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Costume, Costume Designer, Fashion, Reviews, Interviews & Features!, Style, Wardrobe Department

Costume Designer-Wardrobe Stylist Paola Erazun’s Winning Style

January 17, 2020 pressva Leave a comment

PAOLA-MARTIN STARR — Paola Erazun with actor Martin Starr

By Dean Evans

With a deep background in both the demading world of high end haute couture and on-set experience in film and video, Costume designer/Wardrobe stylist Paola Erazun is a powerhouse force. Her combination of audacious originality, comprehensive understanding of an assignment’s full spectrum needs and ability to troubleshoot unexpected challenges with the lyric grace of a master jazz musician’s improvisation have established Erazun as an in-demand top hand.

The Madrid-based, Argentine-born Costume designer’s affinity for fashion has been a lifelong romance. “Even when I was a child, I always loved wardrobe and I’m very creative,” Erazun said. “I am always looking at people’s outfits and I love to make people look good!”

\With degrees from Italy’s famed Istituto Europeo di Design and Madrid’s venerable Universidad Complutense, she quickly built up a resume studded with such stellar clients as Dior Cosmetics, Guerlain Paris, Audi, Givenchy, Cartier, Burger King and Chase Bank, Erazun’s flexible capacity and intuitive style allows her to take on a broad variety of platforms, from music videos to television commercials to virtually any type of branded content.

Her transition from fashion to film and video was a natural extension of Erazun’s far- reaching talents. As lead costume designer for the Spanish edition of ‘X Factor,’ Erazun’s team created costumes for contestants, styled the judges and dressed the X Factor girls, invaluable experience that led her to a career path as costume designer.

“Working in fashion was a dream come true,” Erazun said. “I love the fashion world and everything that surrounds it but after 15 years there was a moment where I felt that something was missing. At this point, I started doing more costume design and wardrobe styling in commercials and music videos. I realized that I like storytelling more than fashion world.”

After her X Factor stint, Erazun suited word to action. “I did creative production and styling in London,” Erazun said. “I was working with many high end brands there for five years and then moved to Los Angeles.”

Relocating to Hollywood to work full time as a Costume designer/Wardrobe stylist was an ideal professional evolution, as her recent work with the acclaimed British electro-pop septet Hot Chip on their “Hungry Child” music video makes clear.

“This was a fantastic opportunity because I love this band,” Erazun said. “Such great songs, they get stuck in my head and I can dance to them all day. I’d met [director] Saman Kesh the late last year and we did some jobs together. Then he called me and said ‘I have a music video with Hot Chip and I know you will be great for this!’”

PAOLA-HOT-CHIP-1

It was practically a family affair: “When Saman told me that [actor] Martin Starr would star in the video I was very excited,” she said. Not only because I’m a big fan, but after this video I styled him for events several times and he’s such a great, professional and funny guy. Now, definitely, this video was a dream come true!”

“As Costume designer, music videos are always challenging because of budgets and timing is always tight but we made it work,” Erazun said. “I was concentrating on the wardrobe styling end, and the video’s focus was on the story line, so we wanted something very real, normal, wardrobe that, really, is not even noticed.”

“Martin and Milana played a couple and their colors were mostly in browns, green and beige, but the other characters added a lot–the Uber driver was in a Hawaiian shirt that was great for that scene. popping some colors and a cool pattern inside the car. The therapist wore an African print shirt, we wanted her to be a kind of a guru someone a bit weird, so that shirt was the one–it couldn’t be more perfect for the story!”

Erazun’s meticulous attention to 8detail and unflaggingly creative approach were significant factors in the finished product.

“I really enjoyed it,” she said. “Working with Martin Starr and Milana Vayntrub a great experience, although it was stressful because it was such a long day shoot but the actors made my life easy, the entire team was fantastic. We all are very proud of this project.”

It was very well received, winning the prestigious 2019 Association of Independent Music’s best independent video award, and also garnering a best dance music video nomination from the UKMVA [Music Video Awards], significant events widely recognized as the premier celebrations of global music video and filmmaking.

For Erazun, it was another winning step along her colorful, steadily ascending career path.

“Right now I’m into more creative projects, colorful ones, projects with strong, engaging themes,” she said. “I really want to get into storytelling, create deeply emotional characters, based on what they feel, what the story’s situation is. And I love period pieces, recreating past eras, doing more of that is also a goal.”

With her exceptional roster of impressive credits, far-reaching versatility and profound dedication to her craft, Erazun lives and breathes the essence of the wardrobe stylist’s demanding skill set. For her, it’s the natural order of things.

“”My philosophy is always treat small and big projects exactly the same—and always put the absolute best of myself into the job.”

Art Director, international Talent, Interviews & Features!, Production, Reviews, Interviews & Features!, Style, Women

Graphic Designer Laura Suuronen’s Flair for Arresting Visuals

August 2, 2018 pressva Leave a comment

Graphic designer Laura Suuronen’s command of virtually every conceivable visual format—designing everything from billboards and logos to web sites and product packaging—has established her as one of the preeminent leaders in her field. Suuronen’s gift for delivering a final product which surpasses her client’s original expectations is a skill that’s earned her an international reputation of significant renown.

She has a particular affinity for projects from the world of art and publishing—sophisticated platforms where her impeccable visual style and deep well of skill and instinct really come into play and one of Suuronen’s most striking achievements was her design of a monograph on famed artist Timo Heino for a retrospective exhibition at the Helsinki Art Museum.

“Timo Heino was represented by Galerie Anhava, the leading contemporary art gallery in Finland, who is a client of mine,” Suuronen said. “I’d seen his installation ‘Addiction’ when it was exhibited there, but otherwise I wasn’t familiar with his work. I’d already designed the 20th anniversary book for Anhava, and when Heino asked the gallery directors for recommendations on designers to do the catalog for his retrospective at the Helsinki Art Museum, they dropped my name.”

This was no simple task. Heino is an acclaimed artist with a distinct approach that frequently emphasizes a striking juxtaposition of man-made and organic substances, and Suuronen relished the chance to complement his visual style. The project required her to bring all of her creative techniques to the table—art direction, graphic design, typography, photo editing, layout design—and the book she produced was a stunning example of Suuronen’s versatile design genus.

She managed every aspect of the challenging task from the top down, and typically, expanded her role to also create a visual identity for both the exhibition and its promotional materials. “I created the entire book,” Suuronen said. “The client only provided me text files and photographs. I art directed and designed the whole thing book from the format, materials and photo editing on up. I decided the size and shape of the book, how it’s bound, selected the papers. I chose the typefaces, designed the typography, selected the images, and conceived the structure of the book, its rhythm, its pace, and further highlighted that by the use of different paper stocks.”

From there, Suuronen went directly to the source to finalize the project. The whole process was pretty informal and most of what I presented got approved straight away, from the structure and layout style to paper stocks,” Suuronen said. “For the cover I offered several options, and they chose the one which best fit Heino’s work—we made it into a curious object, a hard cover book complete with soft, squishy cover boards. Seriously, who makes a book to be like an egg?”

Upon publication, Suuronen’s eye-catching mixture of elegance and eccentricity quickly earned significant notice. The monograph was recognized as a Beautiful Book by the prestigious Finnish Book Art Committee’s annual Most Beautiful Books competition and also by the Finnish Art Society with an honorable mention in its Literature Awards category. The Book Art Committee described Suuronen’s work with particular enthusiasm: “What is this? Human skin, animal hide, marble? The cover of this book casts the reader straight into the physical nature of contemporary art: grab, squeeze, open. Anyone who dares to venture into this book is rewarded with a fine introduction to the artist´s works and a pleasant reading experience. The difference between the natural-yellow of the text pages and the chalk-white paper of the photo pages, the calm and well-paced layout and the modern typeface all deserve due thanks.”

Typical of Suuronen’s intuitive style, the book’s design itself reveal as great a depth of insight to the subject as the text and illustrations. “The book presents an experience similar to viewing Heino’s work in a museum setting, but with deeper insight into the artist’s philosophy and approach,” Suuronen said. “The text pages are printed in black only on uncoated cream-colored paper, while the projects are presented in full color on bright white, coated pages. The differences in paper stock not only create rhythm and pace into the flow of the book, but also make each section better functioning: the text sections are easier to read from the off-white, and the artworks are better reproduced on the coated paper. There’s also a few underlying narratives that run hidden throughout the book, should a reader really commit to the experience… there’s different levels in it.”

This is key to Suuronen’s constantly expanding international profile—her innate ability to enhance and elevate a project to the point where it assumes an even greater impact and significance for its audience. As the esteemed American designer Vanessa B. Dewey, formerly Mattel’s Lead in Creative and Development Experience and current LA Design Festival Board of Directors member, said, “I’ve been a fan of Laura’s work for some time—it is a fresh voice that stands out from current design. It possesses a refreshing elegance that catches your eye and pulls you in. While exploring, you’ll discover thoughtfully designed books with brilliantly sophisticated type to vibrant sculptural branding or poster design. Overall, it’s intelligent, simply brilliant design that’s never forced.”

The Los Angeles based Suuronen’s professional recognition steadily grows with each project, making her one of the most in-demand graphic designers anywhere—so much so that her current, very high-profile work load is subject to client mandated non-disclosure agreements. But, with her distinctive flair for arresting visuals, you’ll know it when you see it.

“I’d designed books and record covers before,” Suuronen said. “And these are the most permanent and culturally relevant mediums in the field of graphic design. I actually prefer making things that stand the test of time, as opposed to short lived, more commercial projects. I’m not interested in adding to the noise and clutter, but seek to create work that connects with people. I do love what we ended up with—I live for this stuff.”

Filmmaker, Journalist, Reviews, Interviews & Features!, Style

Filmmaker & Journalist Liliya Anisimova Reveals Her Fashionista Side on TheSTYLEtti

February 15, 2018 lgreenbaulm Leave a comment

From her time as a news anchor for local Moscow news stations Doverie and Teleinform, to working as the host of several hit TV programs on the popular Russian Travel Guide (RTG), journalist and filmmaker Liliya Anisimova has spent a lot of time in front of the camera, and she always looks stunning. Granted, she’s a natural beauty, but her keen eye for fashion truly makes her stand out.

“My mom likes to tell this story all the time of how when I was about three putting clothes on for daycare. I put my yellow track suit on, I remember that suit, it was chic yellow with colorful stars, a Juicy Couture style tracksuit. And my mom gave me pink socks,” Liliya recalls with a smile. “I looked at her and said, ‘I’m not going anywhere in a yellow suit and pink socks. I need yellow socks’… I wouldn’t go anywhere until my mom found me yellow socks. She always tells this story saying, ‘who told you about matching colors, nobody taught you how to pair colors’.”

As a journalist and filmmaker, Liliya Anisimova’s accomplishments are beyond impressive– to the point of making of us wonder if she has some super human power giving her the ability to accomplish more in a day than most. As the writer and director of the films “From Real to Reel,” “Magic of the Underground,” which earned the Best Experimental Film Award at the 2013 Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival, and the poignant documentary “Love is the Highest Law,” which screened internationally and earned numerous awards including the Award of Merit from the 2015 IndieFEST Film Awards, she’s made a strong name for herself as a talented storyteller.

Ironically though, it was Liliya’s chic style, not her seemingly endless accolades, that first caught the attention of The STYLEtti Editor-In-Chief Janea Mastrandrea. Janea recounts on TheSTYLEtti blog, “I was shooting street style in New York one day when I came upon this woman with fabulous shoes. I met filmmaker and shoe-lover Liliya Anisimova. And the next day, we began collaborating.”

Wearing her Charline De Luca black and white heels, black skinny jeans and a light pink-beige soft wool cardigan jacket, Liliya was rushing to meet a friend in midtown NYC when she was approached by Janea, who ironically had no idea that she was already a celebrated journalist.

“[Janea] was a very beautiful classy lady, one of those editor-in-chief looks. She asked about my shoes and complimented my style, and that’s how I met Janea.. and that’s how I started writing for The Styletti. It was such a privilege and joy to start writing column regularly in a fashionable glossy magazine style,” recalls Liliya.

“I’ve since written around a hundred articles about traveling, attending events, meeting outstanding people and of course, fashion.”

Since that fated encounter three years ago, which is proof that you never know who you’re going to meet out there in the world so you might as well opt for looking your best, Anisimova has continued to be a lead fashion columnist on the site.

Janea adds, “[Liliya’s] posts are among our most read.”

Growing up in Volgograd, former Stalingrad, Russia, Liliya’s love for fashion and the desire to express herself through her own unique style was something she developed early on in her youth.

She recalls, “When I was growing up it was the time when the USSR had just crashed and we didn’t have a big clothing or shoe selection in stores. So everyone pretty much looked the same, and I hated it, so I would come up with my own ideas and ask my grandmother to sew and knit me different pieces. I remember she did a knitted 100% light wool sweater and matching knitted sweatpants which I loved!”

It was only a few years later, at the age of 13, that Liliya first began working as a contributing journalist to local newspapers such as the Russian national newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda’s Volgograd regional edition, Volgogradskaya Pravda and Vecherniy Volgograd aka Evening Volgograd.

She admits, “I’ve loved to write since I was a little girl. I used to ‘publish’ my home-made magazine, I published multiple school papers while in high school, and collaborated with some local papers in my hometown before I started my undergrad in broadcast journalism.”

Liliya went on to earn her Bachelor’s in journalism, another Bachelor’s in translation in professional communications and her MFA in Journalism from Moscow State University before relocating to the states where she earned another MFA in Social Documentary Filmmaking from New York’s School of Visual Arts.

As a local news anchor in Russia Liliya covered a wide range of subjects. Occasionally those subjects intersected with her love for fashion, such as covering Moscow Fashion Week; but The STYLEtti has given her a platform to reveal her fashionista side in a different way.

Liliya explains, “For me, writing a column is very much a get away from my daily video work, I write it once a month, sometimes two if the schedule permits. I love attending events, art gallery openings, fashion shows of course, meeting photographers, designers, artists, models and other interesting people. It’s genuinely very inspiring.”

From her articles covering NYFW where she’s interviewed international designers and covered the runway, to those about attending gallery openings, such as Karim Rashid’s exhibit featuring his new design collaborations in Manhattan last Spring, Liliya writes about fashion in a way that makes the reader feel like they’re one of her close pals.

Karim Rashid and Liliya Anisimova at Rashid’s Exhibit in NYC

Dressed to impress, Liliya wore her sensible, but classy black peep-toe Gucci flats, a red Kate Spade knee length coat (featured in another post you can check out here) and her white boatneck sleeveless Raoul dress to Karim Rashid’s exhibit. With over 300 awards under his belt, Karim Rashid is considered one of the world’s most famous industrial designers; and, with the images of Liliya looking chic and stylish at the opening being featured on The STYLEtti site, the post became highly popular and offered readers insight on how to dress one’s best in such a high profile environment.

She often does #OOTD and #OOTN posts as well, which show her personal style for everyday and nightly outings, and serve as a great source of inspiration for those looking to making their wardrobe more fashion forward.

“I like to write about every day simple events, something that anyone can relate to…. I normally get more inspired to find beauty in everyday life in regular people… I think it is my background in journalism and filmmaking that makes me have the same approach to that column.”

On a personal level, Liliya’s natural style is simple, but classy, which makes sense considering her fashion icon is Audrey Hepburn. A little black dress, which she says is ‘as old as time,’ classic nude heels, which work with everything, a silk pastel colored blouse, ajean shirt and black skinny jeans are among the basic selection of items she says are ‘must haves’ for any fashion forward female reader.

While she’s made a name for herself covering hard-hitting news and travel stories, as well as through her work as a documentary filmmaker, where she primarily focuses on human interest stories relevant to present times, fashion has been a part of Liliya Anisimova’s life all along. So, having her own fashion column is not only the perfect grounds for her talent and personal interests to intersect, but it also continues to draw readers to The STYLEtti site.

Janea says, “Liliya’s sense of humor and understanding of what interests our audience has helped grow our exposure and keeps readers coming back for her influence and entertainment.”