Editors’ Eye:
The Ten Things We Loved (or Longed For) This February Inline
1/11Illustrations of Grace Coddington, André Leon Talley, Hamish Bowles by Gladys Perint Palmer.
Photo: Everett Collection2/11“There’s a new sushi restaurant in my neighborhood, but I think I would prefer a night with Michael Fassbender over a night of fish.”
Photo: John Persson/The Royal Opera House; Courtesy of the Victoria Albert Museum3/11“In 1946, Britain’s Royal Ballet unveiled a new production of Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty to herald the triumphant reopening of the splendid crimson, white, and gold theatrical palace of Covent Garden after the war. The dazzlingly talented theatrical designer Oliver Messel created the sets and costumes—a wonderland of shimmeringly romantic, impressionistic effects that dazzled audiences in the midst of the privations of austerity Britain and after the harrowing experience of living in the Blitz-torn capital.
A highlight of my Christmas season in London was the Royal Ballet’s revival of the celebrated and entirely enchanting Messel production, which sensitively re-creates the designer’s subtle, shadowed palette.
Oliver Messel: In The Theatre of Design, edited by Messel’s nephew Thomas Messel (a distinguished furniture designer in his own right, and the cousin of the great photographer and designer Lord Snowdon), provides further insight into, and ravishing visuals of, Messel’s uniquely fanciful forays into architecture, interior and movie as well as theater design.
Oliver Messel: In the Theatre of Design, edited by Thomas Messel, $75; for information: rizzoliusa.com
Photo: Marko MacPherson4/11“I love the color, the sound, and the fact that they don’t fall out of my ears. Also, they’re fun for summer and come in a great case which can clip on to my bag. From a practical standpoint, they are so big and bright I can’t lose them.”
Dolce Gabbana Miss Sicily bag, $1,525; Dolce Gabbana, NYC, 212.249.4100
Beats Studio by Dr. Dre red headphones, $300; bestbuy.com
Photo: Marko MacPherson5/11“Bookmarc on Bleecker Street in New York inspires me with their unpredictable and graphic displays. They have a perfectly edited selection: great books to read and great books on art and photography. I can spend hours there.”
Bookmarc, NYC, 212.620.4021
