The Ladybug’s chronicle of a fairy tale: Malick Sidibé “Portraits” at Spazio Marras

A couple of weeks ago I lived a real fairy tale for about one hour of my life.

I read about Malick Sidibé exhibit “Portraits” at the Antonio Marras showroom in Milan and I decided that it was the great occasion to visit the space and the photography exhibit at the same time. “Nonostante Marras” is placed in a lovely court full of green (with some yellow and brown as it was end of the Autumn – which made it even more suggestive!) and it is one of the most incredible places I’ve ever seen. I have been loving Antonio Marras’ fashion art since I was a student but this talented man never stops surprising me. Everything in this space was just amazing: the clothes, the accessories (I fell in love with his turbans!), the jewels, the furniture, the books…I just felt like a kid in Disneyland! I couldn’t stop staring at everything and I understood why this modern loft with a retro twist was indeed the perfect location for Malick Sidibé’s photographs.

On a vintage wall about thirty black and white photographs were hanging, near vintage sofas and couches, some of the portraits taken in the 70’s by this incredible Malian artist in his studio in Bamako.

Sidibé died in April this year but he told the story of his people through his amazing art, even if he didn’t like to be called an artist: he was “just” a photographer, he used to say!

The portraits exposed are simple yet very powerful and they all tell a story about these people’s life, relationships, tastes, that you try to guess with your imagination : it’s so incredibly inspiring!

For the day I wore a vintage Rolling Stones tee (from a charity shop in London), Acne Studios jeans, Zara boots and my new favorite long camel coat from Diffusione Tessile.

I added a wax headband from Sine Modus and a vintage tapestry doctor bag from Humana Vintage.

The Ladybug is…at “David Bowie is”

When I first read about the “David Bowie is” exhibit at the V&A Museum in London I immediately thought that it was the perfect excuse for a trip to one my favorite cities! I was ready to buy a flight ticket just to see the exhibit; it only happened once before, when I was ready to fly to Paris to see Basquiat exhibition a few years before. In both cases the exhibits somehow came to me. Basquiat is still exposing at Mudec in Milan (I will share my visit soon here!) and “David Bowie is” was in Bologna until mid-November.

I took the occasion of my friends spending two days in Bologna also to see the exhibit during the All Saint’s bank holiday to join them. The first day we arrived at the Mambo museum without buying the tickets online and the queue was so long (more than three hours) that we decided to buy the tickets online for the day after. I couldn’t believe the long wait but when the day after we finally managed to see the exhibit I suddenly understood why so many people wanted to see it.

I have always loved David Bowies since I was a kid. I was not a huge fan but I have always admired his persona and his music, his way of changing and surprising, his art and flair. I consider him one of my favorite vintage icons. All of this things I love him for where at the exhibition

“David Bowie is” is a huge comprehensive journey into David Bowie’s career: “over 300 objects including handwritten lyrics, original costumes, photography, set designs, album artwork and rare performance material from the past five decades are brought together from the David Bowie Archive for the very first time. The exhibition demonstrates how Bowie’s work has both influenced and been influenced by wider movements in art, design, theatre and contemporary culture and focusses on his creative processes, shifting style and collaborative work with diverse designers in the fields of fashion, sound, graphics, theatre and film” (www.davidbowieis.it).

But it is not only about the content of the exhibit, it is also (or in particular) the way it is presented to the visitor: multi-media art is everywhere, animations and video installations makes you feel like a part of the art.

I can definitely say that it was one of the best exhibitions I have ever seen: I didn’t even want to leave the last room when I realized that the journey was over!

I wore my adored Twenty8Twelve military jacket with a vintage grey leather pencil skirt (a bargain from Humana Vintage in Milan!) and my Frida tee by Vanna Vinci with Michael Kors bucket bag.

I couldn’t take any pictures inside then the only pictures from the exhibit are taken from Google.

The Ladybug explores Japan in a vintage kimono

Saturday afternoons that I love:  brunch, exhibit and movie with my best friends! I can’t really ask for more!

In preparation of our Deejay run we decided to feed our soul with art (but also with food!) and we dedicated our afternoon to see the beautiful exhibit dedicated to the Japanese artists Hokusai, Hiroshige and Utamaro at Palazzo Reale in Milan.

This journey through the art, nature and culture of Japan was full of amazing moments: the beautiful landscapes of Hokusai (especially the ones dedicated to bridges and to Mount Fuji) made me feel the need of traveling to this amazing country that I’m dying to see.  So did the nature drawn by Hiroshige and the beautiful Japanese women described by Utumaro.

The Great Wave of Kanagawa is definitely one of the most powerful pieces but it is hard to pick up your favorites among two hundreds “ukiyoe” prints that you can admire there.

As I was in a Japanese mood I thought it was the perfect day to wear my vintage kimono from Episode Vintage in Brussels paired with my new Frida tee by Vanna Vinci and mum jeans from Topshop.

I added my BFF heart chain from Black Heart Creatives , Superga shoes, Celine sunglasses and Michael Kors bucket bag.

If you want to visit the exhibit it will be in Milan until the 29^th of January, I am sure that you will love it too !

 

The Ladybug’s ode to Cuba

Before going on holiday I had the chance to visit one of the most interesting exhibits in Milan right now “Cuba. Tatuare la storia” (Cuba. Tattooing History) at the PAC (Padiglione d’Arte Contemporanea).

From the 6^th of July and to the 12^th of September the PAC is the perfect venue to visit if you want to discover an amazing exhibit completely dedicated to the art of this amazing country that I had the chance to visit in 1996.

This is more than just an exhibit: there are videos, paintings, installations and live performances by the artists who better represent the contemporary Cuban art from the 70’s to the present.

Each artist represents a part of “the journey towards Cuba, with its magnificence and its difficulties, its sound and furore, its cultural, linguistic and mythical issues, its ideological differences. Starting from the historical performative nature of contemporary Cuban art, the exhibition will present a large selection of works and installations — some of them conceived for the PAC — of the most representative Cuban artists and the most up-and-coming artists of the new generation” (excerpt from the exhibit page on the PAC Internet site).

There is a certain sadness and bitterness all around but it is part of this wonderful island and I totally saw it represented there. But there was also joy, hope, especially when we realised than we could take with us part of an art piece (I won’t tell you more about it!).

If you are in Milan during this summer holidays it is a great art experience to enjoy more than a simple art exhibit, one of these not-to-miss events! Just one last tip: check the PAC site before planning your visit to know if there are live performance scheduled (www.pacmilano.it).

 

The Ladybug finds relief in Escher’s geometries

Milan is too hot to do anything these days. It is hard to go out running or walking and when I cannot reach the beach I need to find a way to reduce my pain caused by the awful heat.

The only way to do it is finding a nice place with air conditioning, like a museum! Thanks God there’s always a good exhibition to visit (there are a few actually!) then I called my friend to reach me for what became more than a simple visit, but a real interactive experience: the Escher exhibit at Palazzo Reale.

I have always loved this artist, especially how his art was involved in fashion and music industry (one of my favorite pieces ever is the so-called Escher dress by British designer Matthew Williamson for example!) but it was the first time that I visited an exhibit dedicated to his work.

More than 200 works were exposed in six different sections going from his roots to his love for Italy (especially Southern Italy!) and the discovery of geometric art in Spain. What I love more about his art is that it challenges the viewer and his ability to “read” his work, to find new images in images, to discover new paths from the visible paths. A large part of the exhibit was also dedicated to his huge influence on comics, advertising, music and films during the 20^th century…but I couldn’t see the Matthew Williamson dress!

You can visit the exhibit until the 22nd of January 2017.

I wore Topshop mom jeans, Please golden tee, Zara laced shoes and vintage 70’s bag from Foxy Brown Vintage. I added my new handmade turban from Heka Couture and handmade silver Nepalese double necklace. ..I was totally in my “Princess of Persia mood”!

The Ladybug is feeling so “Goude”

One of the best exhibits that I have visited in the past few years: this is how I can define the “So Far So Goude” exhibit at the PAC in Milan. Really amazing work from the curator (the installation made it even better) and from this talented artist that I didn’t know really well but that I appreciated during these hours spent at the PAC.

Over 230 photographs illustrated the world of Jean-Paul Goude, graphic artist, designer, photographer and film director, a man who deeply influenced our iconographic imagination in the recent decades. Most of the pictures exposed are part of our cultural background, we all know them but maybe not many people know that they all come from the same hand and eye.

I didn’t even know he was the man behind Grace Jones best photographs and videos (he was also her husband) or behind the amazing Naomi Campbell photographs that I’ve been loving for ages.

What I loved about his work was the joy and playfulness, the colours and life. He approached nudity and sex with such a playful eye that there’s never vulgarity in his art…it’s just plain straightforward sparkling life!

I think that the best thing that I can do is trying to show you some of my favourite photographs and drawings (believe me it was hard to pick only a few) . Drawings are an important part of the exhibit and they often represent the starting point for photographs and videos.

For the exhibit I wore Imperial dress and Tosca Blu ankle boots.

 

The Ladybug’s new experiments at Miró exhibit

Since the opening of the new Mudec Museum in Milan I must say that I have seen there some of my favorite art exhibits, including “The Force of Matter” dedicated to Juan Miró. Over 100 works of the artists dating from 1931 to 1981 (with the contribution of the Fundació Juan Miró in Barcelona) are exposed chronologically to reconstruct his art trajectory. His pieces are one of the highest contributions to modern art and his constant experimentation with forms and colors has as a result a captivating, joyful and colorful art that I love. The exhibit is very well curated and I enjoyed the visit a lot. I especially loved his simplification of forms (which reminds me a lot of a kind of primitive art) and his incredible mastery of colors.

For the visit (and a brunch out with a friend in a lovely summery day) I decided to wear my new oversized striped tee from & Other Stories and skinny jeans from Acne Studios. I added silver flats with buckles from Max&Co (a piece from this past winter sales but perfect for spring and summer days!), Michael Kors bucket bag and a pair of Dior vintage frames.

The Ladybug on curls and contemporary art (at Boccioni exhibit!)

I finally learned to embrace my curls, I can say it loud and proud now! Many people ask me if this is my real hair or I made something to make them curly, well this is my real white-afro hair!

I can’t explain how my life changed since I finally accepted and loved my natural hair! I spent more than 25 years using straightening products because I wanted so much those classy straight hair instead of my lioness mane but I have finally fell in love with it (never too late!). I think it represents me so well and it really expresses my personality at the point that I cannot see myself with straight hair anymore!

You may wonder why I am so much into self-acceptance today and the reasons are: 1. I am always into self-acceptance and self-support; 2. I took this pictures just after a good haircut at my favorite hairdresser in Milan (the one who made me understand how great my hair was!) which explains why my curls are just curlier than usual!

The real goal of the post was to tell you about my visit at the Boccioni exhibit in Milan at Palazzo Reale (until the 10^th of July) but if I have to be honest, I expected a bit more from it. Too much space for Boccioni’s early works and so little room left for the futuristic artist that I love and appreciate! Still I think it is worth a visit for the second part of the exhibit and for the exhibit “2050” that could be visited with the same ticket until the 29^th of May, exposing 46 contemporary artists with 50 pieces interpreting the future of the planet. A great surprise and an amazing exhibit on contemporary art including one of my favorite artists, Louise Bourgeois.

I wore Zara pale pink spring coat, Topshop palm shirt and mom jeans (both from my last trip to Topshop in Edinburgh!), Nike 4 Other Stories white sneakers.

The Ladybug and her journey through the heart of Italy

Italy seen through the eyes of the most famous international photographers in the last 80 years: this is the main theme of the exhibition “Henri Cartier Bresson & gli altri” that ended last February at The Palazzo della Ragione in Milan. The exhibit presented more than 200 photographs, starting from Henri Cartier Bresson and his long trip to Italy, to Robert Capa – in Italy during the Second World War -, to Salgado and the last Sicilian tuna fishermen, to Helmut Newton and his night pictures of Rome.

But also Milan, Palermo, Venice through the eyes of Herbert List, Steve McCurry, Paul Strand and many others…a wonderful exhibit that I visited quite by mistake because I wasn’t in the mood to go back home after work and decided to head to the city center and to join my friend who wanted to visit it.

The medieval Palazzo della Ragione makes a wonderful frame for this beautiful exhibition as well as the beautiful Loggia dei Mercanti just outside in the amazing Piazza dei Mercanti.

I wore navy coat from Max&Co (I got this beautiful coat during the last winter sales!), Zara navy culottes, striped shirt and animal print booties, Miu Miu handbag.

The Ladybug listens to Gauguin’s Tales from Paradise

Yet another great exhibition in Milan! This time it was in one of my new favorite venues in town, the Mudec (Museo delle Culture) where, until the 21^st of February you could visit the exhibit “Gauguin. Tales from Paradise”.

The exhibit collected 70 art pieces (not only paintings) coming from many different museums and private collections and focused on one of the reasons why I have been loving Gauguin since I was a student: the inspiration coming from different geographic areas that influenced the painter’s production, from French region of Bretagne to Egypt, from Peru to Cambodia and during the most mature period of his art, Polynesia. This constant link with the place, the art, the culture and everything characteristic of the specific area he was in contact with, influenced his work.

Polynesian paintings are a pure joy for the heart and the eye: I literally couldn’t move away from many of them, especially “Words of the Devil” and “Woman with a Flower”.

For the event (and considering the freezing weather) I wore Sportmax black coat, Acne Studios jeans, Dixie black sweater. I added two pieces that I love: a pair of leopard printed ankle boots that I bought last year from Zara on sale (for about 30 euros!) and my black handmade turban from Madame Ilary with a pink vintage hatpin from my friend Tricia Leonard Vintage in Munich. Bag is Miu Miu.