By Richard Vincente
You don’t have to look very hard these days to find examples of how the evolving universe of fashion lingerie — the undiverse, as I call it — conflicts with public standards and exposes our mixed feelings about how, when and where we display our bodies.
We live in a society that celebrates and peddles sexuality with an increasing lack of restraint … but that same … Read More
When the Queen visited a nursery school last winter near her Sandringham estate as part of her diamond anniversary activities, the giddy 3- and 4-year-old pupils had a surprise for her: they hung up hand-made replicas of her underwear for a display called ‘The Royal Laundry’.
“Oh,” the amused monarch commented, “they’re doing the washing.”
This sort of cheeky … Read More
We seldom think of the lingerie industry as a microcosm of the fashion world or of society in general. But in France, at least, it’s both.
A recent poll showed that 91% of French women and 83% of men believe that lingerie is an important part of life and l’amour. But who knew that spirit would spill over into the historic election that returned the Socialists under … Read More
“I have always liked painters. It seems to me that we are in the same trade.”
~ French fashion designer Paul Poiret
Art and fashion have been inseparable ever since the first caveman decided to decorate his animal-hide wrap with a few charcoal stick figures.
But even the French couturier Poiret — whose affinity for artists and illustrators of … Read More
by Richard Vincente
A year ago, a Toronto family made international headlines for their decision to not reveal the gender of their new baby to anyone outside the immediate family — in effect, raising a ‘genderless’ child.
It wasn’t a publicity stunt or provocation. The parents were highly educated and caring people who simply wanted their child to develop (at least in its early … Read More
How to protect yourself from hackers and cyber-thieves.
by Richard Vincente
The picture above is believed to be the only nude photo of the late screen star Elizabeth Taylor, and you were never meant to see it.
Shot by a friend in 1956 when she was 24, the picture was an intimate engagement gift from Liz to her third husband, Mike Todd. When Todd died in a plane … Read More
by Richard Vincente
Censorship is a weapon that works best when it’s used sparingly, if at all. It’s the cultural equivalent of a nuclear deterrent.
Most people in marketing, advertising and programming understand this and play by the rules. But the shadowy group of individuals and quasi-legitimate authorities who monitor and enforce community standards have itchy trigger fingers. For them, censorship isn’t just a deterrent, it’s a way of defining… Read More