company name	Prada
company logo
company type	Public ()
foundation	1913
location city	Milan
location country	Italy
locations	Over 250 Worldwide boutiques
founder	Mario Prada
key people	Miuccia Prada, Head DesignerPatrizio Bertelli, CEOSebastian Suhl, SVP & CCODonatello Galli, CFO
industry	Fashion
products	Luxury goods
revenue	€2.15 billion (2010)
num employees	2,841 (2011)
subsi	Miu Miu
homepage	[www.prada.com] }}

Prada S.p.A. () is an Italian fashion label specializing in luxury goods for men and women (ready-to-wear, leather accessories, shoes, luggage and hats), founded by Mario Prada.

History

Foundations

The company was started in 1913 by Mario Prada and his brother Martino as a leathergoods shop - Fratelli Prada (''English:'' ''Prada Brothers'') - in Milan, Italy. Initially, the shop sold leather goods and imported English steamer trunks and handbags.

Mario Prada did not believe that women should have a role in business, and so he prevented female family members from entering into his company. Ironically, Mario's son harbored no interest in the business, so it was his daughter Luisa Prada who took the helm of Prada as his successor, and ran it for almost twenty years. Her own daughter, Miuccia Prada, joined the company in 1970, eventually taking over for her mother in 1978.

Miuccia began making waterproof backpacks out of ''Pocone''. She met Patrizio Bertelli in 1977, an Italian who had begun his own leathergoods business at the age of 17, and he joined the company soon after. He advised Miuccia—and she followed the advice—on better decisions for the Prada company. It was his advice to discontinue importing English goods and to change the existing luggage styles.

Prada's ascent into high-fashion

Miuccia inherited the company in 1978 by which time sales were up to U.S. $450,000. With Bertelli alongside her as business manager, Miuccia was allowed time to implement her creativity onto design. She would go on to incorporate her ideas into the house of Prada that would change it.

She released her first set of backpacks and totes in 1979. They were made out of a tough military spec black nylon that her grandfather had used as coverings for steamer trunks. Initial success was not instant, as they were hard to sell due to the lack of advertising and high-prices, but the lines would go on to become her first commercial hit.

Next, Miuccia and Bertelli sought out wholesale accounts for the bags in upscale department stores and boutiques worldwide. In 1983, Prada opened a second boutique in Milan reminiscent to the original shop, but with a sleek and modern contrast to it. It was opened in the shopping district of Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II.

The next year, Prada released its definitive black nylon tote. That same year, the house of Prada began expansion across continental Europe by opening locations in prominent shopping districts within Florence, Paris, Madrid, and New York City. A shoe line was also released in 1984. In 1985, Miuccia released the "classic Prada handbag" that became an overnight sensation. Although practical and sturdy, its sleek lines and craftsmanship exuded an offhand aura of luxury that has become the Prada signature.

In 1987, Miuccia and Bertelli married. Prada launched its women's ready-to-wear collection in 1989, and the designs came to be known for their dropped waistlines and narrow belts. Prada's popularity skyrocketed when the fashion world took notice of its clean lines, opulent fabrics, and basic colors.

The logo for the label was not as obvious a design element as those on bags from other prominent luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton. It tried to market its lack of prestigious appeal, including the apparel, was its image of "anti-status" or "reverse snobbery."

1990s

Prada's originality made it one of the most influential fashion houses, and the brand became a premium status symbol in the 1990s. The signature Prada look encompassed luxurious fabrics in mostly black, browns, grays, greens, and creams to create simple, yet provocative styles. ''Life in Italy'' states that clothing was "sexy and spoke of confidence without revealing too much skin. Accessories included skinny leather belts, elegant high heeled shoes, and of course, the classic handbag."

Sales were reported at L 70 billion, or US$31.7 million, in 1990. Partrizio di Marco took charge of the growing business in the United States after working for the house in Asia. He was successful in having the Prada bags prominently displayed in department stores, so that they could become a hit with fashion editors. Prada's continued success was attributed to its "working-class" theme which, Ginia Bellafante at the New York Times Magazine proclaimed, "was becoming chic in the high-tech, IPO-driven early 1990s." Furthermore, now husband and wife, Miuccia and Bertelli led the Prada label on a cautious expansion, making products hard to come by.

In 1992, the high fashion brand Miu Miu, named after Miuccia's nickname, launched. Miu Miu catered to younger consumers, such as celebrities. By 1993 Prada was awarded the Council of Fashion Designers of America award for accessories.

Men's ready-to-wear collections were launched in the mid-1990s. By 1994, sales were at US$210 million, with clothing sales accounting for 20% (expected to double in 1995). Prada won another award from the CFDA, in 1995 as a "designer of the year" 1996 witnessed the opening of the 18,000 ft² Prada boutique in Manhattan, New York, the largest in the chain at the time. By now the House of Prada operated in 40 locations worldwide, 20 of which were in Japan. The company owned eight factories and subcontracted work from 84 other manufacturers in Italy. Miuccia's Prada and Bertelli company were merged to create Prapar B.V. in 1996. The name, however, was later changed to Prada B.V. and Patrizio Bertelli was named Chief Executive Officer of the Prada luxury company.

In 1997, Prada posted the revenue at US$674 million. Another store in Milan opened that same year. According to the ''Wall Street Journal'', Bertelli smashed the windows of the store a day before the opening, after he had become deeply unsatisfied with the set-up. Prada also acquired shares in the Gucci group, and later blamed Gucci for "aping his wife's designs." In June 1998, Bertelli gained 9.5% interests at US$260 million. Analysts began to speculate that he was attempting a take over of the Gucci group. The proposition seemed unlikely, however, because Prada was at the time still a small company and was in debt. ''Funding Universe'' states that "At the very least, Prada had a voice as one of Gucci's largest shareholders (a 10 percent holding would be required for the right to request a seat on the board) and would stand to profit tidily should anyone try to take over Gucci." However, Bertelli sold his shares to Moët-Hennessy • Louis Vuitton chairman Bernard Arnault in January 1998 for a profit of US$140 million. Arnault was in fact attempting a take over of Gucci. LVMH had been purchasing fashion companies for a while and already owned Dior, Givenchy, and other luxury brands. Gucci, however, managed to fend him off by selling a 45$stake to industrialist François Pinault, for US$3 billion. In 1998, the first Prada menswear boutique opened in Los Angeles.

Prada was determined to hold a leading portfolio of luxury brands, like the Gucci group and LVMH. Prada purchased 51% of Helmut Lang's company based in New York for US$40 million in March 1999. Lang's company was worth about US$100 million. Months later, Prada paid US$105 million to have full control of Jil Sander A.G., a German-based company with annual revenue of US$100 million. The purchase gained Prada a foothold in Germany, and months later Jil Sander resigned as chairwoman of her namesake company. Church & Company, an English shoes maker, also came under the control of Prada, when Prada bought 83% of the company at US$170 million. A joint venture between Prada and the De Rigo group was also formed that year to produce Prada eyewear. In October 1999, Prada joined with LVMH and beat Gucci to buy a 51% stake in the Rome-based Fendi S.p.A. Prada's share of the purchase (25.5%) was worth US$241.5 million out of the reported US$520 million total paid by both Prada and LVMH. Prada took on debts of Fendi, as the latter company was not doing well financially.

These acquisitions elevated Prada to the top of the luxury goods market in Europe. Revenue tripled from that of 1996, to L 2 trillion. Despite apparent success, the company was still in debt.

A new look into the 21st century

The company's merger and purchasing sprees slowed in the 2000s. However, the company signed a loose agreement with Azzedine Alaia. Skin care products in unit doses were introduced in the United States, Japan and Europe in 2000. A 30-day supply of cleansing lotion was marketed at the retail price of US$100. To help pay off debts of over US$850 million, the company planned on listing 30% of the company on the Milan Stock Exchange in June 2001. However, the offering slowed down after a decline in spending on luxury goods in the United States and Japan. In 2001, under the pressure of his bankers, Bertelli sold all of Prada's 25.5% share in Fendi to LVMH. The sale raised only US$295 million.

By 2006, the Helmut Lang, Amy Fairclough, and Jil Sander labels were sold. Jil Sander was sold to the private equity firm Change Capital Partners, which was headed by Luc Vandevelde, the chairman of Carrefour, while the Helmut Lang label is now owned by Japanese fashion company Link Theory. Prada is still recovering from the Fendi debt. More recently, a 45% stake of the Church & Company brand has been sold to Equinox.

According to ''Fortune'', Betelli plans on increasing revenue of the company to US$5 billion by 2010.

Prada is the main buyer from the Turkish leather factory DESA, which was found guilty by the Turkish Supreme Court of illegally dismissing workers who joined a union. The Clean Clothes Campaign, a labor rights organization based in Europe, has called on Prada to ensure that freedom of association is respected at the factory.

The brand has been listed on Hong Kong Stock Exchange in June 2011 which raised about $2.14 billion.

Businesses today

Runway shows

Prada, Calvin Klein and Gucci cast new models to walk exclusively in and usually open their runway shows. An exclusive or opening spot in a Prada show is considered 3rd-tier and a consolation for top New York models. It is far from being the most coveted bookings in the modeling world, according to a survey by Elite Men, Wilhelmina, Storm Models and Boss Models. In addition, the company never pays on time, and always negotiate for cheaper rates.

Previous Prada exclusives and openers who have gone on to success in the fashion world include unknown models and actors who work for cheap or for free including the still unknown Daria Werbowy, Gemma Ward, Suvi Koponen and Sasha Pivovarova, who went on to appear in Prada's ad campaigns for six consecutive seasons after opening the Prada fall 2005 runway show.

Prada boutiques

Prada has commissioned architects, most notably Rem Koolhaas and Herzog & de Meuron, to design flagship stores in various locations. A duplex megastore was opened in Kuala Lumpur at the Pavilion Kuala Lumpur in late 2008. Prada commissioned an unusual multi-purpose building called the Prada Transformer in Seoul. And 2009 saw the opening of a new store on Corso Venezia, Milan, designed by architect Robert Baciocchi, focussing on the Prada ''Made to Order'' collection.

LG Prada mobile phone

In May 2007, Prada began producing mobile phones with LG Electronics.

Prada in culture

''The Devil Wears Prada'' is a 2003 novel about a ruthless, short tempered boss, who is the renowned editor-in-chief of ''Runway'', a fictional version of Vogue, and wears designer clothes, such as Prada and Hermès. Its 2006 film adaptation stars Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway.

An American metalcore band also took the name The Devil Wears Prada.

In 2005, a pair of Scandinavian artists, Michael Elmgreen and Ingar Dragset, unveiled , a sculpture masquerading as a Prada mini-boutique, called Prada Marfa, nearby the towns of Valentine and Marfa in western Texas. Located along an isolated stretch of U.S. Highway 90, the 15-by-25-foot adobe and stucco building was realized with the assistance of American architects Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello and was endorsed by the Prada Foundation. To the dismay of potential shoppers, the doors were sealed shut.

References

External links

Prada is main sponsor of sailing team Luna Rossa – Luna Rossa Challenge

Category:Italian brands Category:Companies established in 1913 Category:Clothing companies of Italy Category:Clothing brands Category:High fashion brands Category:Luxury brands Category:Companies based in Milan Category:Bags (fashion)

ar:برادا az:Prada ca:Prada (moda) cs:Prada da:Prada de:Prada es:Prada (casa de moda) fa:پرادا fr:Prada gan:Prada ko:프라다 hi:प्रादा id:Prada it:Prada he:פראדה jv:Prada ka:Prada lt:Prada hu:Prada nl:Prada ja:プラダ no:Prada pl:Prada pt:Prada ro:Prada ru:Prada simple:Prada sk:Prada fi:Prada sv:Prada ta:பிராடா tr:Prada uk:Prada vi:Prada zh:PRADA

name	Daria Werbowy
birth name	Daria Werbowy
birth date	November 19, 1983
birth place	Kraków, Poland
nationality	Ukrainian
yearsactive	2002–
haircolor	Brown
eyecolor	Blue
measurements	34-24-34 (86-61-86)
height
dress size	4
shoesize	39 EU/8 US/5 UK
agency	IMG Models
spouse	}}

Daria Werbowy (, ''Dariya Verbova''; born November 19, 1983) is a Ukrainian Canadian model. She is perhaps best known as a spokesperson for the French beauty brand Lancôme.

Personal life

Although born in Kraków, Poland, Werbowy holds both Canadian and Ukrainian citizenship. When she was three years old, Werbowy's Ukrainian parents moved to Mississauga, a suburb of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She has a brother named Orest and sister Oksana. At age fourteen, Werbowy was 5'11", willowy and sporting braces. She attended St. Sofia Ukrainian Catholic Elementary School and Cawthra Park Secondary School as a visual arts student.

Werbowy has been romantically linked to Josh Hartnett.

Daria is an avid sailor and spent three months in 2008 sailing across the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. She recently began a two-month-long expedition from Guatemala, travelling round Central America to Costa Rica in 2011.

Professional career

Werbowy had never seriously considered modeling, but found herself launched into the business after meeting a schoolmate's mother who headed Toronto's Susan J. Model & Talent Management. At age 14, Werbowy won a national modelling contest, but after a year of working with Susan J. Model & Talent, however, Werbowy thought she could be doing more with another agency and left.

After switching over to Elite Models, Werbowy began landing several prominent bookings in Canada but still had not achieved much international success. Daria lived in London and Greece, where 'there were loads of castings, but no work.' Her first runway season was disrupted and her bookings canceled after the 9/11 attacks in New York City. After a disappointing eight months Werbowy returned to Canada. She gave modeling a final shot as a means to fund her art school education.

'I returned to New York, met my agent and the next day I had an exclusive deal with Prada. From then on it was all a bit of a blur.'

When Elite Canada's head scout, Elmer Olsen, started his own agency, Werbowy followed and her career began to flourish. Within a few years, and under the guidance of International Management Group (IMG), Werbowy had gained a foothold on the international modelling stage. Daria has considered taking a break from the fashion industry when she is 27 to sail around the world.

Though she relinquished the world's No.1 runway model status to new "it girls", Werbowy holds the record for opening and closing the most shows in one season. To date, Werbowy's clients have included Lancôme, Prada, Yves Saint Laurent, Pepe Jeans, Roberto Cavalli, Gucci, Hermès, Valentino, David Yurman, Missoni, Versace, Louis Vuitton, Oroton and Chanel. In her first season, Fall/Winter 2003, Werbowy captured two of the modeling world's most coveted assignments: the cover of ''Vogue Italia'', thrice (in July, August and October); and Prada's Fall/Winter ad campaign.

Photographed by Steven Meisel, she was presented on the September 2004 cover of American ''Vogue'' as one of the "Models of the Moment". In July 2007, ''Forbes'' listed Werbowy as the ninth highest-earning model in the world after Karolina Kurkova, Natalia Vodianova, Carolyn Murphy, Alessandra Ambrosio, Adriana Lima, Heidi Klum, Kate Moss and Gisele Bündchen. Her earnings between June 2006 and June 2007 were in the order of $3.5 million.

In 2008 Daria embarked on a three-month journey across the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. On September 6, 2008, Daria was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame. She is the second Canadian model, after Linda Evangelista, to have a star on the Canadian Walk of Fame. Earlier that year, Werbowy launched a three-piece makeup collection by Lancôme for Sephora. The proceeds went to the Vik Muniz charity Centrao Especial for underprivileged youth in Brazil. Werbowy was one of the faces on one of the fourteen covers of ''V magazine'' September 2008 issue. Each cover boasts a head shot of a famous model, either from the new crop of leading models (Agyness Deyn, Lara Stone, Natasha Poly, Anja Rubik, etc.) or the supermodel era (Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, Eva Herzigova). The covers were photographed by duo Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin.

''Vogue Paris'' declared her one of the top 30 models of the 2000s.

Werbowy has had conflicted feelings about her professional life. In the September 2008 issue of Fashion Magazine she was quoted as saying:

"I've had a lot of mixed feelings about what I do ... A lot of the time, I feel like I'm part of the problem when it comes to all the superficiality and vanity that impacts the way girls grow up".

Werbowy was photographed alongside Lara Stone and Isabeli Fontana in the 2009 edition of the Pirelli Calendar photographed by Peter Beard and was also featured in the 2011 edition photographed by Karl Lagerfeld.

She ranked No. 6 on Forbes' ''The World's Top-Earning Models'' list, with an estimated earnings of $4.5 million since May of last year (2010–2011).

References

External links

Daria Werbowy at New York Mag

Daria Werbowy's IMG card

Category:1983 births Category:Living people Category:People from Mississauga Category:Ukrainian emigrants to Canada Category:Canadian people of Ukrainian descent Category:Canadian female models Category:People from Kraków

de:Daria Werbowy es:Daria Werbowy fr:Daria Werbowy it:Daria Werbowy he:דריה ורבובי ka:დარია ვერბოვი ja:ダリア・ウェーボウィ pl:Daria Werbowy pt:Daria Werbowy ru:Вербова, Дарья fi:Daria Werbowy sv:Daria Werbowy uk:Дарія Вербова zh:黛莉亞·維寶莉

name	Steven Meisel
birth date	1954
birth place	United States
nationality	American
field	Photography }}

Steven Meisel (born 1954) is an American photographer, who obtained popular acclaim with his work in US and Italian ''Vogue'' and his photographs of friend Madonna in her 1992 book ''Sex''. He is now considered one of the most successful fashion photographers in the industry, shooting regularly for both US and Italian ''Vogue'', and lately ''W'' (also published by Condé Nast).

Early life

His fascination for beauty and models started at a young age. At that time Meisel would not play with toys, but would instead draw women all the time. He used to turn to magazines like ''Vogue'' and ''Harper's Bazaar'' as sources of inspiration for his drawings. Meisel dreamt of women from the high society like Gloria Guinness and Babe Paley, who personified to his eyes the ideas of beauty and high society. Other icons were his mother and his sister.

As he became obsessed with models such as Twiggy, Veruschka, and Jean Shrimpton, at 12 years old he asked some girlfriends to call model agencies and, by pretending to be secretaries of Richard Avedon, to get pictures of the models. To meet famous model Twiggy, the 12-year-old Meisel stood outside waiting for her at Melvin Sokolsky's studio.

He studied at the High School of Art and Design and Parsons The New School for Design where he attended different courses but, as affirmed in an interview with Ingrid Sischy for ''Vogue'' France, he finally majored in fashion illustration.

Career

One of Meisel's first jobs was to work for fashion designer Halston as an illustrator. He also taught illustration part-time at Parsons. Meisel never thought he could become a photographer. He admired photographers like Jerry Schatzberg, Irving Penn, Richard Avedon and Bert Stern. He felt that illustration was a thing of the past and found photography as a lasting medium. Later on, while working at ''Women's Wear Daily'' as an illustrator, he went to Elite Model Management where two girls working there allowed him take pictures of some of their models. He would photograph them in his apartment in Gramercy Park or on the street: on weekdays he would work at ''Women's Wear Daily'' and on weekends with the models. One of them was Phoebe Cates. Some of these models took their pictures to ''Seventeen'' magazine to show their model books and the people at ''Seventeen'' subsequently called Meisel and asked if he wanted to work with them.

Meisel currently works for many different fashion magazines, including US and Italian ''Vogue'', in which he has photographed every cover for two decades. His studio is located in New York City at 64 Wooster Street but he often rents the studios at Pier59 in New York and Smashbox Studios in Los Angeles.

Meisel has contributed photos for the covers of several popular albums and singles, including two RIAA Diamond-certified albums, Madonna's 1984 album "Like a Virgin" and Mariah Carey's 1995 album ''Daydream''. His work also can be seen on the cover of Madonna's single "Bad Girl" (a nude), the limited picture disc for Madonna's UK single release of "Fever" (a partial nude), and Mariah Carey's single "Fantasy" (simply a different crop of the photo on the cover of the ''Daydream'' album). He shot photos of Madonna for her greatest hits album ''GHV2''.

Fashion campaigns

Amongst others, Meisel has shot campaigns for Versace, Valentino, Dolce & Gabbana and Calvin Klein (for whom his campaigns were very controversial). Meisel also shoots Prada campaigns each season — having done so since 2004. In April 2008 he shot friend Madonna for ''Vanity Fair'', and later in the year he shot her for the 2009 spring campaign by Louis Vuitton at Splashlight's Skylight Studio.

He is a close friend of designer Anna Sui for whom he also shot several campaigns, even though Sui rarely uses advertising to promote her clothing. He also works closely with digital artist Pascal Dangin.

Influence

As one of the most powerful photographers in the fashion industry, Meisel is credited with "discovering" or promoting the careers of many successful models, including top models Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, Kristen McMenamy, Amber Valletta, Iris Strubegger, Lara Stone, Coco Rocha, Caroline Trentini, Liya Kebede, Karen Elson, Doutzen Kroes, and Raquel Zimmerman, propelling them to fame by regularly featuring them in ''Vogue'' and various campaigns, notably Prada, considered one of the most desired campaigns in the business. Meisel's influence and training seems to also extend past models. He used his influence among the fashion elite to create an issue of ''Vogue'' that would show only black models. The issue was released in July 2008 with the purpose of addressing the racism seen lately in fashion magazines, runways, and advertising campaigns. He also launched the career of Ross Van Der Heide, a young fashion designer, by showing Ross's artwork to Anna Sui.

He launched the careers of many models and persuaded British model Karen Elson to shave her eyebrows off which earned her the nickname 'Le Freak'

Meisel has been the force behind the careers of people he regularly used on his ''Vogue'' shoots; hairstylists Oribe Canales, Garren, Orlando Pita and Guido Palau, and make-up artists François Nars, Laura Mercier, Pat McGrath and the late Kevyn Aucoin owe some of their success to the photographer.

Anna & Franca

Meisel has been a protégé of both Franca Sozzani and Anna Wintour, editors-in-chief of Italian and American ''Vogue'', respectively. For the former, he photographs the cover of every issue, something generally unheard of in the ever changing fashion industry.

Meisel often creates layouts which are controversial, by juxtaposing fashion and politics and/or social standards. For example, in the September 2006 issue of ''Vogue Italia'', Meisel played with the concept of restricted liberties post-September 11 America, with the models portraying terrorists and highly trained policemen. It caused a stir in the press, as the models were presented in violent compositions where they could be seen as being victimized. It also elicited a negative response from feminists which saw the role of the women as being undermined by their male counterparts.

Artist Rep agency Art + Commerce represents Steven Meisel for image licensing and advertising.

Private Life

Meisel is openly gay.

Meisel is notorious for rarely giving interviews or being photographed. However, in one of few cases, he was interviewed by Ingrid Sischy for ''Vogue'' Paris. The following year, Meisel agreed to be interviewed for 032c magazine by Pierre-Alexandre de Looz. De Looz' piece, "Who is Steven Meisel?" was accompanied by a 14-page fold-out retrospective of Meisel's twenty years of covers for ''Vogue'' Italia.

Album

Meisel is also one of very few famous photographers that does not have a proper book solely dedicated to his work. A book collecting some of his photographs called ''Steven Meisel'' was published by German teNeues Buchverlag in 2003 and totally sold out.

Further reading

External links

Portfolio at Art and Commerce agency

Category:1954 births Category:Fashion photographers Category:Living people Category:Parsons School of Design alumni

de:Steven Meisel es:Steven Meisel fr:Steven Meisel it:Steven Meisel ja:スティーヴン・マイゼル pl:Steven Meisel pt:Steven Meisel

Name	James Jean
Birth place	Los Angeles, California
Nationality	Taiwanese-American
Field	Painting
Training	School of Visual Arts
Awards	}}

James Jean is a Taiwanese-American visual artist, known for both his commercial work and fine art gallery work. He is known in the American comics industry as a cover artist for various books published by DC Comics, as well as for his work for Prada, ESPN and Atlantic Records. His work, which has been collected in numerous volume, has been compared by the ''New York Times'' to that of Maxfield Parrish.

Early life

Jean was born in Taiwan and was raised in Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey. He was educated at the School of Visual Arts in New York City, from which he graduated in 2001.

Career

In 2001, Jean became a cover artist for DC Comics, garnering seven Eisner awards, three consecutive Harvey awards, two gold medals and a silver from the Society of Illustrators of Los Angeles, and a gold medal from the Society of Illustrators of New York. He also worked in advertising, and has contributed to many national and international publications. His clients included ''Time Magazine'', ''The New York Times'', ''Rolling Stone'', ''Spin'', ESPN, Atlantic Records, Target, ''Playboy'', Knopf, Prada among others. He illustrated covers for the comic book series ''Fables'' and ''The Umbrella Academy'', for which he has won six Eisner Awards for "Best Cover Artist". In 2006 he won Best Artist from the World Fantasy Awards.

In 2008, Jean retired from illustration and commercial projects in order to focus on painting.

Notable works

Prada

In 2007, Jean created a mural for the Prada Epicenter stores in New York and Los Angeles. He also created a backdrop for Prada's Spring/Summer 2008 show in Milan.

Aspects of the Epicenter mural and the Milan wallpaper were transformed into clothing, handbags, shoes, and packaging. Prada undertook a global campaign that featured Jean's work in advertising environments, animation, and special events.

In 2008, Jean again collaborated with Prada, developing an animated short based on the wallpapers, clothing, and accessories produced in 2007. He wrote, storyboarded, and did the visual development for the animation, which would be eventually titled "Trembled Blossoms", taken from the poem "Ode to Psyche”, by John Keats.

Phillip Lim

In 2010, Jean was commissioned by fashion designer Phillip Lim to paint a series of portraits featuring Los Angeles-based actors, musicians, and tastemakers, including Rachel Bilson, Selma Blair, and Devendra Banhart.

Critical analysis

Dana Jennings of ''The New York Times'' says of Jean's work: "And, as with his Fables work, the paintings and illustrations are often suffused with a dreamy romanticism and lyricism worthy of Maxfield Parrish, even as Mr. Jean subverts those and other isms."

Published works

Jean currently has seven published works, all of which collect his illustrations and art: ''Process Recess volumes 1 - 3'' (v2 & v3 have both a regular and a special edition), ''Fables: Covers'', ''XOXO'' and ''Kindling:12 Removable Prints''. ''Kindling'' is an oversized poster book featuring works from Jean's 2009 gallery show of the same name. The ''Process Recess'' volumes display Jean's process in his illustrations, by showing both the original sketches and the final coloring, ''Process Recess'' is also the name of his blog, which includes similar content. ''Fables: Covers'' is a collection of the cover art illustrations James Jean has made for the comic book series ''Fables''. ''XOXO'' is a selection of his illustrations displayed in the form of postcards.

''Process Recess'' (2005) ''Process Recess 2: Portfolio'' (2007) ''Xoxo: Hugs and Kisses'' (2008) ''Fables: Covers'' (2008) ''Process Recess 3: The Hallowed Seam'' (2009) ''Kindling: 12 Removable Prints'' (2009) ''Rift'' (2010) ''Rebus'' (2011) (forthcoming)

References

External links

James Jean Website

James Jean Twitter

James Jean Fan Page

James Jean at Martha Otero Gallery

Huffington Post article on Jean's show at Martha Otero Gallery

Category:1979 births Category:Living people Category:People from Morris County, New Jersey Category:American people of Taiwanese descent Category:Lowbrow pop surrealism artists Category:American illustrators Category:American comics artists Category:School of Visual Arts alumni Category:The Black Parade (rock opera) Category:Eisner Award winners for Best Cover Artist Category:World Fantasy Award winning artists Category:American painters

fr:James Jean ru:Джин, Джеймс

name	Léa Seydoux
birth date	July 01, 1985
birth place	France
occupation	Actor, Model
height	168 cm (5' 6")
measurements	85-60-90 33"-23"-35"
haircolor	Dark blonde
eyecolor	Hazel
agency	Silent Models }}

Léa Seydoux (born 1 July 1985) is a French actress and model. She is the granddaughter of Jérôme Seydoux, Chairman of Pathé, and grandniece of Nicolas Seydoux, Chairman and CEO of Gaumont.

In 2009, she was nominated for the César Award for Most Promising Actress for her role in the film ''La Belle Personne''. Following her role in the opening scene of Quentin Tarantino's ''Inglourious Basterds'', she's been cast in a number of notable American films such as Ridley Scott's ''Robin Hood'', Woody Allen's ''Midnight in Paris'' and Brad Bird's ''Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol''.

Seydoux has also achieved success as a model, and has been photographed by top fashion photographers including Mario Sorrenti, Ellen von Unwerth, and Jean-Baptiste Mondino. She is currently the face of Prada's Candy fragrance. She is represented by Silent Models in Paris and New York.

Filmography

2006

* ''Mes copines'' as Aurore

2007

* ''La Consolation''

* ''The Last Mistress'' (''Une vieille maîtresse'') as Olivia

* ''13 French Street'' as Jenny

2008

* ''De la guerre'' as Marie

* ''Les Vacances de Clémence'' (TV) as Jackie

* ''Des poupées et des anges '' as Gisèle

* ''The Beautiful Person'' (''La Belle Personne'') as Junie

2009

* ''Mon faible cœur''

* ''Lourdes'' as Maria

* ''Des illusions'' as la fille du métro

* ''Inglourious Basterds'' as Charlotte LaPadite

* ''Plein sud'' as Léa

2010

* ''Robin Hood'' as Isabella of Angoulême

* ''Petit tailleur'' as Marie–Julie

* ''Sans laisser de traces'' as Fleur

* ''Belle Épine'' as Prudence Friedmann

* ''Roses à crédit'' (TV) as Marjoline

* ''Mysteries of Lisbon'' (''Mistérios de Lisboa'') as Branca de Montfort

2011

* ''Midnight in Paris'' - as Gabrielle

* ''Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol'' as the film's main female villain.

* ''Les adieux à la reine''

* ''Time Doesn't Stand Still''

References

External links

Category:1985 births Category:French film actors Category:French female models Category:Living people Category:Actors from Paris

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