After our most recent and treasured week of the year, we wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year and hope that you are all feeling that same great sense of a new beginning that this time of the year offers.
For StyleLikeU, that beginning means further immersion into telling the stories of those who raise their fists against our often insipid, spiritless culture.
Our platform began with the mere suspicion that those who possess the sovereignty to turn each item of clothing into their own unique art are magicians, capable of unleashing a dormant quest for identity within ourselves, bringing fashion substance into the physical world.
Our hunch is probably no more clearly represented than in the case of self-portrait artist, Andrea Mary Marshall. Flashback to March 2010: It's a rainy, gray Saturday in March, but I am doing cartwheels down the slushy streets since I have just departed from Andrea's Closet interview. I am obsessed --– high off of her YSL tribute shoes, monkey fur, jeans, and the fearless grit with which she displays a portrait of herself masturbating above her bed. I am energized by her soul-filling inspiration, not only to reach back to the version of myself who could wear exclusively denim and vintage fur for the rest of my life, but also the self that would allow this level of spectacular vulnerability.
As January is a time for fresh starts, and after two years in the making, we are ecstatic to kick-off the new year with the release of our latest Fashion Film, a collaboration with the tenaciously enthralling Andrea. In her portrayal of Toxic Women, Andrea's frenzied passion for the dark depths of womanhood as embodied through fashion, will take you on a harrowing journey. To say it's Cindy Sherman or Gian Lorenzo Bernini on steroids provides a clue to its intensity. But it's all Andrea in her unrelenting drive to explore the ghastly beauty of women and their often unconscious domination by men.
Love the video for Andrea's acute social analysis or for how she rocks a pair of chaps over white leather pants. But what primarily galvanizes us is bringing the artwork of a true and tireless thinker to fruition.
This video is the first of many to reach bolder heights for SLU this year, but what will remain unchanged is our dedication to how each individual in our community is the backbone of our being.
--Elisa Goodkind & Lily Mandelbaum
Flo (Blowdrying My Wounds), Rosemary Myst, Loretta Minx, Maria Gonzalez Veronica Guadalupe & Cracked Dutchy Hot Clown Are Alter Egos Created and Portrayed By Andrea Mary Marshall From 2006-2011.
Andrea Mary Marshall is a Self Portrait Artist Who Lives And Works In New York City. Andrea Mary Marshall's second solo show, Gia Condo, will open on January 17, 2013 at Allegra LaViola Gallery, New York City. Marshall has created a series of self portraits as her alter ego, Gia Condo, a character inspired by the enduring mystery surrounding the Mona Lisa. The exhibition will consist of painting, photography and film, as well as performance art. Marshall will perform as Gia Condo at the opening on January 17 and at scheduled dates throughout the duration of the show.
Director & Photographer: Danny Christensen
Art & Fashion Director: Andrea Mary Marshall
Founders & Creative Directors: Elisa Goodkind & Lily Mandelbaum
Producer: Ramona Canino
Stylist: Jenni Hensler
Hair Stylist: Adam Livermore for Oribe Hair Care
Hair Assistant: Joey George
Makeup and Special Effects Makeup: Robert Greene at See Management, Using M.A.C.
Makeup Assistant: Laura Stiassni
Music: "Bear" by Grace Woodroofe
A Special thank you to Dune Studios & Jay Stradwick.
