Back in August, i got a glimpse of the covers for the September issue of Paper Magazine. For its 30th anniversary edition, Paper Magazine snagged interviews with 37 influential “artists, visionaries, icons, and iconoclasts” of our era as part of the “Meet the Original Gangsters” feature. The issue features interviews with trendsetters from the worlds of fashion, photography, film, music, literature, publishing and more. Photographers captured one black and white image of each trailblazer, traveling everywhere from Wyoming to Tokyo for it.
Jean-Paul Goude and Azzedine Alaia: Unmatched by Philippe Baummann
One of the most brilliant and iconic image-makers
of the 20th century, Jean-Paul Goude combined an extraordinary creative
director’s eye with his talent for photography, illustration, graphic
design and editorial thinking to create shocking and spectacular
conceptual commercial and noncommercial art, the likes of which have
never been equaled.
Some have said, “Only God knows a woman’s body
better than Azzedine Alaia,” the fiercely independent couturier. This
Tunisian born, France-based cult hero is not only a brilliant designer
but an outsider who has not participated in Fashion Week since 1992, has
publicly criticized Anna Wintour and is outspoken about the destructive
pressure the fashion system puts on talented designers.
Personal OGs: “Bill Cunningham is an OG… he knows fashion better than anybody.”
Personal OGs: “Bill Cunningham is an OG… he knows fashion better than anybody.”
On his career: “As for success, I don’t care for it. It is a fragile thing.”
Sarah Andelman: The High-Low Visionary by Thomas Lavelle
To this day, Colette, the Paris boutique that Sarah
Andelman and her mother opened in 1997, is a fashion mecca that was the
first of its kind — beloved for its whimsical blend of high and low, of
fashion, art, food and pop culture. With her boyish hair and
understated personal style, Sarah is a true editor and treats her shop
like a magazine, scouring the earth for scoops and the latest
amazingness.
What made you succeed when many other pioneers did not?
Work and work.
Work and work.
What do you consider success to be?
To make some people happy.
To make some people happy.
Do you ever trust other people to help you?
For sure, we’re nothing without a good team.
Who has been an inspiration to you in your career?
My mum of course!
What were you like as a child?
Curious.
Is there anything that you’ve seen recently that you think is completely radical? Something that shocked you?
It’s not radical at all but I’m shocked by the beauty you can find in the nature: the sky, a flower, a rabbit.
Afrika Bambaataa: The Forefather of Rap by Rodolfo Martinez
Few artists have united as many disparate scenes,
with such earth-shaking results, as hip-hop forefather Afrika Bambaataa.
Bringing together old-school funk, new wave and club culture, and
adding heavy doses of street art and Black Power, the South Bronx native
transformed the then-unnamed genre of rap into a phenomenon. To this
day, his 1982 track “Planet Rock” is a roof-raising testament to his
genius.
Personal OGs: The X Clan with Professor X, Paradise, Doug E Fresh, Immortal Technique, a young lady out of Georgia named Sa-Roc.
What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome in your career?
Keeping up the spirituality in a crazy world that tries to bring so much negative upon you. Keeping strong and humble, respecting everybody who you meet and greet on this great planet of ours. I have to give it to all of the greats that stood before me, that did something good in my community. I live by Sly and the Family Stone’s record Stand!
What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome in your career?
Keeping up the spirituality in a crazy world that tries to bring so much negative upon you. Keeping strong and humble, respecting everybody who you meet and greet on this great planet of ours. I have to give it to all of the greats that stood before me, that did something good in my community. I live by Sly and the Family Stone’s record Stand!
What do you consider to be the biggest success of your career thus far?
I traveled the world and I have had many people tell me that I saved their life. That’s a big inspiration to me.
I traveled the world and I have had many people tell me that I saved their life. That’s a big inspiration to me.
Nick Cave: The Art of Movement by Victor Skrebneski
With bold moves like creating a flash mob composed
of humans wearing giant, colorful fringed horse costumes in the middle
of Grand Central Station (HEARD•NY, 2013), Chicago-based visual and
performance artist Nick Cave brings shocking fashion, costume and
movement to unexpected places — proving that art can be both playful and
profound.
Personal OGs: Rei Kawakubo, Victor & Rolf, Grace Jones, [Anselm] Kiefer, [Gerhard] Richter, David Bowie, Jasper Johns and Michael Jackson.
Personal OGs: Rei Kawakubo, Victor & Rolf, Grace Jones, [Anselm] Kiefer, [Gerhard] Richter, David Bowie, Jasper Johns and Michael Jackson.
Have you ever ever felt truly shaken by a criticism or suffered a set-back in your work?
A performance I did in my 20’s fell apart and almost crumbled me. But I got right back up on my two feet.
A performance I did in my 20’s fell apart and almost crumbled me. But I got right back up on my two feet.
What was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome in your career?
The fear of success and giving myself full permission to be me.
What were you like as a child?
Free and extremely shy.
Do you consider yourself to be a control freak?
A control freak I am not, but, I do know what I want. I am open to others input as long as it remains authentic to my vision or message.
The fear of success and giving myself full permission to be me.
What were you like as a child?
Free and extremely shy.
Do you consider yourself to be a control freak?
A control freak I am not, but, I do know what I want. I am open to others input as long as it remains authentic to my vision or message.
What have you seen recently that’s shocked you?
Eric Gainer’s death in July — the NYPD put him in a
chokehold and slammed his face to the sidewalk killing him. That could
have been me
What do you consider to be the biggest success of your career thus far?
Success is when I am using my ART as a vehicle for
change. I am an artist with a civic responsibility. HEARD•NY was one of
those projects.
Bethann Hardison: The Truth-Teller by Diggy Lloyd
With her Black Girls Coalition, launched in 1988
with Naomi Campbell and Iman, Bethann Hardison — a former model herself,
as well as the founder of a modeling agency and an inveterate activist —
continues to monitor diversity in the modeling industry, whether in
advertising or editorial or on the runway, to ensure that fashion is
inclusive and looks like the world we live in.
How do you define success?
When I don’t have to worry about a thing, that’s when I’ll feel successful. That comes in life — people walk away from things, even if they feel they haven’t completed the journey, even if they found they haven’t really made their mark. Once they decide, “I’m not going to try it anymore,” I think that’s even a success. Looking at life, sometimes if you tried five or six times, I think its time to say, “OK, move it along.” You want to know and feel like you can breathe and not worry too much. That to me is success. Its that deep breath that you take and you can stretch your body and exercise freely and be at ease and not concerned about what’s happening next and what should I do and why should I do it and those types of things. And working at things that help improve change. When those things are no longer in your priority, not in your face, I think that’s when you’re successful. And that, for me,hasn’t really come yet.
When I don’t have to worry about a thing, that’s when I’ll feel successful. That comes in life — people walk away from things, even if they feel they haven’t completed the journey, even if they found they haven’t really made their mark. Once they decide, “I’m not going to try it anymore,” I think that’s even a success. Looking at life, sometimes if you tried five or six times, I think its time to say, “OK, move it along.” You want to know and feel like you can breathe and not worry too much. That to me is success. Its that deep breath that you take and you can stretch your body and exercise freely and be at ease and not concerned about what’s happening next and what should I do and why should I do it and those types of things. And working at things that help improve change. When those things are no longer in your priority, not in your face, I think that’s when you’re successful. And that, for me,hasn’t really come yet.
Angel Haze: Relentless Flow by Albert Sanchez
On Angel Haze’s debut album, Dirty Gold, we were
introduced to a 22-year-old woman unafraid to use her fierce, relentless
flow to confront unspeakable personal trauma. Add to that her refusal
to identify with a single sexual orientation and it’s clear that Haze is
a crucial new voice in the bling-centric boys’ club of mainstream rap.
Personal OGs: Tracy Chapman, Adele, Kanye West, Eminem, Natalia Kills, Chance the Rapper, Ed Sheeran, Frank Ocean, Bruno Mars.
What made who you are? Have you always been determined?
I think it’s somewhat of a personality trait — maybe I inherited it from my mother. I just know I’ve always believed that you should fall, get back up, and keep going.
What made who you are? Have you always been determined?
I think it’s somewhat of a personality trait — maybe I inherited it from my mother. I just know I’ve always believed that you should fall, get back up, and keep going.
Have you ever felt truly hurt or shaken by a criticism of your work?
When I was first signed, lots of people said things that just tore me up.
When I was first signed, lots of people said things that just tore me up.
What were you like as a child?
I was mute as a child (not literally, I just never
spoke). I spent loads of my time reading. When I became a teen, I was
introverted and a loner.
How do you define success?
Success to me is getting the opportunity to do what
you love repeatedly. I think that being able to travel the world
speaking my mind freely is my biggest success thus far.
What has your experience been like with your supporters? What is the best thing a fan has ever given you or done for you?
My relationship with fans is a pretty open one, to be honest. They’ve given me the platform I have now.
Is there anything that you’ve seen recently that you think is completely radical?
FERGUSON.
James Jebbia: Supreme Ruler by Diggy Lloyd
20 years ago, when James Jebbia opened his first
Supreme shop, it became apparent that his brand was destined for cult
status. Not because Jebbia is a cult figure or has celebrity
endorsements, but because of the taste, intelligence and culture
integrated into the coveted and collectible Supreme products, from
skateboards to clothing.
Personal OGs: Ralph Lauren and the Beastie
Boys. Ralph is somebody that doesn’t change with trends and has just
kept it up and gotten better and better. That’s what we aspire to,
without getting boring. The Beastie Boys made dope music, changed youth
culture and always kept their integrity.
What was it that made you succeed when many other pioneers did not?
We’ve worked really hard. We haven’t dumbed anything down. We are constantly trying to do something new and surprising for people.
We’ve worked really hard. We haven’t dumbed anything down. We are constantly trying to do something new and surprising for people.
What is success to you?
Success to me, as a brand, is when we can do something that we think is great and that put a lot of work and energy into and that our audience understands and gets. You can put a lot of work into something that you think is great, but if you haven’t set things up right, you just fall flat and nobody likes it or wants it. For us, it’s staying really relevant to young people. It wouldn’t mean anything to me if we just had the old customers buying it. For us, it’s getting the young, new generation into it while also having the people who’ve been into it for many years still appreciating it. That’s really important — it’s the key to our success. We also don’t take things for granted — we treat it like a new business all the time. I look at it no different than making a movie: you can like a movie a lot, but it doesn’t mean you’ll like the next one. I feel it’s the same with us, so we always keep it up. We try to have new things that people are surprised by and really love and cherish.
Success to me, as a brand, is when we can do something that we think is great and that put a lot of work and energy into and that our audience understands and gets. You can put a lot of work into something that you think is great, but if you haven’t set things up right, you just fall flat and nobody likes it or wants it. For us, it’s staying really relevant to young people. It wouldn’t mean anything to me if we just had the old customers buying it. For us, it’s getting the young, new generation into it while also having the people who’ve been into it for many years still appreciating it. That’s really important — it’s the key to our success. We also don’t take things for granted — we treat it like a new business all the time. I look at it no different than making a movie: you can like a movie a lot, but it doesn’t mean you’ll like the next one. I feel it’s the same with us, so we always keep it up. We try to have new things that people are surprised by and really love and cherish.
You don’t come at it from a money perspective?
No.
Hiroshi Fujiwara: The Godfather of Harajuku by Tomokazu Hamada
An OG of high sophistication, supreme street cred
and impeccable cool, Hiroshi Fujiwara is the real deal. In the early
’80s he traveled from the sacred Shinto city of Ise, Japan, to London,
where he befriended the cultural provocateurs Malcolm McLaren and
Vivienne Westwood, and to New York, where he soaked up cultural
zeitgeist (eventually collecting the likes of Jean-Michel Basquiat).
When he returned to Japan, he brought a world of esoteric knowledge,
understanding and subversive strategies, transforming his nation — and
in turn the rest of the world — with a radical vision of style that is
iconic in form, riotous in effect, anarchic in philosophy and the
epitome of otaku’s obsessive attention to aesthetic detail.Describing
himself as a “cultural DJ,” Hiroshi Fujiwara is now regarded as the
Godfather of Harajuku, the neighborhood in Tokyo synonymous with youth
culture and the streetwear that he pioneered.
Personal OGs:
It would be very hard for me to choose someone in particular. I respect all creative people.
It would be very hard for me to choose someone in particular. I respect all creative people.
Who has been an inspiration in your career?
Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren.
What do you think it was that made you succeed when many other pioneers did not?
I didn’t have any obstacles that I needed to
overcome. I think I made it this far because I always chose roads that
did not pose obstacles.
What do you consider success to be?
I think success is an accumulation of small successes.
Rick Owens & Michele Lamy: Fashion’s Dark Priest and Priestess
When it comes to packing a high-fashion visual
punch it’s hard to beat power couple Rick Owens and Michele Lamy. Owens’
eponymous line is unmistakably high fashion, but it’s his love of rock
‘n’ roll and all things dark and sinister that have made him a fashion
force. Lamy ran her own eponymous line and lorded over a secret L.A.
restaurant and celebrity hangout (among many other things) before
relocating to Paris in the early aughts to copilot Owens’ line. The two
were introduced by Owens’ then boyfriend in L.A. and ultimately became a
couple, marrying in 2006, and are business partners as well. Designer
Owens says he trusts her instincts more than his own.
Shirin Neshat: A Voice for the Voiceless by Rodolfo Martinez
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