Flip Flops

 

That's how these things are known in America: flip flops. The thong sandal is one of the most enduring forms of clothing; examples exist in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, albeit a bit more eco-friendly. Those ancient examples, made from papyrus reeds, show a sophistication of workmanship that astounds in our age of mass replication and production.

You should know now that many of our future trends look to ancient models for inspiration. Why do you think we use a stylus or have the ability to "scroll" through digital media? Similarly, the ancient civilizations were ultimately much greener than we.

While we may not all end up in robes and togas, flip flops signify a continuum...and a likely revisit to sensibilities that are now awakening once again.

- AP

The Future Past

Here is Cairo behind the busy boulevards. The city is a curious mixture of progress and decay - as all cities are in their individual ways. This is just a moment in this 1039 year old city.

- AP

Muse at Work

 

Ah, if it were only as easy as this statue group suggests! Muses may provide the vision, but they never do the work!

This does not apply to fashion muses, however. Their entire way of life, their being, must be inspiration.

And that is more difficult than working.

- AP

Bonn?

Once there was city called Bonn...

Of course the city still exists, but no one ever speaks of it. Hamburg, sure. Munich, of course. Frankfurt and Cologne, on occasion. Berlin, without question.

Bonn's brief moment as the capital of West Germany has done nothing to keep the city in the spotlight.

Yes, yes, Bonn is the birthplace of Beethoven, and for that, the city will always have a place in history.

Places like Bonn fascinate me: not great cities like London or Paris, but capable, every so often, to produce contributions to the world.

And then the quiet sets in again...

- AP

Fashion Magazines

I am amazed sometimes when I look through fashion magazines. Sometimes everything looks the same, no matter if the publication is French, English, American or Greek.

And sometimes, there is such differences of editorial opinion!

The next time you have a stack of magazines at your disposal (whether they come in the mail, or just browsing at your favorite bookstore), see how many trends converge. Or differ. What do you like or abhor?

- AP

The Water Tower

 

It seems that every major city has a tower of some kind. One of my favorites is the Water Tower in Chicago. It's a functional building that became a monument, thanks to the Great Fire of 1871. And it's one of the few that is completely accessible to pedestrians. Note the stone work involved here - at a time when most of Chicago was made from timber. It's almost a hint of the great "schools of architecture" that Chicago would produce.

- AP

Not Place Vendôme

Actually, this is Monument Square in Baltimore, and this column happens to be the first monument to George Washington. The resemblance to Napoleon's Column in the Place Vendôme is rather striking.

Fashion, whether in clothing, food, or architecture always has the ability to move. It's that mobility of trends from one place to another that in part gives fashion its power.

- AP