Mar 17, 2011

Anna Dello Russo is Awesome

Passion is a word that leaps to mind when scrambling to describe Dello Russo's approach to fashion. Helmut Newton had another term: "fashion maniac", a badge she wears with pride. Her overwhelming love of the industry stands as anathema to the black-clad fashion world's obsession with cool. Dello Russo has the maxim "I don't want to be cool, I want to be fashion" writ large across her blog, and is rarely clad in black, preferring instead the peacock plumage of sequins, furs, Technicolor satin and gold – preferably all at the same time.
What does she make of the breathtaking attention she has garnered? She loves it. That comes through in the pictures of her – unlike the static, studied poses of other fashion hacks, Dello Russo seems in constant animation, laughing, waving, and generally having a whale of a time in her front-row seat. After all, a woman doesn't take to the Ungaro catwalk clutching a jewelled sheep grudgingly. For her, this is the achievement of a life-long dream. "I used to be like Cinderella, working hard in the kitchen. Now finally I've been invited to the ball."
It's uncertain where the cash comes from to fund her obsession – she is uncharacteristically cagey about consultancy work, although rumours abound as to the collections she has a hand in (here's a hint: look for anything gold). She also asserts that her clothes aren't gifts but are bought retail – a considerable investment given that just one of those racy Balmain frocks she sported during fashion week would set you back 10 grand, never mind the k cost of that additional apartment. Dello Russo's reasoning behind such expenditure? "It's a job, but on me. It's like going to the dentist – if you go to the dentist and the dentist doesn't have beautiful white teeth... then how good is he?" 

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