Love for Li Xiaofeng

As I’ve been involved with the Li Xiaofeng/Lacoste project since the start, I take a keen interest in observing the media response, particularly from other websites. Jing Daily picked up my coverage of the story. Interview Magazine carried a more in-depth piece called “Li Xiaofeng for Lacoste: The Armored Crocodile” and Yatzer included an interview. The T Magazine blog also mentioned Li and soon Hypebeast, Trendhunter, Maison Chaplin, High Snobiety, Slamxhype, Dinosaurs and Robots and ulike.net carried the story. Next, I will put an update about coverage from the China and global print media.

Xander Zhou in Paris

You never know who you will meet walking down the rue Saint-Honoré. A few paces away from Colette, Beijing-based fashion designer Xander Zhou was on his way back to drinks with friends after hitting Lanvin. He said he came more to shop than to see fashion week. The world is small.

After Comme des Garçons

There are quite a few editors from China here at Paris Fashion Week Men’s Spring-Summer 2011. Tang Le is a fashion editor at Men’s Bazaar (《芭莎男士》) was at Kris Van Assche and Comme des Garçons. I met him again at the Lacoste party for the Li Xiaofeng polos at the Musée des Arts et Métiers. His favorite show at fashion week was Louis Vuitton.

Porcelain Polo Details

Amidst the countless details on the porcelain polo, the most centralis the point where the pheonix meets the crocodile above the collar. Li Xiaofeng points to this as a point where the emblems of East and West meet. The Lacoste logo represents the West and the pheonix is a traditional symbol of imperial China.

I think that when considering this piece – especially as a commentary on the Lacoste logo – it helps to remember its predecessor: last year’s super-limited edition Campana Brother’s polo, of which there are 24 in the world. As comentaries on branding and logos, how do these compare?

Li Xiaofeng at Hôtel Costes

Yesterday evening, I spoke with artist Li Xiaofeng, creator of the Lacoste Holiday Collector’s Series 2010, over a bottle of Chablis in the courtyard of the Hôtel Costes. Following are his comments on a number of subjects.

Fashion: This is not about fashion design. The print of the cotton polos is entirely based on the porcelain shard sculpture created for Lacoste.

Lacoste: The brand has a long history and does a good job of preserving its traditions.

昨晚,我有幸与2010年Lacoste 假期收藏品的设计师李晓峰在巴黎的Hôtel Costes 共饮了一瓶夏布利葡萄酒,并讨论了以下的话题。

时尚:这次的设计不是一个时尚服饰的设计。这一次为Lacoste设计的马球衫的花纹全部都会是陶瓷碎片的拼图搭配。

Li Xiaofeng Sculpture at LV

Less than two months ago, the work of Li Xiaofeng was seen in connection with another fashion brand. A Qipao made of pot shards is now on the second floor of the new Huaihai Road Louis Vuitton store in the most powerful megalopolis our world has ever seen.

Li Xiaofeng commented that the degree of cooperation with Lacoste makes the sale of an already existing piece of art to Louis Vuitton seem rather limited in comparison. The innovativeness of Lacoste is impressive, in his opinion. For the Holiday Collector’s Series 2010, they commissioned him to create a unique porcelain shard sculpture just for their brand. Then, together with Li, they created a series of shirts with prints based on this sculpture.

Arrival in Paris with Li Xiaofeng

Artist Li Xiaofeng, his wife, and I arrived in Paris last night and were escorted to sumptuous, compact, famously pretentious Hôtel Costes, my home for the next week.

艺术家李晓峰及其妻子还有我三个人在昨天晚上到了巴黎,被送到豪华简洁的以自命不凡闻名的Hôtel Costes,它是我们下一周的家。

The 2010 Lacoste Collector’s Series is created by Li Xiaofeng. He wanted his favorite bracelet to be photographed alongside the invitation to the release event, which is this Friday in Paris.

To Paris for Lacoste

In three hours, I will be boarding an Air France flight to Paris. There, I will attend the release of Lacoste’s 2010 Collector’s Series. The launch party is on June 25 at the Musée des Arts et Métiers (Museum of Arts and Industry).

三个小时后我就要乘法航的飞机飞往巴黎。在那里我将参加鳄鱼2010收藏家系列的发布会。发布仪式将于6月25日在巴黎工艺博物馆举行。