Floragatan 13

Curated By Acne Studios

An A Magazine Curated By special print project in partnership with Acne Studios, conceived as a visual essay by acclaimed French photographer Philippe Chancel revealing the inner workings of Floragatan 13, the former Czech embassy in Stockholm, Sweden transformed into a fashion atelier and corporate office.

On the occasion of the unveiling of the new Acne Studios headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, A Magazine Curated By presents Floragatan 13 Curated By Acne Studios, an
architectural and design survey of this exceptional building and its contemporary usage as a fashion atelier and corporate office.

This 100-page document delves into the building floor by floor, beginning with the sixth level management offices and descending ten storeys through each crucial component of the design and production ateliers including inspiring and communal spaces such as the ground floor library, underground canteen and photo studio. Numerous floors reveal bespoke and site-specific design projects by long-time Acne Studios favourites including a state-of-the-art lighting network designed by Benoit Lalloz, furniture by Max Lamb, and artworks by Daniel Silver. Philippe Chancel’s crisp, exacting photography is accompanied by insightful quotes by Acne Studios creative director Jonny Johansson, architect Johannes Norlander, the Acne Studios teams and external collaborators.

AA Magazine Curated By and Valentino are delighted to announce that issue N°20 has been curated by Pierpaolo Piccioli for an international release on December 3rd, 2019. Based in Rome, the Italian fashion designer was named the sole Artistic Director at Valentino in July 2016, after having first worked under Mr. Valentino in 1999 and maintaining a long working relationship with the house ever since. Piccioli is known for re-awakening the extravagant spirit of haute couture in fashion, with his use of bright colour and grand volumes contrasted by his willful advocation of fashion as a conduit for optimism, diversity and inclusivity.

Pierpaolo Piccioli’s issue of A Magazine Curated By contains a multitude of messages centered around the exploration of the city of Rome and its dualities. Approached as a longform visual essay, the magazine unfolds from a still-life shoot by Joel Meyerowitz of Pierpaolo’s secret cahiers des défilés, his ‘mood books’ that underline each fashion show and contain everything from their initial inspirations to the end result of the fashion show’s imagery and ephemera. From this key starting point, a diarised visual portfolio by Charles H. Traub – known for his iconic series’ ‘Lunchtime’ on the streets of New York City and ‘Dolce Via’ across Italy in the 1980s – takes place in chapters, documenting many of Pierpaolo’s favourite places in Rome from the Spanish Steps to Trastevere and the Palatine Hill. The series features a host of characters from near and far, including the models Leslye Houenou, Hannelore Knuts and Aurora Talarico, the Principessa Nicoletta Odescalchi, the actress Alba Rohrwacher, Pierpaolo’s wife Simona and daughter Benedetta, and many more. Paintings from the Italian Renaissance and the work of Hieronymus Bosch are scattered throughout the magazine’s pages, countering Pierpaolo’s contemporary vision with his classical inspirations, including a rarely seen Caravaggio painting restored by Studio Merlini Storti Restauri at the Palazzo Odescalchi in Rome.

Closing the magazine, a 48-page portrait series photographed by Pierpaolo Piccioli himself is situated as a tribute to Franca Sozzani and an homage to Steven Meisel’s iconic Vogue Italia October 1992 photo shoot, in which Meisel captured a multitude of international personalities wearing his signature trapper hat and holding their handwritten name card. Swapping black and white for dazzling colour, and the black hat for Philip Treacy’s now-iconic pink hat for Valentino, Pierpaolo hand-picked a cast of family, friends, Valentino artisans and international celebrities to pose for him, including Naomi Campbell, Mariacarla Boscono, British Vogue’s Edward Enninful, Pat McGrath, Guido Palau, and the original series’ stylist Joe McKenna. His closing subject, the actress Frances McDormand, appears on the magazine’s cover in a green haute couture sequin cape. The cover’s black cloth effect and red stripe are a nod to Pierpaolo’s cahiers des défilés, embossed with a ‘P.P.’ stamp as a subtle nod to Pier Paolo Pasolini.

Extending the A Magazine Curated By spirit of ‘carte blanche’ creative freedom, Pierpaolo’s issue contains a special DIY project, an invitation extended to the designers Craig Green, Marc Jacobs, Undercover founder Jun Takahashi, and Givenchy creative director Clare Waight Keller. Each designer was sent a roll of Valentino red haute couture silk and a packet of Valentino studs along with a note from Pierpaolo to interpret the Valentino house codes in their own way, the results being a dynamic collection of objects including a teddy bear, a corsage bow, a bustier dress and a family of stuffed sculptures. Other features include an intimate glimpse inside Pierpaolo’s Nettuno home by Lorenzo Castore, texts by Francesco Bonami and Luigi Ballerini, musical collages by Gwenaël Rattke, a tribute to costume designer Piero Tosi by Bruce Weber, stills from the short film The Staggering Girl by Luca Guadagnino, and a never-before-seen snapshot of Mr. Valentino’s 1966 haute couture show in Rome photographed and written by Paolo di Paolo.