I took in this magnificent scene, Joachim walked me through the multiple racks of vintage Comme des Garçons clothing, which encapsulate almost 40 years of Japanese avant-garde design from Rei Kawakubo and perhaps her most famous disciple and collaborator, Junya Watanabe. Describing the myriad of ways in which Kawakubo subtly (and not so subtly) defies conventional ideas of gender, form, and design, Joachim’s passion shone brightly and enveloped me further in the fantastic world of Comme des Garçons. Stopping at one particular piece, a curious sheer black linen dress by Watanabe for Comme des Garçons from 2014, Joachim encouraged me to try it on, an invitation I accepted without hesitation. The feeling and visual gravity of the garment, alternating from mesh to faux leather circles placed seemingly at random, were incredible.

Another standout that highlighted Kawakubo and Watanabe’s interest in creating seemingly ordinary clothes was an asymmetric “hooded shirt” from 2011. What seemed from the front to be an ordinary button-down shirt, revealed itself upon closer inspection to be a hoodie, with orange stripes on the front and a red polka dot pattern on the back. Conversation about avant-garde Japanese clothing could have lasted forever, but we eventually began discussing the equally impressive collection of furniture and objets d’art placed throughout the room.

I was immediately immersed into a world where fringe fashion and furniture are the rule, not the exception. Image: PHX Gallery

After being introduced to Memphis Group, Ettore Sottsass, and the postmodernist furniture movement through a 2018 show in New York’s chic SoHo district titled Raquel’s Dream House (curated by Raquel Cayre, who runs the fabulous Instagram account @ettoresottsass), I became a veritable fan of postmodernist furniture and objects. To that end, Joachim and I eagerly discussed Memphis Group legends such as the Super Lamp by Martine Bedin and the Carlton bookcase designed by Sottsass himself, all the while immersed in a constellation of post-modernist creations including the Shiva Vase Prototype from 1973 (which you have to see to believe), several Keith Haring rugs, and a few curious glass and ceramic vases, which were in turn interspersed between a collection of prints by Memphis veteran Nathalie Du Pasquier. A particular highlight of this unparalleled collection was the selection of lighting: a Divan 2 Pendant by Simon Henningsen for Lyfa hung in one corner, casting striking shadows upon the white walls, while a Murano Glass Lamp by Angelo Mangiarotti for Pollux Skipper rested on the floor, creating oblong rings of warm, yellow light across the wooden boards. A designer in his own right, Joachim revealed to me several of his own designs, ranging from delicate, glass blown vases to large, geometric, ceramic sake pitchers.

From a visitor’s perspective, perhaps the greatest joy of PHX Gallery is that most things are for sale. After scheduling an appointment to browse all that’s on offer, guests can join the list of PHX’s clients in purchasing rare and covetable pieces of design history. In fact, it seems that the only person in the gallery who cannot take pieces home is Joachim himself, who declared with admirable restraint: “Curators cannot be collectors.”

Seemingly ordinary clothes take on a more astonishing significance upon closer inspections. Image: PHX Gallery

Tagged : architecture / Chicago / design / exhibit / fashion / history

The Bauhaus Movement’s Complicated Chicago Story

by MilesFebruary 24, 2020July 6, 2020Architecture / Travel

The Art Institute’s centenary exhibit on the Bauhaus provides a refreshingly critical retrospective on the movement’s complicated relationship with Chicago.

Petal Occasional Table by Richard Shultz for Knoll Associates

When Nazi Germany forced the Bauhaus school of design in Weimar, Germany to permanently close its doors in 1933, many of its members felt that their revolutionary work in design was unfinished. Resolved to continue the work begun by the Bauhaus and its famed professors, such as Wassily Kandinsky and Walter Gropius, a group of instructors took root in the United States, taking particular interest in Chicago and the American Midwest. Among these transplants were Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and László Moholy-Nagy, who were both invited to teach at the New Bauhaus, now the Institute of Design (ID) at the Illinois Institute of Technology (ITT). Beginning in the mid-1930s, Moholy-Nagy and Mies created a modernist legacy in architecture and the arts with the help of their pupils and contemporaries. Their influence is still deeply felt in Chicago to this day.

Because the media has extensively covered superstar figures such as Moholy-Nagy and Mies, it is quite refreshing to see an exhibition focused largely on the works of their previously anonymous students, emerging a century after the founding of the original Bauhaus. Importantly, many of the lessons taught at both the original Bauhaus and its American schools dealt with the qualities and characteristics of individual materials, favoring intimate interaction with objects and great design over formal artistic or architectural training. As such, many of the pieces on display in the small but densely populated space at the Art Institute are vaguely architectural but maintain a deeper focus on the simple form and materiality of everyday objects within the industrial context of the 20th century. This philosophy is readily apparent in works such as Institute of Design Foundation Course Wire Exercise, in which a delicate wire-framed sculpture vaguely references industrial hallmarks, like skyscrapers and metalworking. Similarly, Hall of Sport and Culture, Collage, dated from the early 1970s, features a football player, a pair of dancers, and a crowd set within the context of what appears to be a sort of building, itself resting on color blocks. In fact, the work was equally inspired by a building in Detroit as it was by modern art, film, and the emerging technique of collage.

The exhibit also seeks to correct for the historical lack of recognition of the many women who studied in the Chicago Bauhaus schools. One such figure who is featured prominently is Dori Altschuler, whose work during her time at the ID recently received recognition from several national publications, as well as from the journal Arts & Architecture in 1952. Altschuler’s use of recycled shopping bag materials to make architectural sculptures is particularly interesting within the contemporary context of natural resource conservation, as it seems that she—and the Bauhaus movement in general—was well ahead of her contemporaries in understanding the existential threat that urbanism and modernization posed on the planet’s natural resources.

Flexible Interlocking Structures, Dori (Hahn) Altschuler

Despite their innumerable contributions to design, architecture, and art, the Bauhaus’s insistence on unified, homogenous urban spaces master-planned by privileged Europeans and Americans allowed for the creation of troubling projects, notably on Chicago’s South Side. Enacting a plan that eerily recalls Georges-Eugène Haussmann’s classist transformation of Paris during the 19th century, Mies and IIT demolished large tracts of land on the South Side, displacing large populations of low-income Black families and businesses under the guise of “urban renewal.” The effects of this process are still glaringly obvious today, when the de facto segregation of wealthy, white Chicagoans and low-income Black Chicagoans remains an unsolved issue. Standing almost as an allegorical testament to this shameful period, Mies van der Rohe’s School of Social Service Administration, completed in 1965 for the University of Chicago, sits prominently along 60th Street, which has long represented the border between the vast property of the University and its wealthy inhabitants, and the Woodlawn community occupied primarily by low-income residents of color.

Viewing the contributions and controversies of the Chicago Bauhaus era in equal proportion, Bauhaus in Chicago: Design in the City presents perhaps the most comprehensive and most progressive retrospective on the movement. On view through April 26, 2020 in Gallery 283 of the modern wing, this show is not one to miss.

Tagged : architecture / Chicago / design / exhibit / history / travel

A Painful Goodbye To Barneys

by MilesNovember 15, 2019July 6, 2020Architecture / Fashion

At a cursory glance, it’s easy to dismiss the fate of Barneys New York as just another department store lost to the ruthless and unstoppable advance of online shopping and overnight shipping. Though many shoppers might liken Barneys to a number of other high end department stores like Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, or Bloomingdale’s, Barneys carried a heftier cultural importance, acting as a hub to connect celebrities, aspiring designers, and creative minds alike. It is with the golden era of Barneys New York in mind that we honor it with this swan song.

Barney Pressman in front of his first store, Image Via — Barney Pressman in front of his first store. Image via

Opened in 1923 as a designer label discount store for men at the intersection of 7th Avenue and 17 Street in Manhattan, Barneys, named after its founder Barney Pressman, grew rapidly and eventually opened a women’s department in the 1970s. In 1993, Barneys once again created waves in the high-end department store scene with the opening of their then-new 230,000 square foot flagship location on Madison Avenue in Manhattan, but the news wasn’t all good. Just after the opening of the new flagship store, customers and window shoppers began complaining about an atmosphere of prideful exclusion and unattainability which was reflective of Barneys tone deaf approach to luxurious living at this time. Unsurprisingly, Barneys’ inability to reflect the values and desires of its customers led the brand into its first bankruptcy filing in 1995, resulting in significant downsizing and the closure of two stores in Texas and one in Michigan. Though Barneys began to rebuild itself in its former image after coming back from the brink of extinction for the first time, the store was placed under new management in 2010, management which amplified the commercial aspects of the business without also elevating Barneys defining quirky qualities. After 9 more years of alienating themselves from consumers and those who loved Barneys as one of New York’s most important cultural icons, Barneys New York filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the final time, in August of this year, citing, amongst other causes, unreasonable rent and low foot traffic. But despite the unfortunate ending of Barneys New York, there is much to celebrate about the storied luxury titan.

Perhaps its greatest contribution to fashion, Barneys New York consistently gave a voice and a platform to unique, emerging young designers and had a pivotal role in launching the careers of people like Giorgio Armani and Rick Owens. In fact, throughout most of its glorious history, Barneys defined New York fashion more than any other department store. After all, it was Simon Doonan, brought onboard in 1986, who designed Barneys’ now iconic window displays, elevating the craft to the art sphere, and injected the store’s spaces with whimsical, and sometimes outright comical, displays and curated items. Barneys, and Neiman Marcus to a lesser degree, has always been a place where one could shop from storied and established fashion houses whilst at the same time discovering new and daring brands. It was, in part, this atmosphere of the unexpected and perpetually exciting that made Barneys a social hub for celebrities and socialites the world over. Barneys was as much a destination for shopping as it was a destination for making new friends and meeting old ones, and this simply doesn’t ring true with the other noteworthy players in this space such as Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdales, and Saks Fifth Avenue. All of these stores, which have succeeded in fulfilling the basic functions of selling luxury clothing on a large scale, have failed to create a brand identity as strong as Barneys.

Simon Doonan, Creative Director to Barneys New York with monogrammed Goyard trunk. Image Via — Simon Doonan, Creative Director to Barneys New York with monogrammed Goyard trunk. Image via

A window display at Barneys New York. Image Via — A window display at Barneys New York. Image via

So, having been bought by Authentic Brands Group and B. Riley at a cost of over $271 million, Barneys inventory is currently being liquidated at all of its open locations. In recent weeks, people have inundated store in droves to take it all in one last time, doing everything in their power to remember the sights, sounds, and smells of one of the most culturally impactful stores in New York. The spirit of Barneys will always live on, especially as so many now established brands have the store to thank in part for their success, but also because of the many passionate fans who refuse to let the memory of Barneys fade. If you find this news painful as I do, I suggest following @thespiritofbarneys on instagram, or visiting Saks Fifth Avenue who apparently secured the rights to the Barneys name and may have plans to open mini-Barneys’ inside several locations. One thing is certain—Chicago’s Oak Street, home to our local Barneys location, will never be the same.

Paris Hilton arriving at Barneys Los Angeles location. Image Via — Paris Hilton arriving at Barneys Los Angeles location. Image via

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Tagged : business / Chicago / fashion / history / New York

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Category: Architecture