VIEWPOINT

CATHY HORYN WAS BACK! SHE WILL HAVE A BIT OF A JOB ANYWAY !

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Celebrated journalist Cathy Horyn has widely recognised for her intelligent and informed reviews as the fashion critic of The New York Times.

In 2001, Horyn’s work was recognised by the Council of Fashion Designers of America, who awarded the critic the prestigious Eugenia Sheppard Award for fashion writing. She held a career (15 years!) at the newspaper, but left her position last February to care for her partner.

The Cut is delighted to announce that Cathy Horyn will be joining them with coverage of the Fall 2015 collection this February, she will act as the publication’s critic-at-large. The Cut’s editorial director Stella Bugbee
said : “Cathy is a giant in the industry, justly celebrated for her insights into fashion, superb writing, and authoritative takes. We’re thrilled to add her voice to Fashion Week coverage at the Cut. I think she’s going to be doing a mix of things for us — traditional reviews and exploring what a site like ours has to offer. She’s not limited strictly to reviews. I’m hoping she’ll have a lot of fun with it.”

Kathy is famous for her harsh statements against many well-known figures in the world of fashion. She was banned from numerous designer shows, most notably Giorgio Armani and, as of 2012, Hedi Slimane’s Yves Saint Laurent show in Paris, Carolina Herrera, Dolce& Gabbana. Also Kathy Horyn has consistently expressed her negative attitude for Alexander Wang, writing :”he is not a great designer, though he probably would be happy to accept any laurels that people want to toss him, but he is clearly a shrewd . Mr. Wang doesn’t really have courage in the traditional sense of trying something new and difficult, but he does have China. Nearly all of his clothing is now produced  there”.
Anna Wintour, the  editor of Vogue USA ( she is the most influential person in the Fashion industry) learnt about yourself : But you don’t have to doubt Ms. Wintour’s integrity to see the danger of too much influence. You just have to look at the magazine and its three spinoffs (Teen Vogue, Men’s Vogue, Vogue Living), at the tendency to feature the same socialites and pretty dresses, in the same perfect settings, and then imagine what the implications would be if she could also determine where designers worked.
Lady Gaga performed at Thierry Mugler’s show and sing/rap about Horyn, saying “your style ain’t dick”. It was replyfor Kathy’s utterance named singer “embalded” in Versace dress..

 

Nowadays, the fashion press does not have enough of realistic and  truthful opinions. Unfortunately, everything in the world are bought and sold, even  judgement  of Suzy Menkes . For  instance, fashion observers have flooded the Internet with  unfaithful and insincere opinions about the last collection Maison Martin Margiela presented by John Galliano in London. She reported to Vogue: “Without measuring how much of this show was designed as Galliano and how much for the Maison Margiela label, both were definitely present. Galliano may not have so much new to say either. But what he showed in London was a powerful mix of beauty, low-level provocation and the skills he has learned over the years. In an era when fashion’s high tide is ebbing, as a wave of dull normality rolls forward, the return of John Galliano to the catwalk must be welcomed by anyone who loves the glory of the extraordinary.”

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The last show of Rick Owens does not stand up of criticism. Need to say, that designer not first time shocked the public. The world-known fashion reporter Tim Blanks commented for Style.com : “So then he turns around and shows one of his best menswear collections in recent memory. We should all be so depraved. Rick Owens thinks of himself as the classic American in Paris, mesmerized by the culture that surrounds him. So he wanted to give something back with his new collection, something from his world” . Curiously, he did not mention that the show is more like a bad performance or the gay cruising than defile.
“Channelling the spirit of the house’s Sicilian heritage along with Spain’s matador history, Dolce & Gabbana’s Spring/Summer 2015 campaign artfully blends the flamboyance, sex appeal and classical styles associated with both cultures. …in a nod to this season’s fascination with age, a cluster of charming grandmothers gossip, with the brand’s embellished leather bags and golden crowns gleaming against their widows’ weeds” declared Business of Fashion and put it in the best 10 campaigns of Spring/Summer 2015.

Finally, I would like to back to Cathy Horyn’s career. She published a book “Joe Eula: Master of Twentieth-Century Fashion Illustration”  and gave interview to Dirk Standen for Style.com. She was loyal in her observation about show : “one should remain skeptical about that, I think. But I think it is good that John has a chance to get back in there and reclaim his reputation”. However, during discussion  about Joe’s personality Dirk recalled Kathy: “Going back to Joe’s personality, one of my favorite anecdotes is when he went to a Saint Laurent couture show, but after three looks he got up and said, “This sucks,” and it caused a huge scandal” Kathy replied not without pleasure:”Yeah, that was amazing … And then all of the kiss-and-make-up afterward. But it didn’t, strangely, affect his relationship with [Pierre] Bergé or with Yves. They still stayed friends”. Presently, who would dare to say that on the show Saint Laurent, even if it sucks?

 

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