Dolce Magazine — Winter 2018/19

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Louvre Pyramid, Paris For as long as it has existed, glass has mesmerized onlookers with its drama. It is solid, but seems liquid, ethereal and magical, barely there; an invisible soaring wall that protects you from nature at the same time as it showcases its aweinspiring beauty. Architects around the world – and throughout time – have experimented with the design opportunities glass presents. Its purity and clarity provoke the imagination, demanding contemplation of what it means to be alive, open to the wonder of light and connected to the beauty of the world.

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Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Milan It is not just the drama of pure transparency that gives glass its stunning power.

It also has the ability to make you happy, to delight, soothe and restore you.

Watch the fall of gentle snowflakes blanket the city, transforming it into a quiet wonderland. An expanse of glass windows lifts the mood as the sun rises and traverses the sky, poking its fingers through the leaves of trees, across the face of buildings and down the length of avenues, decorating a city in a thousand, intricate patterns of light and dark.

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WINTER 2018/19 • VOLUME 22 • ISSUE 4 Publisher/Editor-in-Chief MICHELLE ZERILLO-SOSA michelle@dolce.ca Director of Operations ANGELA PALMIERI-ZERILLO angela@dolce.ca

ART DEPARTMENT Co-Founder/Creative Director FERNANDO ZERILLO fernando@dolce.ca Senior Graphic Designer CHRISTINA BAN Graphic Designer MEGAN CRONJE Senior UI/UX Designer YENA YOO Junior UI/UX Designer NATHAN CHAN Web Developer JORDAN CARTER

EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT Fashion & Home Décor Editor MICHELLE ZERILLO-SOSA Beauty & Travel Editor ANGELA PALMIERI-ZERILLO Writer VICTORIA SCOTT Copy Editors and Proofreaders CATHARINE CHEN, JENNIFER D. FORSTER, NINA HOESCHELE Contributing Writers SHAUN MELADY, RICK MULLER, DONNA PARIS, CECE M. SCOTT Contributing Photographers GEOFF FITZGERALD, CLAUDIUS HOLZMANN, THOMAS LOUVAGNY, JESSE MILNS, CARLOS A. PINTO, RAHI REZVANI Social Media Managers ADRIANA PARENTE, JESSICA SPERA

VIDEO DEPARTMENT Videographer CARLOS A. PINTO

ADVERTISING Director of Marketing ANGELA PALMIERI-ZERILLO angela@dolce.ca Director of New Business Development SUSAN BHATIA susan@dolce.ca Senior Account Manager MARIO BALACEANU Account Manager CHRISTINA BONO

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES T: 905-264-6789 info@dolce.ca • www.dolcemag.com Office Administrator MARIA DIRICO Front Cover DONATELLA VERSACE Portrait by RAHI REZVANI

Dolce Magazine is published quarterly by Dolce Media Group, 111 Zenway Blvd., Suite 30, Vaughan, Ont., L4H 3H9 T: 905-264-6789, info@dolce.ca, www.dolcemedia.ca Publication Mail Agreement No. 40026675. All rights reserved. Any reproduction is strictly prohibited without written consent from the publisher.

Dolce Magazine reaches over 900,000 affluent readers annually through household distribution across Canada. Dolce Magazine is also available to over 100 million digital consumers of Magzter Inc. and Issuu. Inquiries about where else Dolce Magazine is available for sale may be directed to Dolce Media Group: info@dolcemedia.ca or 905-264-6789.

The yearly subscription fee is CDN$34 and US$48. Send cheque or money order to Dolce Media Group, 111 Zenway Blvd., Suite 30, Vaughan, Ont., L4H 3H9, Canada The opinions expressed in Dolce Magazine are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher or advertisers. Dolce Media Group does not assume liability for content. The material in this magazine is intended for information purposes only and is in no way intended to supersede professional advice.

We are proud to be a Canadian company that has successfully published magazines for the past 21 years without any government funding or financial assistance of programs to cover editorial costs. It has all been possible thanks to the wonderful support of our readers and advertisers.

ISSN 2370-4063 Next Issue: Spring 2019 ©2018 Dolce Media Group. Printed in Canada.

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16 DOLCE MAGAZINE | www.dolcemag.com

WINTER 2018/19

WHEN YOU INTRODUCE THE "X" FACTOR INTO A PREDOMINANTLY "Y" BUSINESS WORLD, THE RESULTS ARE BOUNDLESS. The build is no longer just a build.

It is a creation that is born of endless possibility.

All senses are considered.

All possibilities are explored and the true essence of your vision is born.

"I take pride in being a strong woman in a traditionally male-dominated industry." — Rose Barroso

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PUBLISHER’S NOTE PUBLISHER’S NOTE Believe In a world that is fast becoming soulless Be challenged to find your own soul Then make it selfless.

When the television portrays only tragedy Be challenged to turn it off Spend your time working on your own humility.

If you’re surrounded by people who are envious Be challenged to cull the herd around you Fill your life with those who bring joyousness.

During the times you feel utterly hopeless Be challenged to claw your way out Understand that genuine happiness is timeless.

Find your soul. Believe in yourself. Trust in your God. Love your family. Share your plenty. Lean when you need. Live out loud.

Love heartily. Grow your humanity.

Infect the world with your faith.

— from The Wife by Iris Imeneo

Michelle Zerillo-Sosa

Co-Founder/Editor-in-Chief

A

Fernando Zerillo

natural Co-Founder/Creative Director

lways dare … it’s the only way to fashion alliance spread like wildfi re. When some transform our dreams into reality. Michelle aficionados expressedPublisher/Editor-in-Chief their disappointment and Zerillo-Sosa, Those who dare to risk have a strong their fear that the brand might lose touch with its chance of success. Some are selfItalian origins, Donatella took to social media to made, some start with a lucky break and others are make her rebuttal and to alleviate these concerns. survivors with the innate coping skills necessary She reassured fans that this is a brave new era for to keep going in the face of adversity, tragedy and criticism. They keep their steely gaze fi xed on their vision of the future. They pave their own way to their dreams. Some would say that the secret of ell, in the case of Yolanda Gampp, this could be improving one’s life is to improve one’s ability to a real possibility. If you’re not yet familiar with deal with challenges, to cope and thrive. This is her work, she is a multi-millionaire YouTube particularly true in the case of Donatella Francesca baker (3.3 million subscribers, that is) … all Versace, the haute couture queen who has survived thanks to her incredible imagination. personal loss, criticism and self-doubt, and she was Th is is a woman who dreams up cakes for a living — not able not only to lead the Versace brand after the traditional tiered shapes and flavours, but cakes that look like — Unknown untimely death of her brother, Gianni, for 20 years, hot dogs, huge candy apples, watermelons, in flavours like the but also to find her own voice. ultimate red velvet and chocolate cake … You get the idea.

Few brands can claim such enduring renown.

Sweet mother of God, this lady has the power to tempt even Versace is an icon, in part due to its strong family the strongest-willed person with her cakes! Her belief is that DNA. The luxury Italian brand is as beloved by anything is possible, and with the love and support of family celebrities on the red carpet as it is by budding Versace, one that will focus on keeping the brand and friends, the highest levels of success are attainable. Read artists dreaming of making it big. Versace is the relevant in today’s society and culture, while her story on page 38. dream they aspire to, the lifestyle. Being ableSpeaking to continuing to promote theour message of women’s of belief, we all pray that faith need never be fi nally wear the cherished brand signifiestested that the empowerment, equality and freedom. way Paul De Lio’s is. Many of us go through life Donatella points out the brand they have reached the pinnacle of success. without ever having to question whythat tragedies strikeoriginally our lives or In our candid interview with Donatella,the our lives ofsucceeded others in thebecause world. A it fewwas yearsunique: back, we “Gianni published cover girl shares her new-found inspiration alwaysthedared a lot.ofHe hated to be on asking the safe an article about definition God. I remember the and optimism about the recent deal thatwriter she to pose side.” thistowillingness to take risks “Where meant thisWhile question various religious leaders: spearheaded with Michael Kors. News ofwas thisGod in opening oneself a lot ofGiven criticism, it wasstate whatof moments such to as 9/11?” the recent

CAN YOU HAVE YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT TOO?

W

“Life holds a special magic for those who dare to dream”

disasters and extreme weather conditions, one could ask the same question now. In De Lio’s case, where was God when deadly bacteria infected his body, nearly taking his life and resulting in the amputation of both of his legs?

In that article years ago, one of the questioned religious leaders replied that God was in the firemen going up the stairs to rescue propelled the fashion house forward. Versace the people in the towers. It’s a response that to this date gives me had the courage to epitomize joie de vivre — this comfort. Likewise, now, God is in the rescue workers bringing is a philosophy embraced Donatella herself, relief to Puerto Rico, Mexicoby and Florida. And God was in the who is grateful that women around the globe doctors who fought to save Paul De Lio. He was with the family still respond to prayed her family brand: me the and friends who for De Lio’s “It lifegives and later, for his recovery. confi dence domonths more, after push his further and Today, just ato few ordeal, Demake Lio is filled with Versace it has ever (Full onfind ways to positivitythe andbest gratitude.

He isbeen.” ready to helpstory others page 80.) motivation. Dare I say, then, God also resides in De live with Asheart. we put nishing touches Lio’s Seethe his fistory on page 32. on the last edition of the we want thank Of course, it’syear, possible you dotonot agreeyou withformy thoughts on the whereabouts of the God.stories We allof know that one should not inspiring us to seek individuals speakcelebrate casually the of politics or joyfulness religion, for these are sensitive who good, the of human topics (although exactly safe topic anymore, connection — the thatweather is the isn’t essence ofa la dolce either).

But perhaps you will be our story about vita.

Please stay connected in interested between in issues the visiting Bahá’Í Faith, a relatively new religion 5 to 7 million by us online and on our socialwith media adherents practising globally.

If you believe in the betterment of accounts for new stories that are topical, relevant the world, in unity, love and service, you might fi nd your place and motivational. here.

Bahá’Í’s believe in equality of all sexes, races We wish you all happy holidays. May the new and creeds, and in the harmony of science and religion. Story on page 74. year bring you more confidence, more energy, In this day and age, we could all use more unity, love and faith, more love, more acceptance and willingness to regardless of what form it takes. May you enjoy this edition of always dare.

City Life Magazine. It, like life, is yours to experience and do with what you will.

Michelle Zerillo-Sosa Michelle Zerillo-Sosa Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Publisher/Editor-in-Chief

Fernando Zerillo Co-Founder/Creative Director

@dolcemag / @amorebagstoronto / @fernandozerillo @dolcetweets @amorebagstoronto

18 DOLCE MAGAZINE | www.dolcemag.com

WINTER 2018/19

2018 OPENING OF THE YEAR TRE FORCHETTE

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CONTENTS WINTER 2018/19 / VOLUME 22 / ISSUE 4

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DONATELLA VERSACE: A look inside the life of one of the fashion industry’s most prolific figures

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KARIM RASHID: More than 200 projects from this acclaimed designer will be on display at his exhibition at the Ottawa Art Gallery

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OBJECTS OF DESIRE: A first look at the must-haves for the holiday season

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COMMANDING DEVELOPERS: Deconstructing the industry, this series examines five of North America’s acclaimed developers

CARRERA Y CARRERA: Celebrating this international brand’s success in Toronto with its Yorkville boutique

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BRIAN GLUCKSTEIN: Thirty years of experience comes together with the release of his new book, Brian Gluckstein: The Art of Home

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GRACE CODDINGTON: Reflecting on the successful career of Vogue’s creative director

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LAMBORGHINI URUS: Fusing the finesse of a sports car with the functionality of an SUV

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BARREN BEAUTY: Beauty can be found even in the simplest of settings 60 COCO ROCHA: Teaming up with LG, this world-famous supermodel shares her tips and tricks to care for clothing 74 SASSOON SALON: Celebrating 50 years and A Night in Style at Sassoon Salon’s Yorkville location More stories inside ...

20 DOLCE MAGAZINE | www.dolcemag.com

WINTER 2018/19

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21 www.dolcemag.com | DOLCE MAGAZINE

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dolce was there Hilary Weston tribute event

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photos by GeorGe piMental

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September marked a momentous occasion for the Prince’s Trust Canada, with a celebration of the Hon. Hilary Weston that reflected on her tireless dedication to the trust charity and looked forward as she prepares to occupy her new role as chair emeritus of the Prince’s Trust Canada board. Organized by Sylvia and Robert Mantella, the event was attended by donors and supporters alike, as well as the lieutenant-governors from Ontario and Alberta. HRH The Prince of Wales also composed a video message for the Hon. Hilary Weston, thanking her for her dedication to the trust since its inception. www.princestrust.ca

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1. Robert and Sylvia Mantella, the Hon. Hilary Weston and Galen Weston 2. National Chief Perry Bellegarde and Valerie Galley 3. Dorothy and Sherwin Aarons 4. Rob and Shauna Fonn 5. Robert and Cheryl McEwen 6. HRH The Prince of Wales (via video message) and the Hon. Hilary Weston 7. Gordon and Janet Nixon 8. The Hon. Lois Mitchell, Mark Fell, the Hon. Elizabeth Dowdeswell, Sharon Broughton 9. Sylvia Mantella and The Tenors 10. Craig and Cynthia Thorburn 11. Sean Murray, Jamilah Taib-Murray, Astrid and Justin Fogarty 12. The Hon. Hilary Weston and Galen Weston

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Collaborating with The Hollywood Reporter, Bleecker Street and Elevation Pictures, Hudson’s Bay hosted a luxurious dinner at La Palma to celebrate two of the notable films at the 43rd Toronto International Film Festival, Colette and What They Had. Celebrities, including Keira Knightley, Taissa Farmiga and Denise Gough, attended, as well as the directors of each film. Representatives from the host companies, including Alison Coville, president of Hudson’s Bay, and Patrick Dickinson, senior vice-president marketing, Hudson’s Bay, also attended. With a fourcourse dinner and Hudson’s Bay totes, guests enjoyed a memorable experience in one of Toronto’s leading locales.

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www.thebay.com

photos by Matt Winkler/Getty entertainMent

HuDson’s bay

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1. Celebrating Colette and What They Had at a private dinner 2. Keira Knightley and Hilary Swank 3. From left: Matthew Belloni, editorial director at The Hollywood Reporter, Alison Coville, president of Hudson’s Bay, and Andrew Karpen 4. Robert Forster and guest, Denise Goldberg 5. Michael Shannon and Matthew Belloni

22 DOLCE MAGAZINE | www.dolcemag.com

WINTER 2018/19

PERFORMANCE MEETS PERFORMANCE And it’s a well-suited match. The 500-HP 2018 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Car dressed in Policaro Motorsport colours, and generational talent Auston Matthews. Picture-perfect performance with Policaro Group – a world-class automotive retailer.

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dolce was there 1

ricHarD Mille

photos by lucas scarfone

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Launched in 2001, Richard Mille is one of world’s most prestigious watch brands. The company has recently expanded its reach with the grand opening of its first location in Canada.

Located at 135 Yorkville Ave., the street was lined with super-luxe automobiles as VIP guests arrived at the intimate event and previewed the new space. With cocktails and canapĂŠs provided by ONE Restaurant, guests perused the store, examining the original timepieces, including watches from the newest collection. The grand opening also featured an exclusive tasting lounge with Louis XIII cognac, toasting Richard Mille and the first flagship store in Canada. www.richardmille.com

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1. Andrew, Nathalie and Richard Wachsberg 2. Mr. and Mrs. Errol Jones 3. Michael and Marilena Latifi 4. Sebastian Giovinco and Francesco Policaro 5. Richard Erlick and Paul Lazzari 6. Jason Claxton and Danny Ardellini 7. Jennifer Bozzo and Remo Ferri 8. Armando and Jacquie Baldassarra 9. Marc and Enza Muzzo 10. Andrew and Tania Gucciardi

24 DOLCE MAGAZINE | www.dolcemag.com

WINTER 2018/19

COMING SOON COMING SOON PINE VALLEY A

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Thisofspectacular collection homes will be The beauty nearby Kleinburg willof betraditional celebratedand in acontemporary thoughtfully planned polished to perfection with upscale refinements. lush greenery community with impressive estate homes comingSurrounded soon. Here by Lindvest, with its and over forever views, 407isand 400, a its home at Klein Estates is 60-year historyyet of just fine minutes buildingto in Hwys the GTA, bringing signature style to Klein confirmation that you’ve collection arrived.

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The beauty of nearby Kleinburg will be celebrated in a thoughtfully planned community with impressive estate homes coming soon. Here Lindvest, with its over 60-year history of fine building in the GTA, is bringing its signature style to Klein Estates. This spectacular collection of traditional and contemporary homes will be polished perfection with upscale refinements.

42ʼ ANDto50ʼ UPSCALE HOMES AT PINE Surrounded VALLEY by lush greenery and forever views, just Kleinburg minutes towill Hwys 407 and 400, a thoughtfully home at Kleinplanned Estates is The beauty of yet nearby be celebrated in a community with impressive estate homes coming soon. Here Lindvest, with its over confirmation you’ve arrived.

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dolce was there 14 1

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Oct. 20 marked the eighth annual Diwali — A Night to Shine event. With diverse entertainment and magnificent food, the event is designed to celebrate India and educate guests. This year, the event raised more than $1.5 million, with more than $6.6 million raised for various programs at the University Health Network (UHN) since the event’s inception in 2011. A total of $1 million from this year’s funds will go toward diabetes and transplant research, while the additional half million, gifted by Richard Wachsberg, is for emergency care. Some of the other generous sponsors of this year’s event included Scotiabank, Sam and Shaila Ajmera, Ian and Kiki Delaney and Air Canada.

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photos by ernesto Distefano

DiWali — a niGHt to sHine

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1. Dr. Anil Chopra, Raj Kothari, Dr. Michael Baker 2. Brian and Megan Porter 3. Adrian and Shraddha Walker 4. James O’Sullivan and guest 5. Michelle Zerillo-Sosa and Sergio Sosa 6. Kiki and Ian Delaney 7. Michelle Zerillo-Sosa and Raj Kothari 8. Sanjay and Deepa Nakra 9. Richard and Nathalie Wachsberg 10. Mala and Anil Chopra 11. Daniel Greenglass and Joe Brennan 12. Joanne Kearney and Brendan Cahill 13. Aaron and Heather Regent 14. Sam, Shaila, Ojus, Roberta and Tejus Ajmera

26 DOLCE MAGAZINE | www.dolcemag.com

WINTER 2018/19

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dolce was there

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GranD cru

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photos by GeorGe piMentel photoGraphy

The 14th annual Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival raised more than $5 million in support of the Toronto General and Toronto Western hospitals, University Health Network (UHN) this year. Since its foundation in 2005, the annual two-day event has raised more than $30.7 million and has been recognized as Toronto’s No. 1 benefit in 2018 by BizBash. “We are so very grateful to all our participants in this year’s Grand Cru Culinary Wine Festival. The funds raised will support the world-leading researchers at UHN to continue to push the envelope across a wide range of programs,” says Todd Halpern, Grand Cru founder and chair, vice-chair of Toronto General & Western Hospital Foundation board of directors and UHN board trustee.

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3 1. Chef Massimo Renzi, Ristorante Sotto Sotto; Marisa and Lou Rocca, Grand Cru hosts; chef Luigi Sellaro, Ristorante Sotto Sotto; chef Luciano Monosilio; chef Sagar Deb, Sotto Sotto 2. Bob Dorrance, Grand Cru host; chef Giannicola Colucci, Four Seasons Hotel, Toronto; Michael Cooper, Grand Cru host; Dr. Jonathan Irish, UHN 3. Chef Jason Bangerter, Langdon Hall, Relais & Châteaux; Frédéric Engerer, Château Latour; Ellen and Todd Halpern, Grand Cru founder and chair; Dr. Barry Rubin, UHN; chef Daniel Boulud, Daniel 4. Chef Jonathan Williams, lbs. restaurant; Leora and Sam Roth, Grand Cru hosts; Dr. Raja Rampersaud, UHN 5. Dr. Toni Zhong, UHN; Angela Feldman, Grand Cru host; chef Toben Kochman, Toben Food by Design; David Feldman, Grand Cru host; Dr. Brett Beber, UHN 6. David Daniels, Grand Cru host; Dr. Vivek Rao, UHN; Kate Alexander Daniels, Grand Cru host; chef Richard Singh, Bosk, Shangri-la; Ron Pellerine, Shangri-la 7. Chef Brooke McDougall, Bymark; Cheryl and Rob McEwen, Grand Cru hosts 8. Chef Patrick Kriss, Alo; Vizma and Eric Sprott, Grand Cru hosts; Dr. Shaf Keshavjee, UHN; Christopher Sealy, alo

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GQ aWarDs photos courtesy of GQ Men of the year

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This year, the GQ Man of the Year Awards celebrated its 20th anniversary in Berlin, hosted at the Komische Oper.

With 850 guests, the event recognized stars from all across the world, presenting in 10 different categories.

This year’s trophies were designed by the team at Versace, with Donatella Versace herself in attendance. www.gq.com

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1. Jason Derulo 2. Tom Junkersdorf, Donatella Versace and Irina Shayk 3. Herbert Groenemeyer, Franziska Knuppe, Orlando Bloom, Tom Junkersdorf, Donatella Versace, Patrick Dempsey, Jason Derulo and Dries Van Noten 4. Monica Ivancan 5. Julia Dietze 6. Bastian Schweinsteiger 7. Tom Junkersdorf, Moritz von Laffert and André Pollmann

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NOW FEATURING HIGH POINT CONDOMINIUMS AND FERRETTI TOWNS.

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www.dolcemag.com | DOLCE MAGAZINE

DOLCE EXCE LLE NCE M USIC

TAKE A BOW

Josefowicz was awarded the Avery Fisher Prize in 2018, which comes with a monetary award of $100,000

Leila Josefowicz received the Avery Fisher Prize to honour her outstanding achievement in classical music since she began performing in this industry as a child prodigy memorization possibilities.” And what does she do in her free time? “I have two young boys, ages four and six, and they keep me from being an egocentric artist.

They are a true joy in my life, my kids, and I have one who’s 18 [years old and] in college, so three boys.”

Josefowicz specializes in compositions from the early to mid-19th century and onward, by composers such as Igor Stravinsky and Dmitri Shostakovich.

And she’s also passionate about living composers, including John Adams and Andrew Norman. “As wonderful as the familiar sounds are, there are great pieces of music being created right now, and just as we expect the next Apple Watch to be phenomenal, you can have that same expectation for music being written today,” she says. “It’s not a museum art form — this is a living, breathing art form.”

For Josefowicz, it’s not just about the music; it’s also about her personal style, which is definitely not conservative. “Because I play so much contemporary music, it has to have a contemporary feel,” she says.

“For example, I have these beautiful blue harem pants

that I wear. She [the designer] calls them ‘dropcrotch pants.’ I think I’m probably the first classical artist to have a dressed-up style of those kind of pants onstage.”

What is up for the future? In the new year, she’s looking forward to playing in Toronto. Born in Mississauga, Ont., Josefowicz considers the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) her musical family. “I have many Canadian relatives; I love Toronto,” she says. Further down the road, she’s trying to enlarge the violin repertoire, “so in a few hundred years, we have these pieces and recordings to go on — not just what’s written a long time before.” Josefowicz will be joining the TSO this coming year, performing Stravinsky’s “Violin Concerto in D” at Roy Thomson Hall on January 10 and 12 at 8 p.m., and January 13 at 3 p.m. at the George Weston Recital Hall (Toronto Centre for the Arts). www.tso.ca/concert/sibelius-symphony-2-0 www.leilajosefowicz.com

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photos by chris lee

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s a child, Leila Josefowicz was musically inclined, and she started to play the violin at three years old.

“But it wasn’t coming to me easily; it had a lot of bumps, and at one point, it was really not looking like I was going to continue, but gradually things caught fire,” says Josefowicz.

Her motto? “Just keep going.” Even when she wasn’t sure if she was going to pursue her interest, the child prodigy asked herself, “How will I feel if I don’t continue?” Says Josefowicz: “I basically thought, ‘Things are tough, but I’m just going to keep going,’ and the rewards [came] with that, and even now with practising, which doesn’t get any easier.”

In fact, practising is a big part of Josefowicz’s life, with daily warm-ups, including scales and arpeggios, then she delves into whatever repertoire she needs to learn. As for new pieces, the more time you have the better, she says. “I try to start as long in advance as I possibly can to learn a work. It takes away the stress of learning something new and strengthens your

Written by Donna paris interVieW by Victoria scott

Find out at zillihome.com/pages/design-quiz

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www.dolcemag.com | DOLCE MAGAZINE

DOLCE EXCE LLE NCE AUTO

ROLLS-ROYCE NORTH AMERICA

APPOINTS MARTIN FRITSCHES AS NEW PRESIDENT Martin Fritsches, right, will be overseeing the 44 North American Rolls-Royce dealerships with his new position

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars North America welcomes a new president, Martin Fritsches. With years of experience in various markets across the world, he will be an invaluable member of the Rolls-Royce team joining the luxury automotive brand, as he came on to the team as the North American vice-president of sales earlier in 2018. His responsibilities included sales planning and operational functions of the brand’s 44 dealerships across North America and now he will work to enhance operational and business strategies for the company — including the launch of the brand’s newest all-terrain SUV, the Rolls-Royce Cullinan. This is the company’s first-ever SUV built for off-roading and comfort, hand-built at the Goodwood, England, manufacturing location.

Though newer to the England-based Rolls-Royce legacy, Fritsches has a legacy of his own in the auto world. He has transitioned to his new role from the parent company of Rolls-Royce — the BMW Group — where he held senior leadership roles in the sales, marketing and dealer development departments. He also brings to the table for RollsRoyce an international background, as the previous positions he’s held were based in Argentina, Brazil

and Germany, allowing his understanding of various markets and sales techniques to be utilized with Rolls-Royce. In these roles, Fritsches has worked with an extended range of dealerships to launch new vehicles and handle dealership operations and optimization, as well as consumer-facing marketing needs. His expertise will allow the company to expand strategy and reach a different market for potential Rolls-Royce buyers.

While newer to the Rolls-Royce North American team, Fritsches will further utilize his background in business administration, in which he received his degree from the University of San Andrés in Buenos Aires, Argentina, as well as a near two decades of working in the automotive industry. He takes on the role as president following the leadership of Pedro Mota who has left to pursue an alternative business initiative. www.rolls-roycemotorcars.com @rollsroycecars

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photos courtesy of rolls-royce Motor cars

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s the automotive industry continues to grow and innovate in vehicles and product offerings, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has not hesitated to tag along; however, in addition to increases in horsepower, the company has brought in more manpower with the appointment of a new president of the North American market, Martin Fritsches.

“I am delighted to announce that Martin Fritsches has been appointed as president, RollsRoyce Motor Cars North America,” says Torsten Müller-Ötvös, CEO of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars.

“He is ideally positioned to take on this new role, with an exceptional track record and almost 20 years [of experience in] the BMW Group at a senior level. His in-depth knowledge of our business and the Americas region — the largest for Rolls-Royce Motor Cars worldwide — will be invaluable.”

Fritsches’ newest position follows shortly after

Written by shaun MelaDy

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www.dolcemag.com | DOLCE MAGAZINE

DESIGN

Rashid teamed up with ACME Studio to design a line of jewelry comprised of earrings, brooches, bracelets and more

Karim Rashid: RESHAPING CULTURE ONE DESIGN AT A TIME A visionary in the design world, Karim Rashid has made his mark across the globe and returns to Canada with his exhibition at the Ottawa Art Gallery WRITTEN BY VICTORIA SCOTT

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nspiring. Prolific. Revolutionary. These are but a few words that describe the force that is Karim Rashid.

With more than 4,000 projects in production ranging from tableware to furniture and buildings, Rashid’s style is recognizable, employing striking shapes and colours while ensuring a perfect balance between form and function. As Rashid says, “Good design is when function and form or esthetics are inseparable.” The designer has worked in over 45 countries and has earned hundreds of awards and distinctions over the years.

This fall and winter, his work is being displayed at the Ottawa Art Gallery in a retrospective exhibition, Karim Rashid: Cultural Shaping

(October 2018 to February 2019). Although Rashid has previously had retrospectives in various places around the globe, including Seoul, São Paulo, Munich and Moscow, this will be the first large-scale presentation of his work in Canada, the country he called home during his youth.

Rashid grew up with his family in Toronto.

There began his love for design, enriched by his father’s creativity. Rashid’s father was an artist as well, a painter who went on to become a set designer for film and television, including the CBC, to support the family. Rashid credits being exposed, to art and design at a young age for his own love of design and success in the industry.

“Being around him and that environment when

I was a child, it was something that was almost like second nature,” says Rashid. “There [were] so many instruments to draw with at home, and there were stacks of books on architects and industrial designers and fashion designers and painters and artists, so I think I was programmed from a very young age.”

Rashid graduated from Carleton University in Ottawa in 1982. “You could argue that my education and the beginning of my career is Ottawa,” he says. After graduation, Rashid pursued postgraduate studies in Milan, then returned to Toronto for a few years, working with various design firms, before moving to New York to open his own design firm, which he has run for the past 25 years. More than three decades on,

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PHOTO BY CARLOS A. PINTO

Rashid loves working with clients who are openminded and want to do something that is both contributive and original

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he is now returning to his roots with his Ottawabased exhibition.

Cultural Shaping will feature in excess of 200 of Rashid’s award-winning projects, including the Garbino trash can and the Oh chair, both designed for Umbra, as well as furniture for BoConcept.

This impressive retrospective will illustrate what drives and inspires the designer. The title of the exhibition itself encapsulates his philosophy.

“I always saw design as cultural shaping,” says Rashid, “and if you look at history … almost all of it we understand through artifact, through physicality.” By way of example, he explains how we can gain understanding of the Ming dynasty by analyzing a single urn. “It captures the civility of the time, the politics of the time,

“GOOD DESIGN IS WHEN FUNCTION AND FORM OR ESTHETICS ARE INSEPARABLE” even the technology of how that urn was made [at] the time, so we shape culture through our physical commodity,” says Rashid. “We know that history through the physicality of the objects shaping things that we embraced and used.” Based on the object’s style and composition, we can glean information about the culture of the time it was created, because the way we create is indicative of the way we live.

In his own design, Rashid captures the present moment while also adding new aspects to change perceptions and challenge the status quo, whether by using new technologies, materials or production methods, or by highlighting issues of sustainability. “I’m just trying to make the world function and feel better … more seamless and more experiential and more positive and more energetic,” says Rashid. “[I’m] trying to bring these qualities, things that I personally need to be inspired or to feel alive — I’m trying to give that to others.”

Based on his style, people sometimes assume incorrectly that Rashid is not environmentally conscious. His plastic designs and striking colours do not conform to society’s prescribed signifiers of eco-consciousness. “We have this language of sustainability, right — it’s brown, wood, green, concrete floor — but it doesn’t have to be that way at all,” says Rashid. “I do all these crazy,

With hundreds of creations ranging from hotels, to chairs, to water bottles and vases, Rashid finds inspiration building on what he has done in the past as he creates new products

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PHOTO BY THE STILLS LIFESTYLE AGENCY

PHOTO BY ADRIEN WILLIAMS

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1. Rashid designed the travelling store Arche68, which will make its way to Paris, New York and Tokyo 2. The new Ottawa Art Gallery building, 2018 3. Rashid led the redesign of the Temptation Resort and Spa in Mexico 4. Installation view of Rashid’s designs at the Ottawa Art Gallery 5. Vase from the Crystal collection designed by Rashid for Argenesi 6. Lamp designed by Rashid in collaboration with Kundalini 7. Lamp from Rashid’s Solid collection with Vesta

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PHOTO BY LUPE DE LA VALLINA

PHOTO BY ANDRE ROZON

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beautiful printed colour floors with a company in Germany where the floors are completely biodegradable.” And in a project that debuted in 2014, he revolutionized plastic work by creating an injection-moulded chair made of plastic derived from sugar, instead of petroleum, named the Siamese chair.

When asked about his proudest accomplishment, rather than cite a specific project or design element, Rashid speaks about being an inspiration to others. The thought that students and young designers look up to him is

one of the things that keeps him going. “To me, that’s more of an important accomplishment than the object itself, because at the end of the day you could make a great chair, but so what? There’s a million chairs — it’s not really going to change the world,” he says.

A single chair may not change the world, but undoubtedly Karim Rashid — with his innovations and his legacy — will continue to do just that. www.karimrashid.com @karim_rashid_official

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A DV E R TO R I A L

DOLCE LIGHTING The Grand Opening

Brightening the city of Toronto one home at a time, Dolce Lighting is the one-stop shop buyers have been looking for, with lighting, art, furniture and home automation

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ou never want to stare directly into the light, unless it’s from the all-new Dolce Lighting. With its grand opening of the new location in Toronto, Dolce Lighting has lit up the industry in a way others have not.

“We first entered the lighting industry with our electrical company. We have extensive knowledge and experience in this industry and we wanted to share that with our customers,” says John Pirillo, founder of Dolce Lighting. “Choosing lighting can be a lengthy process for consumers. We wanted to take care of that completely and provide the extra service that is required for the customer to have a seamless experience.”

With ample experience in the world of lights and design, John and the experienced staff at Dolce Lighting pride themselves as being the industry professionals in both artistic ability and customer service for home installations. Visitors can see this from the ambience of the modernized and welcoming showroom, to the know-how of the on-site staff. Many years of previous experience enhance the work of Dolce Lighting.

“It gives us an advantage that other people don’t have. We can service you a lot quicker. You come in,

you buy your fixture.

We come there and install it,” he says.

The company is also keen to say that with its expertise and John Pirillo, founder attention to clients’ of Dolce Lighting needs, Dolce Lighting is paving the way for neighbouring businesses, not only in the lighting business, but also in furniture offerings and artistic pieces.

“We feel that lighting impacts everything — your furniture, your artwork, picking the right spotlight above your artwork. So, we show that. We have the space and the means to do so,” says John.

The company has incorporated furniture and art options, too, as it assists clients in determining how much light they will need in a space, whether it be for a living area, bedroom, bathroom or outdoor space.

This allows customers to implement design direction into planning with on-site measurements and colours.

“I feel like [lighting is] jewelry to the home. It feels like something’s missing without it.”

In addition to offering multiple design options, Dolce Lighting says that at the business’s core is its customers’ satisfaction, along with the quality of work

PHOTOS BY CARLOS A. PINTO

Finding the perfect fixture for clients is made that much easier thanks to Dolce’s premier showroom and experienced staff

and staying ahead of the game in home design. Dolce Lighting offers white-glove service to showcase its attention to each client who walks through the door.

“Service. It’s basically, service and the trendiest pieces. We are always trying to be ahead of other companies and to service the end user as best as possible, creating that comfortable experience and that luxury experience,” says John. “Our staff is welltrained to guide you in the right direction. A lot of clients, we notice, come in here and they feel like they need guidance. We’ll guide them in the right direction and make them feel comfortable.”

John says that Dolce Lighting also shines when it comes to client needs and will be there every step of the way, from a quick installation to the blueprints of a new structure. The company is also merging together the art of appliances with technology through home automation. This includes automatic temperature changes, mood settings with lighting fixtures and music, along with other at-home capabilities.

It’s “the distance we’ll go to service a client when it comes to product knowledge and installation” that sets Dolce Lighting apart from its competition, says John. “We do home automation. We help design layouts. So, we give the full package. If you’re building a home, we can help you from the beginning to the end — right down from on paper to the finished product.”

Dolce Lighting’s premises took a few months to construct, but it has recently opened its doors in Toronto, in an area that was a bit dim with business buildings. John and his team of seasoned professionals sought a prime location to set up base camp and have landed at 6260 Hwy. 7 West, Woodbridge, Ont. “We felt that we needed something in this location.

There’s nothing really close to us,” says John. “There are other businesses, but not as close. The building is really attractive. [It has] a lot of exposure, and just geographically [it] made sense.”

Visit the website to learn more about Dolce Lighting and its design options.

6260 Hwy. 7 West, Unit 14, Woodbridge, Ont. 905-850-7978 www.dolcelighting.ca | @dolcelighting

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INTRODUCING

NORTH AMERICA’S COMMANDING DEVELOPERS In our ever-expanding society, the development industry has had to evolve to match our needs, wants and desires. Only so many people can take on a role in this industry and not only come out on top, but stand the test of time. Dolce has brought together five of those individuals to examine how they got their start in the North American market and how they have maintained their place in this highly competitive industry with some of their highly acclaimed projects

EDGARDO DEFORTUNA Founder of Fortune International Group

ABY ROSEN Principal and co-founder of RFR Holding

MICHAEL STERN Founder and managing partner of JDS Development Group

ANDREA DELZOTTO Executive at the Tridel Group of Companies

SAM MIZRAHI Founder of Mizrahi Developments

CANADA

UNITED STATES

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REAL ESTATE

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THE LEADER IN MIAMI

REAL ESTATE

Since arriving in Miami over three decades ago, Edgardo Defortuna has become a force to be reckoned with in the real estate industry with his company Fortune International Group

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ery few cities in the world enjoy the kind of cachet that Miami does. Since the early 1980s the world has been captivated by the vibe of this South Florida mecca with its distinctive music, arts, fashion, food, architecture and lifestyle scenes. Miami’s worldwide brand exploded in 1984 with Michael Mann’s groundbreaking television show, Miami Vice, which showcased the city’s eclectic blend of art deco, Latin influences and fabulous estates and made it one of the world’s hottest real estate markets. People wanted to live and invest there.

In real estate, timing is everything. Just as Miami’s renaissance began, Edgardo Defortuna arrived from Argentina to pursue his MBA degree. Inspired by the Miami style, Defortuna developed big dreams of a career in real estate.

His company, Fortune International Group, is now the recognized expert in Miami real estate.

And it all started with a single condominium unit.

“Friends of my parents had purchased a unit,

so while I studied, I managed the unit,” says Defortuna. “I realized there were probably many people from Latin America who needed the same management services to manage a unit, handle the rent and pay expenses. I offered my services, and word got around that I was very good at this, so I got my real estate licence and began to handle many units. An older gentleman was about to retire and suggested I purchase his company … and I began to manage the office and the agents.”

Feeling this business model could be replicated, Defortuna acquired some other companies of roughly the same size and under the same terms, focusing on Latin American investors. He then took a proactive step that was the genesis of Fortune International Group.

“Rather than wait in Miami for investors, I instead went to their countries,” says Defortuna. He went to Argentina, Brazil and Colombia to market his services and build business relationships with brokers who had customers of their own planning on investing in or coming to Miami. The approach

worked, and soon Fortune International Group had alliances with key brokerage companies in major cities around the world.

Using this clever business strategy, Defortuna has grown Fortune International Group from its modest beginnings into a full-service, fully integrated real estate organization, the go-to leader in experience and market knowledge of South Florida, with an extensive global network of buyers.

With its unique insight into what purchasers are looking for in high-end residential properties, Fortune’s development arm now has a portfolio of elite, much-sought-after addresses in some of Miami’s most exclusive neighbourhoods. As a certified general contractor working with worldclass architects and interior designers, Fortune provides direct construction supervision, handson project management and quality delivery of exceptional properties.

Among its more notable projects are the trio Jade Residences at Brickell Bay, Jade Signature,

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PHOTO BY DBOX

WRITTEN BY RICK MULLER INTERVIEW BY VICTORIA SCOTT

EDGARDO DEFORTUNA Founder of Fortune International Group

Jade Beach, Jade Ocean in Sunny Isles, and the 57-storey Ritz-Carlton Residences, Sunny Isles Beach, which tops off this November and is due to open in 2019.

Units at Jade Signature start at US$4.4 million and go up to US$33 million for the six-bedroom penthouse, which features 11,600 square feet of interior space and 7,500 square feet of

Edgardo Defortuna is president, CEO and founder of Fortune International Group, a Miami-based, full-service real estate firm recognized throughout South Florida, Latin America and Europe as a leader in high-end luxury real estate. He oversees all of the company's activities across all of its business units.

outdoor living space. Unit prices at the RitzCarlton Residences, Sunny Isles Beach, begin at US$1.7 million for just under 2,000 square feet to the 4,000-square-foot penthouse priced at US$6.1 million.

Fortune Development Sales division is the premier on-site sales and marketing representative for third-party projects in South Florida, and

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Sunny Isles Beach, opening in 2019, is one of Fortune’s newest high-end residential properties

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“THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR HARD WORK, EFFORT AND CREATIVITY”

The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Sunny Isles Beach, offers state-of-the-art spa facilities, private beach amenities, indoor and outdoor bar areas and more

Fortune International Realty is the market leader in general realty services, with more than 1,000 agents across 18 offices. This multi-disciplinary approach sets Fortune International Group apart from other real estate organizations.

From that single condominium unit Defortuna managed 32 years ago, Fortune International Group now has over US$1 billion in annual revenues, and with three decades of being in business, it is now the preferred development and sales organization in South Florida’s real estate market, one of the most in-demand markets in the world.

Fortune’s growth and success over the years are the direct result of Defortuna’s simple, heartfelt philosophy: “There is no substitute for hard work, effort and creativity,” he says. “This can be a very challenging business, but it is also a very rewarding one — not just financially, but in the worldwide relationships you develop. Our goal is simply, ‘How can we make the lifestyle of our customers better?’”

Defortuna’s success affords him the opportunity to give back to his community through donations of time and support to arts organizations and to the Latin American community. A firm believer in the power of education, he also serves on the boards of schools such as the University of Miami.

“I am a great believer that a great city deserves great education at all levels, which can play a key role in continuing to attract people to Miami,” he explains.

“If you surround yourself with the right people and listen to them and let them make decisions, you should be successful,” says Defortuna. “They don’t call it the ‘Land of Opportunity’ for nothing.”

Edgardo Defortuna has made the most of his opportunity. His passion for Miami is best described in his own words: “I’m in love with Miami. I understand why the world wants to be here.” www.fortuneintlgroup.com @fortuneintl

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RENDERINGS COURTESY OF FORTUNE INTERNATIONAL GROUP

— Edgardo Defortuna

Distinctive Property Sales

30 ACRES, CALEDON SKI CLUB | $1,650,000

4-bdrm home. Beamed great room. 30 acres with trails, pond, workshop, tennis. 3 fireplaces. Main floor master suite with stone fireplace, 5-pc. ensuite, private deck.

NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE | $2,290,000

Long gated driveway leads to totally renovated 4-bdrm century home. Coach house, detached 3-storey loft office, 6-stall stable. Resort pool. Pond.

B&B/Special event site in the heart of wine country.

Luxurious 5-bdrm/4-bath home, stable, riding arena, commercial kitchen. Strong income. 6 acres.

ST. CHRISTOPHER FARM, KING | $8,499,000

92 acres near Aurora with 6-bdrm main home by Windemere. 2nd home. Pool, cabana, stable with arena & outbuildings.

Newly renovated 25,000-sq.-ft. 6-bdrm home near King City with in-law suite. Huge indoor pool & basketball gymnasium. 2nd house plus guest house.

Drive-in workshop. Elevator. 52 acres.

LAKE ESTATE, CALEDON | $5,950,000

FOXLEY GREEN, KING | $24,950,000

HARRIS LAKE, CALEDON | $5,250,000

JF BRENNAN DESIGN, KING | $6,495,000

FOXWOOD, KING | $8,995,000

King’s finest estate overlooking Aurora on Bathurst Street & neighbouring ClubLink golf course.

Impressive stone main residence with 2 elevators, indoor pool. 80 acres + 2 more homes, stable, pond and miles of trails.

*Sales Representative

EWING HOUSE, HOCKLEY | $2,999,000

101 acres. Private 7-acre lake in centre of property.

New home (2007) + guest bunkie, restored century barn with wine room for vineyard, tennis & miles of trails. An exceptional offering!

, Brokerage

3 renovated homes surround crystal-clear private 8-acre pond with beach & dock. 50 rolling acres.

Stable. Superb family compound!

Custom 5-bdrm home. Superb craftsmanship. 7-car garage. Pool. Cabana. Permission for 2nd home. Main floor master suite with changeroom, fireplace & luxurious bath. Prime location!

Moffat Dunlap, Chairman; John Dunlap, Broker of Record, Peter Boyd*, Murray Snider*, Nik Bonellos*, Elizabeth Campbell*, Courtney Murgatroyd, David Warren, Brokers

W W W. M O F FA T D U N L A P.C O M | 9 0 5 . 8 41. 74 3 0

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Founded 1972: Celebrating over 45 years of service to the countryside

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NEW YORK’S 100 EAST 53RD ST. 100 EAST 53RD ST.

LEONARD STEINBERG Chief Evangelist of Compass

Leonard Steinberg is the first chief evangelist of Compass, where he helps grow and improve the brokerage firm. With over two decades of experience, Steinberg is recognized as one of the leading residential real estate authorities in the United States. His team — the Leonard Steinberg Team — ranks consistently as one of the top producing teams in the country, with collective sales in excess of several billion dollars.

WRITTEN BY RICK MULLER INTERVIEW BY VICTORIA SCOTT

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The new standard of elegance and luxury in Manhattan condominiums

t the upper echelons of residential real estate is Midtown Manhattan.

It may not be the centre of the universe, but you can most certainly see it from there. Here, in the heart of the metropolis, developer Aby Rosen of RFR Holding LLC has created 100 East 53rd St., a soaring 711-foot statement of luxury and quality designed by world-renowned architectural firm Foster + Partners that is destined to become the benchmark by which high-rise condominium living in New York City is measured.

Ideally situated between the legendary Seagram Building and Lever House, two of New York’s most acclaimed modern office buildings, the building’s classically modernist design fully complements the architecture of its neighbours with 63 floors of glass, strong vertical lines and engaging accents and details.

Containing 94 luxurious condominium suites ranging from studios to four-bedrooms, 100 East 53rd St. will also feature two duplexes. Unique to the project is a specialized collection of 15 loftstyle residences boasting gallery-like open floor plans, exposed columns and concrete walls — an ideal backdrop for purchasers’ own artworks and signature design styles.

The gallery-like feeling is intentional; developer Rosen is one of the world’s most prominent art collectors. At 100 East 53rd St., he has curated a collection of his own impressive artworks on display throughout the building, including works

by Jonas Wood, Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst.

Rosen also commissioned well-known artist Rachel Feinstein to create Panorama of New York, a fantasy dreamscape of the city, for the building’s lobby. Feinstein painted a collage of New York landmarks, including the Woolworth Building and the Empire State Building, Gotham’s most famous skyscrapers, along with imagined scenes, onto a mirror. The result is a stunning welcome image that inspires and stimulates the imagination.

Deeper into the building, art and sculpture are installed in many of the public areas.

A focus on art is just one aspect of 100 East 53rd St. that will bring a positive change to its surroundings, according to Leonard Steinberg of Compass, one of the project’s listing brokers and

head of sales. “This building is not just another condominium in Manhattan; this is a building that is going to redefine an entire neighbourhood,” says Steinberg. “Many cities are experiencing this now, where a single building can change a neighbourhood. [And] 100 East 53rd St. is at the intersection of Midtown and the Upper East Side, which has gone through a radical transformation.

This area will be completely transformed by this building — not just because of the beautiful apartments above, but also [because of ] what is going to happen on the retail levels of the building.”

As a keen observer of real estate and neighbourhoods during his long career in the industry, Steinberg knows the power of retail. In some sectors, it has been struggling as of late, but in the food sector, business is absolutely soaring.

“100 East 53rd St. will feature food prominently, as they have brought in the Robuchon restaurant group from Paris, [founded] by one of the world’s most Michelin-starred chefs, [the late worldfamous chef ] Joël Robuchon,” says Steinberg. “His Michelin-starred French restaurant will be on the building’s second floor, with a more casual eating experience on the ground floor, which will further invigorate the streetscape.”

Similar to a hotel, the second-floor restaurant will offer building residents a private lounge, a private dining room and a separate entrance, so residents can go straight from their suites to the restaurant. Residents may also order up meals without leaving their home — anything from dinner for two to a party for 20.

Award-winning architect Norman Foster and his team at Foster + Partners have designed the suites with exquisite taste, the finest features and finishings, and the highest standards of craftmanship. And 100 East 53rd St.’s outstanding vistas of the city befit its stature as one of New York’s finest residential buildings.

The average unit price is US$2,760 per square foot, starting from a 1,000-square-foot studio apartment priced at US$2.4 million. The nearly 7,000-square-foot duplex penthouse can be yours for US$65 million, approximately US$9,500 per square foot.

Amenities are designed to promote a socially active lifestyle reflective of the lively 24-7 midtown

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1. The tower’s pleated bay windows bathe the residences in beautiful sunshine 2. The library lounge: interiors designed by William T. Georgis 3. The tower residence 4. As a prominent art collector, Rosen has included artworks throughout the building 5. Kitchens are equipped with Gaggenau appliance suites

PHOTO BY SCOTT FRANCES

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location, while at the same time providing a calming influence with a spa-inspired atmosphere.

The building boasts a library, a sunlit swimming pool (60’ by 15’), a cardio room, a weight room, a Pilates and ballet room, a yoga room, a sauna, a steam room, spa treatment rooms, and shower and changing rooms. There is also a 24-hour concierge and keyed elevator access.

The building’s location is right in the middle of the finest shopping, dining, museums and galleries, and transit connections (to downtown, uptown, ferries and airports), and it’s all within walking distance of Central Park. “Time is a luxury,” says Steinberg. “100 East 53rd St. is surrounded by everything you could ever want, just steps away from your front door. It’s all about conveniences, and there is no greater luxury than that.”

Outstanding design combined with top quality, luxury, convenience and amenities, 100 East 53rd St. is a feast for the senses, elevating elegance in one of the world’s most inspiring and desirable locations. www.compass.com @theleonardsteinbergteam www.100e53.com @100e53

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PHOTO BY BJORG MAGNEA

PHOTO BY JESSE DAVID HARRIS

ABY ROSEN Principal and co-founder of RFR Holding

Aby Rosen is a principal and co-founder of RFR, a full-service real estate company focusing on the investment, development and redevelopment of office, retail, residential and hotel properties in the United States and Germany. The RFR portfolio includes Park Avenue landmarks such as the Seagram Building and Lever House, as well as the W South Beach hotel, 11 Howard hotel and the Gramercy Park Hotel. RFR believes in the importance of art in real estate to create uplifting and inspiring architectural environments that improve the esthetics of the urban landscape.

Foster building elevates your appreciation of the positive impact design can have on the way we live [in] and perceive our environment. The attention to detail at 100 East 53rd St. cannot be overlooked and differentiates us from other contemporary buildings.

Q. We’ve read that this new skyscraper is a modernist building. Can you expand Situated in Midtown on what that means, and what people can Manhattan, 100 East 53rd expect to find?

St. is in a prime location, A. The building is not just “modernist,” but classic. steps away from anything its residents could need, As a neighbour to two of the finest landmarked from fine dining locales modern office buildings — the Seagram to amazing shopping Building and Lever House — 100 East 53rd St. destinations must live up to the high standard they’ve already established. In fact, 53rd St. is home to seven New York City is larger than life, and great works of architecture by seven renowned real estate developer and urban style-maker Aby architects. Foster designed our building to contrast Rosen is one of the city’s largest personalities. with its immediate neighbour: glass versus bronze, Rosen’s projects command Manhattan and some white versus dark. As with the Seagram Building, 100 East 53rd St. is perfectly proportioned, has of the globe’s most exotic locations, bringing strong vertical lines and boasts impeccable details. his own style, sophistication and panache for quality and design to office, residential, hotel and Q. Why did you choose the late Joël Robuchon resort developments. for the restaurant at 100 East 53rd St.?

“I’m a five-star operator, everything I do is A. We conceived of the building to offer the best top-notch and super expensive. I’m very handsof everything, starting with great architecture on and I’m all for quality, from my residential and design, as well as a comprehensive and developments, to my hotels, to my condos and to luxurious amenities package. Having a restaurant my office buildings,” says Rosen. you can go to by elevator was important to our From the historical Seagram Building in residents’ lifestyles. We could not have chosen a Manhattan, to The Jaffa, a recently opened hotel more highly acclaimed chef and team than that and residence in Tel Aviv, the Aby Rosen signature of Joël Robuchon to conceive and curate the two is big, bold, brash and beautiful — respectful of levels of dining. We anticipate having an amazing historical design while envisioning the innovations dining experience of outstanding cuisine within an and possibilities of tomorrow. interior design by the equally outstanding interior Dolce recently sat down with Rosen to speak designer Joseph Dirand. about his latest landmark project, the 100 East 53rd Street condominium development in Midtown Manhattan.

Q. How do you define la dolce vita, the good life?

Q. What is it about Midtown Manhattan that A. Wonderful friends and family, great food and should draw people in? Why did you chose to drink, esthetically pleasing art and design, and a build this tower here? city that delivers the energy to make you feel alive.

A. Midtown Manhattan is where people go to Q. What do you feel art can do for a space, entertain themselves. It is where the best culture, and how have you incorporated art in 100 restaurants and shopping in the city are. It is East 53rd St.? also where people work and their friends go. No A. Art stimulates the imagination and satisfies the longer is it desirable to live in a pure residential soul. Art enriches the environment. I commissioned neighbourhood, where you have to travel to get Rachel Feinstein to do a site-specific painting in to the action. Now, we want to be immersed in it. the building’s entry and have installed art and sculpture in the public areas for residents and their Q. Tell us about the experience working with guests to enjoy. Our buyers appreciate the positive Norman Foster, and why you choose Foster + experience art brings. I used my own taste to curate Partners for this tower? art in the building, and I am sure every resident will A. Norman is a friend and someone I have known look to their own dwelling as a museum for their for a long time and have worked with in the past.

He is an extraordinary architect and individual. He own collections. The Foster design beautifully sets is someone I learn from and enjoy being around. up the backdrop for any style of art.

Norman has exquisite taste, understands how www.rfr.com people live and creates designs and architecture @rfrrealty that are uplifting and comfortable. Living in a

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AT T H E C O R N E R H O U S E

ROMANCE

501 Davenport Rd, Toronto flordesalrestaurant.ca info@flordesalrestaurant.ca

OF FINE DINING Modern cuisine influenced by the foods of Southern Europe WINTER 2018/19

/flordesalrestaurant Hugo Saenz, Chef Cristina da Costa, Owner

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REAL ESTATE Set to open in 2019, 111 West 57th St. is one of the tallest residential buildings in the world and the thirdtallest building in New York City

REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT AT THE

HIGHEST LEVEL

In the creation of landmark buildings, JDS Development Group has staked its claim in two of the world’s most difficult markets

111 WEST 57TH ST.

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RENDERING COURTESY OF JDS DEVELOPMENT

WRITTEN BY RICK MULLER INTERVIEW BY VICTORIA SCOTT

AMERICAN WALKER COPPER TOWER BUILDINGS

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ommercial real estate design and development have long been regarded as some of the toughest businesses in the world, and in the ultra-competitive markets of New York City and Miami, only the most seasoned and respected companies can survive. JDS Development Group is one such company, not merely surviving but thriving in two of the world’s hottest markets.

Some say that real estate is in the blood.

Michael Stern, founder and managing partner of JDS Development Group, is the personification of someone born to the business.

MICHAEL STERN Founder and managing partner of JDS Development Group

“I was into design and architecture, and was absolutely fascinated by building great buildings,” says Stern. “There are multiple points of entry into real estate. I entered from the construction side, as I worked for a developer in Florida right out of high school, learning the nuts and bolts of how to put a complex building together. I always wanted to do something impactful … I always wanted to build great buildings with design integrity and to leave a positive impact on the skyline.”

JDS Development Group has indeed made its mark on the famous New York skyline with such projects as 111 West 57th St., the thirdtallest building in New York and one of the

Michael Stern is the founder and managing partner of JDS Development Group, an innovative real estate development, construction and acquisition firm responsible for the creation of numerous residential, hospitality and mixed-use projects in New York City and Miami. Stern’s philosophy is to push the boundaries of design and construction to deliver the most dynamic projects to the market.

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and Williams on West 24th Street in the West Chelsea section of Manhattan, and its new luxury condominium development in South Beach, Monad Terrace, Miami, designed by famed French architect Jean Nouvel.

JDS is also developing Echo Brickell, a contemporary 60-storey residential tower offering stunning vistas from the centre of Miami’s fastestgrowing neighbourhood. In this rarified air high above South Florida, units start at US$6.5 million for just under 3,000 square feet, a testament to the luxury and exclusivity of JDS Development Group residences.

Boldness, dynamism and innovation: these are attributes JDS Development Group has in abundance. It’s been the company’s recipe for success in one of the toughest industries in the world. www.jdsdevelopment.com @jdsdevelopmentgroup

PHOTO BY MAX TOUHEY

PHOTO BY HAYES DAVIDSON

Walker Tower (right) was designed in collaboration with CetraRuddy and is the restoration of a former building designed in 1929

PHOTO BY MAX TOUHEY

tallest residential buildings in the world, which it co-developed with Property Markets Group, set to open next year, with commanding views from the south end of Central Park. Unit prices average US$6,000 per square foot, and the 72ndfloor penthouse, at 7,128 square feet, is available at US$56 million.

Other notable JDS projects in Manhattan include the Walker Tower; the Stella Tower; and the distinctive American Copper Buildings, dual towers that are the tallest copper-clad buildings in the world and that redefine the East River skyline.

All of these are landmark buildings featuring quintessential design in superior locations.

The JDS Development Group’s trademark is its unwavering commitment to quality and innovation. JDS is known as an industry leader that has reinvented the process by which major architectural projects are designed and built. This commitment has created a multidisciplinary firm — involved in development, design, construction and acquisition — which currently has more than nine million square feet of property in various stages of development.

Uniquely, JDS performs all of the construction on its own projects, allowing it the freedom to work with world-class architects in a collaborative approach that results in visionary projects and luxury developments.

Stern’s approach to helming such a highly respected firm in the fast-paced, competitive industry is grounded, measured, thoughtful and perhaps a key to the firm’s success. “Being the CEO of a development company is like being a jack of all trades,” he says. “You don’t necessarily have to be the master of everything, but you have to be good at a number of different disciplines, such as marketing, architecture, engineering, design, legal, insurance and HR. My job is to quarterback professionals who are at the top of their game and who are the experts in their fields, to create a co-ordinated orchestra to create a great result.”

Stern believes that to be a success in the industry, one must be even-tempered, patient, persistent and have an incredible work ethic. “To run a company, you have to curate a culture which is conducive to success,” he says. “Resumés are not as important as hiring people with integrity who want to do the right thing and believe like you do to always do great work. I am very proud to work with the team we have in place.”

JDS Development Group’s strength is not in its bricks, mortar, rebar or concrete, but in its people.

The company takes pride in its experienced professionals who specialize in residential and hospitality projects, with a new focus on mixeduse projects, its exceptional standards in design, quality and ingenuity, and the positive impact it makes on neighbourhoods.

These qualities are evident in the diversity of JDS’s portfolio, which includes The Fitzroy, a boutique condo building designed by Roman

Redefining the East River skyline, the American Copper Buildings are the tallest copper-clad buildings in the world

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REAL ESTATE

The suites at 10 York come equipped with ceilings up to 10’ high with astounding views adding to the spacious feel of the living areas

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AQUALUNA

10 YORK

Reaching a height of 735 feet, 10 York is situated in a prime location in the heart of Toronto, giving residents easy access to the best entertainment and restaurants the city has to offer

ANDREA DELZOTTO AND THE TRIDEL GROUP OF COMPANIES:

SHAPING CITIES IS SHAPING LIVES

Analyzing the growth of one of Toronto’s most prolific development companies with Andrea DelZotto, a member of the founding family

or most Canadians, the ideal vacation, especially at this time of year, includes beaches and swaying palms. For Andrea DelZotto, director and executive vice-president of the Tridel Group of Companies, one of the largest and most respected real estate development companies in Canada, vacations involve buildings and urban landscapes.

“I have a love of architecture, so I often take urban and city trips so I have the opportunity to see some amazing buildings,” says DelZotto. “In Chicago, New York or Miami, I find not only some beautiful architecture, but also how it can create and enhance the social community, both for the surrounding environment and its residents.”

This passion for architecture and city building comes naturally to DelZotto; her grandfather, Jack, immigrated to Canada from northern Italy in 1927 as a stonemason and is seen as the pioneer of Tridel. His future wife soon joined him — they settled in Toronto and had three sons. The Tri in

Tridel refers to these three sons. DelZotto’s father, Angelo, says of his education, “I graduated from the scaffold.”

The hard-working DelZottos started with single-family homes, graduated to full subdivisions, plazas, government housing and rental buildings, and eventually progressed to condominiums in the late 1960s. Today, Tridel is the largest builder of condominiums in the Toronto area, having built some 80,000 homes, under the direction of the four principals: Angelo DelZotto, Elvio DelZotto, Leo DelZotto and Harvey Fruitman. On the outside, Tridel might seem to be a textbook family business, but DelZotto has an interesting take on that perception: “None of us were ever pressured to be in the family business — not that we’re a family business, because we’ve grown so much,” she says. “We are more of a business family and a business with family values. The family is not just the DelZottos, because we look at all of our employees as family.”

DelZotto’s wider insight about the power of

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buildings and how they contribute to the social capital of a city have elevated her to the top of her field. “I love the social aspect of design, as design clearly impacts our behaviour,” she says.

“The aspect of blurred lines between public and private spaces, public art that can be shared and even touched and that you don’t even have to make an effort to encounter, that is embedded in our environments. I often share Churchill’s quote, ‘We shape our buildings; thereafter, they shape us.’”

Tridel has been shaping cities and the lives of residents for 80 years, building some of the GTA’s most notable and recognizable buildings, including The Well, a mixed-use community under construction on the former Globe & Mail lands on Front Street. Tridel’s most recent and well-known building is 10 York in the South Core area of downtown. Soaring 65 storeys, this statuesque wedge is a commanding presence on Toronto’s skyline. Two other Tridel developments also speak to DelZotto’s passion for how buildings can enhance their community surroundings.

“I have a particular love of Aqualuna condominiums [in the Bayside Toronto community],” she says. “It has a unique skin and balconies that I almost find tranquil, inspired by the surrounding environment and water. And The Republic at Yonge and Eglinton, where I lived with my family, originated from a public and private partnership and with the school and surrounding park. It is a great example of a successful collaboration. The Republic was the inspiration for my ongoing social media blog.”

Unit prices in Tridel developments reflect the quality, location and value of these properties.

The Republic has an average unit cost of $900 per square foot, which has appreciated in value from the $450 average when it opened in 2007. Aqualuna offers 225 units with units from 1,400 square feet starting at $1.885 million, and available high-floor units at 10 York are priced between $2 million and nearly $4 million, spectacular views included.

Contributing to its community has been a trademark of Tridel throughout its history, evidenced by the Tridel Take Action initiative, an employee-driven charitable giving program that encourages “building things that matter” away from the workplace, here at home and globally. It also leads inside and outside of the workplace, making positive social impacts and contributions both locally and globally It’s another example of how Tridel creates and empowers social and environmental change, moving — as DelZotto puts it —from selling to solving community issues.

DelZotto speaks modestly about her own professional accomplishments, including being the first female on the board, a significant achievement in such a historically male-dominated industry.

“To work closely with my father as a mentor is a privilege that I’m extremely grateful for,” she says, “and witnessing first-hand our executive team and the willingness for an intentional collection of ideas — both those rooted in the past and those which are new and will prepare us for tomorrow.”

That future seems very bright for DelZotto, Tridel and its dedicated team of more than 500 employees, secure in the leadership position of building quality homes, providing innovative housing solutions and shaping the communities of tomorrow. www.tridel.com @tridel

ANDREA DELZOTTO Executive at the Tridel Group of Companies

PHOTO BY CARLOS A. PINTO

The suites at Aqualuna are bathed in natural light thanks to the floor-to-ceiling windows throughout

Andrea DelZotto is an executive at the Tridel Group of Companies, a director of the board and a member of the founding family. In her role, DelZotto focuses on governing the key brand drivers for Tridel including people, culture, customer experience, innovation, community, corporate social responsibility and communications, while ensuring alignment across all companies within the group.

A visionary leader, DelZotto initiates and drives the change necessary throughout the organization to maintain and build upon Tridel’s commitment to market leadership.

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REAL ESTATE

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1451 WELLINGTON ST.

128 HAZELTON AVE. 1 BLOOR ST.

SAM MIZRAHI OF MIZRAHI DEVELOPMENTS IS

‘THE ONE’

An experienced entrepreneur, Sam Mizrahi will be reaching heights never seen before with his company, Mizrahi Developments, and its newest development WRITTEN BY RICK MULLER INTERVIEW BY VICTORIA SCOTT

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hinking back to one’s high school days, it’s surprising how small and insular one’s world actually is during those developing years. One’s vision doesn’t extend far beyond the halls and classrooms of the school, and dreams of the future involve next semester, next year or perhaps graduation. But back when Sam Mizrahi was attending Toronto’s York Mills Collegiate Institute, his vision and dreams extended further and higher than the typical student. While in high school, he started his first company importing and selling blank audio cassettes and videocassettes, growing the company to $18 million in revenue and selling it only four years later — an impressive beginning.

Now, he is building the tallest building in Canada.

Mizrahi is president and founder of Mizrahi Developments, which is building The One Residences at Yonge and Bloor. At a height of

more than 306 metres and 85 storeys, it will be the tallest building in Canada and the first to achieve “supertall” status (exceeding 300 metres).

This achievement reflects the organic evolution of a young man who has always had an acute eye for architecture, design and style.

“I used to travel a lot with my family,” says Mizrahi, who was born in Tehran and immigrated to Canada with his family when he was six. “I loved the architecture in France and the Haussmann style of classic mid-rise buildings in Paris. I always gravitated toward designs which are not trendy, but timeless — whether it’s in buildings, fashion or interior design. Form and functionality is important to me, and that has stuck with me through these last three decades, as this style becomes much more relevant as time goes on.

We have incorporated this as an anchor in our current developments.”

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RENDERINGS COURTESY OF MIZRAHI DEVELOPMENTS

At 85 storeys high, The One Residences will become the tallest building in Canada upon its completion, which is scheduled for 2022

SAM MIZRAHI Founder of Mizrahi Developments

PHOTO BY JESSE MILNS

As president and founder of Mizrahi Developments, Sam Mizrahi is a visionary entrepreneur with over 25 years of leadership experience in identifying and developing residential, retail and community projects across North America. Throughout his career, he has worked in a detail-oriented, hands-on capacity overseeing all aspects of development for multi-billion-dollar projects that have contributed meaningfully to the architectural landscape of some of North America’s most iconic and historic neighbourhoods. An intuitive and creative businessman, he dreams big and executes his vision with utmost precision and attention to detail.

Timelessness, form and functionality are three vital components that come into play for Mizrahi when it comes to the development of new projects

With his obvious knack for business, Mizrahi formed Dove Cleaners, a retail dry cleaning and commercial linen company, in Los Angeles in 1992 and moved it to Toronto in 1994, eventually adding more than 100 franchises, all of which he ran until 2007. That year, Mizrahi began building custom luxury homes in the tiny Toronto neighbourhood of Forest Hill, which eventually led him to build luxury condominium developments and to found Mizrahi Developments.

Mizrahi’s philosophy of design excellence and quality building and craftmanship, combined with his innate sense of what makes a great location, led to impressive sales in the luxury condominium market.

The nine-storey 133 Hazelton project was completed in 2015, and the next year, Mizrahi launched 128 Hazelton across the street, which was sold out by January 2017, with suites ranging

in price from $1.14 million to $11.5 million.

When his 181 Davenport development of 110 suites, starting at $750,000, was launched, half the units sold within the first 60 days. Construction was completed this year, and the building is now sold out.

In Ottawa, Mizrahi Developments is building 1451 Wellington, a 12-storey condominium with 95 suites. Its $1.5 million sales centre was completed in March 2017, and 20 per cent of the development was sold within its first 10 days on the market. Currently, 70 per cent of the development is sold and construction will commence in 2019.

These successes are a validation of the values and philosophies that guide the young, energetic professionals at Mizrahi Developments.

“To create timeless design is a fundamental value system at Mizrahi Developments,” says Mizrahi. “Also, build the best in quality, with no

compromises, and build with the best materials and craftsmanship — this is critical and very important.

We want everyone who comes into contact with our developments — the neighbourhood, community, residents, stakeholders — to feel better because of that contact than they felt before.

That’s our measure of success.”

The real estate development business is closely related to issues of the land, because to build up, you first have to dig down. For any piece of land it works with, Mizrahi Developments focuses a great deal on environmental concerns. In some ways its approach is unique.

“Most of our sites are very important sites, but had challenges such as environmental issues, and others passed over them,” says Mizrahi. “But we look at those as opportunities, because we can do the heavy lifting on such matters in order to impact more lives in a positive way.”

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Location, location, location is the real estate mantra, and in Toronto, the Yonge and Bloor intersection is the epitome of location. The junction of two major subway lines and home of the “mink mile,” a shopping district with some of the world’s most recognizable luxury retailers, the Bloor-Yonge intersection was long considered to be underutilized given its importance in the centre of the city. At least, until Sam Mizrahi brought his vision to this cornerstone location.

In 2014, Mizrahi bought the southwest corner of the intersection for approximately $300 million and hired acclaimed London-based architect Foster + Partners with the brief of designing not the tallest building in the country, but the best. With dogged determination, Mizrahi began a three-year process of gaining the proper approvals, because at Mizrahi Developments, city-building to enhance communities is standard operating procedure.

“Before we do any development, we meet and listen to the community and learn from them,” says Mizrahi. “We then reverse-engineer the development based upon the needs of the neighbourhood and community, both today and tomorrow.”

The result of those findings is one stunning statement building. Even as Toronto grows into a vertical city, with one of most recognizable skylines in the world, The One will be a game changer and, upon its completion in 2022, one of the tallest buildings in North America. With its striking design and champagne colour and lighting, it will be a landmark, an experiential building of elevated luxury.

Construction began in August 2017, and The One Residences are already 75 per cent sold, with units ranging in price from $864,000 for a 591-square-foot studio to approximately $24 million for a 4,300-square-foot three-bedroom penthouse. But Sam Mizrahi’s focus is not the

building’s popularity; rather, it is the building’s potential importance.

“I’m grateful, as it’s an honour to have the responsibility to build The One, which will be meaningful and important not only to the city, but the country,” says Mizrahi. “It’s an incredible responsibility to get it right, to create something so iconic, and an honour to collaborate with so many talented people to create something that will put Canada and Toronto on the map in terms of international architecture.”

Through his hard work and resulting success as an entrepreneur, Sam Mizrahi is in the fortunate position of being able to give back to his community by supporting art galleries and hospitals. He also sits on the boards of the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Centre, United Jewish Appeal and B’nai Brith of Canada, responsibilities he takes very seriously.

“Giving back is a core fundamental value to me

and our company,” he says. “Entrepreneurship and philanthropy are two sides of the same coin. As an entrepreneur you’re in the business of creating fortunes, and in giving back and philanthropy you’re in the business of changing fortunes. It’s a moral responsibility to help communities change their fortunes.”

Another interest of Mizrahi’s is aviation. “I have been flying and licensed since 1991,” he says.

“I hold a jet commercial airline transport pilot licence, and it is one of my many passions, as I love the precision of flying and the perspective it gives me when I fly.”

From an early age, Sam Mizrahi aimed high and never stopped dreaming. His acumen and work ethic have turned those dreams into reality: the tallest building in Canada. We can’t wait to see what he dreams of next. www.mizrahidevelopments.ca @mizrahidevelopments

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RENDERINGS COURTESY OF MIZRAHI DEVELOPMENTS

With construction set to begin in 2019, 70 per cent of the boutique luxury condo residences at 1451 Wellington in Ottawa are already sold

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DESIGN

: n i e t s k c u l G n a i r B

Transforming Houses into Homes With more than three decades of experience in interior design, Brian Gluckstein celebrates the release of his new book, Brian Gluckstein: The Art of Home

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ou’d be hard-pressed to find someone who’s not familiar with design mastermind Brian Gluckstein, whether from his exquisite product range available in Canada, Europe and the United States, GlucksteinHome, or from one of the impeccable spaces he’s created and curated with his business, Gluckstein Design.

Having worked for more than 30 years in the industry, Gluckstein has become one of the most highly regarded interior designers out there — but this wide recognition was not always the case. Not only because it took time for Gluckstein to amass his skills, but also because, when he was starting out in this industry, the public was not familiar with the role of an interior designer.

“They thought it was all decorating, and they didn’t [understand] the difference between an interior designer and a decorator,” says Gluckstein. “They thought an interior designer picked fabrics and picked paint colours and that’s it. They didn’t realize we … do space planning and millwork details and design entire interiors of common spaces — partitions and layouts and lighting and electrical and the finishes and the furniture. Of course, the decorating, also, but it’s a very comprehensive scope.”

Since then, Gluckstein has revolutionized interior design, showing people the possibilities they can achieve in their own homes and workspaces.

His love of interior design began in his youth. “I didn’t grow up in a house where they furnished it once and it stayed like that for 40 years. I definitely was in an environment where my mother wanted things changed and updated, and different points of view all the time,” says Gluckstein. “It was traditional when I was young, [with] beautiful

colours, then it went modern; my parents went very contemporary and very neutral, so it was all creams and beiges and chocolate browns and chrome.”

Having design influences within his home, including an older sister who studied interior design at Ryerson University, as he himself would go on to do, Gluckstein was exposed to design that other

“A SUCCESSFUL PROCESS IS WHEN YOU REALLY UNDERSTAND YOUR CLIENT AND YOU UNDERSTAND THEIR LIFESTYLE” young people may not have been aware of. This influential upbringing fostered in Gluckstein a love of design, homes and building that he has shared with the public during the course of his career.

In fact, before the existence of the television channel HGTV, which made the inner workings of the design world into household entertainment, Gluckstein was, and continues to be, a regular guest on the talk show Cityline, introducing viewers to new concepts and tips, and cementing the importance of interior designers.

Now, Gluckstein will be educating people and showcasing interior design in a whole new way

with his new book, Brian Gluckstein: The Art of Home, a Globe and Mail national bestseller. An avid reader, Gluckstein has a love affair with coffee table books that feature beautiful design. In his own personal library, he has hundreds of such books covering topics from architecture to antiques. The format of these books inspired his own.

“I looked at the books that I love and that I reference by designers who inspire me, and said, ‘If I can do a book that looks like that while also giving insight into how those houses came about and what my point of view is in creating them, then I’ll do it,’” says Gluckstein. “It was two years of work, of photographing homes all over North America and writing the book and editing the book and setting it up graphically.”

The book showcases 10 beautiful homes, including Gluckstein’s own home in Toronto, giving readers insight into these breathtaking projects, with plenty of photos. “I’m a person who likes to see as much as I can of a space when I’m reading a magazine, and sometimes I read a book or magazine and say, ‘I wish I could see the rest of the house.’” In his own book, Gluckstein supplies the photos we all crave while also supplying readers with the necessary information to really understand what goes into creating these spaces, from conceptualization all the way through to final touches.

The book illustrates how Gluckstein and his team tailor each home not only to its geographic location, but also to its owner. “A successful process is when you really understand your client and you understand their lifestyle, because different people have different lifestyles; they’re different ages, they have different family dynamics, they have different interests as far as esthetics go, so you have to subtly interview your clients,” says Gluckstein.

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PHOTO BY CARLOS A. PINTO

WRITTEN BY VICTORIA SCOTT

Gluckstein believes your home should reflect the way you live, so don’t focus on trends, but on what makes you feel comfortable

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“I ask my clients what they don’t want, and we eliminate that from the list right away. Then we start to develop, knowing what they don’t want and who they are as a person, then we create the esthetic. We first start with the function of the space and how the space flows, how the use of the space is going to work from an architectural standpoint, then we get into furniture and finishes and the decorative parts.”

One common thread running through all the spaces, though, is Gluckstein’s point of view. As the common denominator between each home, his touch and style are evident. “I have a lot of experience doing this, so I’m really there to sort of edit things down, focus them, expose them to wonderful things; I’m sort of a designer and the

editor … I’ve got to edit it down and say, ‘This is what we’re looking for, this is the style, this is the finish, this is the use’ — things like that.

I understand their lifestyles, so I’m guiding them through the whole process. I make it very easy for them,” he says.

He included his own home in the book to give people an inside look at his own personal style.

One aspect of design that he loves (and is apparent in many of the homes, as well as his own) is the history of furniture, as expressed by antiques.

“I love furniture from all different periods, whether it’s French or Scandinavian or Italian, whether it’s from the 18th century or the early 20th century. I think there’s a soulfulness in furniture and accessories and art that has age

PHOTO BY MICHAEL GRAYDON

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1. The Couture City House employs contrast, balancing light and dark colours 2. Gluckstein’s home: an inside look at Gluckstein’s personal space

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to it. I think there’s a story to everything, and sometimes I look at a dining room table that’s 200 years old and think about the people who sat around it and the dinners and the conversations …

I find it very interesting, the whole concept of antiques, and I do like to bring them into spaces.

It adds personality to a space,” he says. “Anybody can go to a store and buy furniture, but you really have to curate a house to get that soulfulness.”

From antiques to patterns to flooring, the decisions in interior designing are endless, but with a seasoned professional like Gluckstein, nothing is impossible. Now, with his book, he will be able to reach an even wider audience, sharing his talent and passion for interior design with everyone who’s interested.

“ANYBODY CAN GO TO A STORE AND BUY FURNITURE, BUT YOU REALLY HAVE TO CURATE A HOUSE TO GET THAT SOULFULNESS” “I hope it inspires people to really look at their environment and spend the time to create something that is meaningful to them, that is comfortable, that represents who they are, that they love being in, that they love entertaining in,” says Gluckstein. “You can have a house, but a home is something different.”

Whether you’re looking to redecorate your own home, to learn more about Brian Gluckstein or to simply enjoy some beautiful visuals, The Art of Home is the perfect book to flip through casually or to sit down with and pore over.

PHOTO BY TED YARWOOD

www.glucksteindesign.com www.glucksteinhome.com @BrianGluckstein

Brian Glucktein: The Art of Home debuted at No. 4 on the Globe and Mail’s Canadian non-fiction bestsellers list and is a bestseller on Amazon.ca

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A DV E R TO R I A L

DAVID’S FINE LINENS Infuse your home with luxury products and brands from all across the globe

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ith the colder months upon us, now is the time to hide away from the ice and snow, and get cozy in bed.

David’s Fine Linens can make that experience even more enjoyable with its luxurious, comfortable products. With the largest selection of luxury bedding in Canada, from renowned brands across the globe, including Italian brands Bellora and Signoria, David’s Fine Linens is your go-to retailer for high-quality products. With everything from bedding and exquisite table linens to bathroom accessories and home décor items, David’s Fine Linens is a one-stop shop for all your home-comfort needs. With the recent renovation of its location at the Bayview Village Shopping Centre and its brand-new store at Centro Square in Woodbridge, Ont., David’s Fine Linens can now service a

broader clientele. Stop by any location and take advantage of the holiday sale, up to 80% off on all its luxury products. Unable to visit a location in person? David’s Fine Linens also offers a convenient online shopping service, with free delivery throughout North America. Don’t miss this incredible opportunity to procure luxurious products for you and your loved ones. www.davidsfinelinens.com

Shop some of the world’s most luxurious brands, including Roberto Cavalli, Graccioza, Missoni and St. Pierre

Centro Square 7777 Weston Rd., Woodbridge, Ont. 905-264-7778 Bayview Village Shopping Centre 2901 Bayview Ave., North York, Ont. 416-590-7311 Toll-Free: 1-877-591-1115

Presents a ross petty production

elgin theatre november 30 —January 5

savings (12+) rosspetty.com 1.855.599.9090 Group 647.438.5559

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PHOTO BY CARLOS A. PINTO

LIFESTYLE

The LG TWINWash allows you to wash two loads at once: one in the front-loading washer up above and a second in the LG SideKick down below

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irst noticed at an Irish dancing competition when she was just 14 years old, Coco Rocha says she just laughed. “When this man asked if I had ever thought of modelling, it was just a laugh for all of the kids,” she says. “To us, a model was older, sophisticated, gorgeous, and I was just this dorky 14-year-old Irish dancer.” But she had the courage to say “Yes” to the opportunity, and 15 years later, she is still modelling and is now the owner of NOMAD MGMT, a global talent agency.

Rocha has graced the cover of magazines such as Vogue and walked the runway for Versace, Chanel and Dior. But more important, as the first model with more than a million followers on social media platform Google+ and an aggregate 17 million followers across a number of social media platforms, she’s used her digital voice to speak about eating disorders in the industry, issues surrounding underaged models, do a “Photoshopfree” campaign and launch a collection produced with Senhoa Foundation, an organization that creates opportunities for victims of human trafficking and at-risk communities in Cambodia.

And now that she’s a mom, fashion-savvy Rocha is happy to dish about everything from the latest trends to babies who spit up, as well as share tips for taking care of your clothes.

Q: What are some of the most popular style trends now?

A: Who knew that the ’90s were coming back? We see that sportswear meets ’90s pop music, R&B ’90s looks — the fanny bag. And I would say dad shoes are totally in swing. I’m not going to lie: I bought a ton of dad shoes — way too comfortable.

Q: Why did you choose to partner with LG for the Ultimate Laundry Room Tour?

A: I thought it was a perfect match. I work in the fashion industry, so my work is clothes, and I’m a mom who has two dirty little kids. I have a cute seven-month-old, who is still puking up everything; he loves to eat. And I have a threeand-a-half-year-old girl, who is curious and therefore gets dirty all the time. So it just made sense for both brands to partner up.

Q: What’s so great about LG appliances?

A: In the washer/dryer (LG TWINWash and SideKick), you can actually put in a king-sized duvet. We’re not talking about a duvet cover, we’re talking about an actual duvet, [which is great] because I have a program called Model Camp.

These girls are not actually camping; they are in nice beds. And I need to wash bedding every time I have camp. So the fact that I have machines now that actually do the work, it ticks off one of my jobs of cleaning up the house. But also, if I need things, like my sweaters, handwashed, there is a Hand Wash cycle. It helps with the children’s

clothes, too, so I can put children’s detergent in the SideKick.

And, say, I’ve worn an outfit during the day and need it ready quickly for the night, I can pop it in the Styler. It isn’t there to clean, but it’s there to help you and prevent you from going to the dry cleaner so often. The Styler is not only steaming to remove wrinkles, but it’s also getting rid of allergens [and helping to release odours and kill bacteria].

CLEANAND-GO FASHION FOREVER Whether you’re a mom or a model walking the runway, you’ve got laundry. And whether your style is high fashion, low fashion or right in the middle, eventually, your clothes need to be cleaned. Who better to ask for advice than Coco Rocha? A supermodel with kids and her own agency, she’s now partnered with LG for the Ultimate Laundry Room Tour WRITTEN BY DONNA PARIS INTERVIEW BY VICTORIA SCOTT

Q: How would you say that you use your platform to get your messages out to people?

A: Because I started 15 years ago, there was no social media. So when social media came out, I was using Myspace and anything I could think of. At first, people were frustrated with me, saying that this was not right: the model … is to make people feel like it’s a fantasy world and it’s untouchable. And here’s me, wanting to have a voice, because I knew how important that would be for my career, but also just for the industry [because] women, who are the faces of so many brands, actually have an opinion. It is hard; you want it to be fun to use social media and sometimes you want to post whatever you want to post, but it is a business and it is a brand, and you have to think about what is the message.

Q: Thoughts like that go through your mind when you are choosing brands, like LG, to partner with?

A: That’s the thing. When you’re thinking about teaming up with anyone, you’re thinking, ‘Who are the brands? Do you stand for the same things?’

It’s important that it makes sense to both parties.

I dedicated a very nice space in my house for my clothing. It’s my job, it’s everything about it, but I’m also a mom, a working mom, and I work hard to keep my house in order. So to me, this makes complete sense.

Q: What advice do you have for people on how to keep their clothes in the best shape possible?

A: Go buy a Styler. Sometimes to me, clothing is just as important as art. I think that clothing is meant to sustain our lifestyles, so to have these sorts of machines that can keep them going for years to come, why wouldn’t you invest a little bit of that for your wardrobe?

And LG thinks of innovative ways to keep it interesting. The fact that these machines are compatible with your phone, Alexa or Google — they don’t hold back. Let’s say a company decides they want to create their own washing system with LG. They can have their own setting, then I know that that is the best way to wash it. To me, that is the future. www.cocorocha.com @cocorocha www.lg.com

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NIICO MILLWORK GROUP: FINe CRaFtsMaNshIP MaKes aLL the dIFFeReNCe IN the hIGhestqUaLIty besPOKe MILLWORK Since 2015, this premier millwork company has made its mark in the interior design world, with its projects appearing in homes and condominiums across the globe

this bold and beautiful blue island holds centre stage in this stunning hand-painted face-framed transitional kitchen. designed by Aim interior design. Fabricated and installed by NiiCo

photo by Vanessa Galle

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ompanies that fall within the bespoke kitchens and high-end custom cabinetry category are often recognized as decades-old companies that have made a name for themselves over time. this perception of millwork companies is being challenged by NiiCo, a young emerging company that has sidestepped this categorization, already reaching the heights of these established brands in a much shorter period of time, crafting quality designs that meet each and every need of its clients.

Founded only three years ago, NiiCo is the high-quality brand favoured by homeowners, contractors, architects and interior designers for the finest in bespoke kitchens and millwork in toronto. its superior product paired with the high calibre of its craftsmanship have led to its recognition in the interior design community and the custom home-building market, creating and installing stylish kitchens and fine cabinetry across Canada, as well as in the United States and even Africa.

Although the company may still be young, the individual at the helm of this operation, Joseph Primucci, has been immersed in this industry for his entire life. His grandfather founded Mirolin, the Canadian bath industry leader, in 1972, which his father now runs. Working with this company in his youth, Primucci was exposed to state-of-the-art manufacturing and was inspired to replicate the success of this family-run business in a business of his own. in 2015, he formed NiiCo with the desire to build something special. the values and lessons he learned from his elders, mentors and from his time at Mirolin are evident in his approach at his own company. Few companies rival the quality designs, craftsmanship and service that NiiCo has provided

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oUr PHiloSoPHY iS CrAFtiNG A HiGHeNd, HiGH-QUAlitY ProdUCt. We Never BUild ANYtHiNG tHAt We WoUld Not WANt iN oUr oWN HoMeS

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A matte lacquer finish with signature rift-cut fumed larch wood imported from europe. designed, fabricated and installed by NiiCo

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A modern day take on a chic traditional kitchen, complemented by a darker island, gold accents throughout and a mirror inlay integrated fridge section, with three-step crown moulding. designed, fabricated and installed by NiiCo

Contemporary kitchen with stainless steel accents, finished in a combination of flat-cut American black walnut and matte lacquer. designed by eAC design.

Fabricated and installed by NiiCo WINTER 2018/19

Custom vanity in matte lacquer, finished with brass inlay fretwork and gold detailing. designed, fabricated and installed by NiiCo

state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, which provides customers first-hand access to how the products are built. this transparency aligns with the company’s values, ensuring that clients understand the way NiiCo works and allowing them the chance to follow along with their own projects through each step in the process. there is also a secondary showroom that NiiCo has undertaken in partnership with Atlantis Bath, a high-end bath boutique and Kohler showroom. this showroom is currently being built at Castlefield Avenue and Caledonia road, a location that will make NiiCo permanently accessible to those in the toronto market and creating a foundation for NiiCo in the toronto community and beyond. this new showroom will feature up to five products on display, showcasing three bespoke kitchens and two bath pieces. With a full-time designer on staff, clients working with NiiCo at this destination will receive the same one-on-one experience offered at its flagship showroom.

With NiiCo, it all goes back to pride in craftsmanship and getting the job done right the

first time, for which it is unparalleled. even with its vast manufacturing capabilities, its design and engineering expertise and its quality of installation, it’s NiiCo’s attention to customer service, commitment to a bespoke product and project customization that separate it from the rest. www.niico.com @niicomillworkgroup Joseph Primucci has

photo by carlos a. pinto

photos by Vanessa Galle

since its foundation. NiiCo brought to the market a new standard in this competitive business, which has been met with immediate success.

“From its inception, NiiCo put a stake in the ground and said, ‘We are going to focus on high-end [handcrafted] millwork,’” recalls Primucci. “We add transparency, reliability and dependability to the industry, as there are not a lot of companies that do what NiiCo does from an in-house manufacturing capability standpoint. our philosophy is crafting a high-end, high-quality product. We never build anything that we would not want in our own homes.” its philosophy is to use only premium materials, sourced from across the country and imported from europe, then combine those materials with state-of-the-art manufacturing technology and superior design concepts and engineering capabilities.

NiiCo’s products are hand-picked directly from the manufacturer, which it visits once per month to select the wood veneer for its inventory, ensuring it matches the high standards implemented at NiiCo. All of the veneer products are custompressed to match the specifications and standards that it employs. though this is an involved process, it is important to NiiCo to make that investment in time to ensure the best-quality products are utilized by this emerging luxury global brand. this precision that goes into picking products carries through into the manner in which projects and pieces are created and built. the individual projects are designed to fit the lifestyle and desires of the homeowner. NiiCo’s skilled inhouse designers and project managers conduct consultations and space evaluations to ensure the project meets the standards of the company and the client, all while embracing and maintaining the stated budget and respecting timelines and deadlines. “it’s important to us to create a consistent experience from client to client, regardless of the value or size of a particular project,” says Primucci.

“We approach every single client as an entirely new project and never cut corners or sacrifice quality to finish sooner. We work with each client to achieve what we need to achieve, while still building a high-quality product.” the dedication to fulfilling a client’s vision has garnered the company attention from some of toronto’s top designers and public figures, resulting in the completion of projects for some of the more prominent members of the city.

Whether you’re an interior designer, a builder or a homeowner, customers can visit NiiCo’s flagship showroom in vaughan, ont., which serves the entire Greater toronto Area. Complete with four kitchens and a handcrafted wardrobe, it offers a sample taste of everything NiiCo builds as a showcase of its work, giving customers the opportunity to touch and experience the products. the showroom is attached to NiiCo’s

been involved with bespoke millwork his entire life. As a young adult, he worked for Mirolin, a leading bath industry company in Canada, before moving on in the business. He has worked with North America’s top manufacturing and distribution businesses, focusing on product development, design and service. this three-pronged focus is evident in his own company, NiiCo, which he founded in 2015 and to which he continues to dedicate his time.

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AUTO

THE STRONG. THE POWERFUL. THE ELEGANT:

THE LAMBORGHINI URUS The legendary Italian brand, Lamborghini, makes history and introduces the dawn of a new era with the all-new Urus SUV WRITTEN BY SHAUN MELADY

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hen you think of a sports car, what is the first brand that pops into your mind? Most likely, Lamborghini falls into your mental lineup from seeing them on the road, hearing about them in popular songs or just daydreaming about your future car. While you’re still thinking about types of cars and makes, what brand do you think about when you picture a family car or a sport utility vehicle (SUV)? You’re not likely still thinking about Lamborghini.

Think again.

The new Lamborghini Urus should change your mind on this. The recently launched dynamic, fiveseater SUV has changed the game for automakers: the Urus has maintained the finesse of a sports car while incorporating the DNA of an SUV. The positioning of the vehicle is to portray strength, performance and capability that remain true to the heart of all Lamborghini products, while incorporating the car into everyday life.

This proves accurate, as the original definition of urus means “ox.” It is fitting, as the vehicle is powerful, sturdy and larger than the other vehicles in the Lamborghini herd. The new SUV also reflects that of its predecessor, the LM002, by showcasing a powerful dome on the hood of the vehicle with strong design cuts throughout the shape, including the renowned line art from Marcello Gandini on the frameless doors.

The sturdy aluminum and fibreglass-based LM002 can be found in the company’s Masterpiece Collection. And that can also be seen in its glorious V-12 engine, capable of climbing a slope of 120

strength exude from the low-sitting SUV. The car also features intrinsic, sharp crosslines on both sides, showcasing both sport and class.

Additional elements include four-wheel steering and a four-wheel-drive package. These performance-inducing functions allow for roll stabilization, air suspension and ample rear torque, all atop carbon ceramic brakes, with mixed tires sitting at 23 inches. The design of the SUV allows the Urus to provide the best weight-to-power ratio among its competitors.

Underneath the hood, the Urus hosts a bi-turbo V-8 engine and an eight-gear transmission. These allow for drivers to handle the car on the road, on the track or on any terrain, thanks to the fourwheel-drive functionality. The vehicle also hosts the renowned Lamborghini ANIMA (Adaptive Network Intelligent Management) Selector, which allows for changes in driving dynamics while operating the car. One is STRADA for comfort; the next is SPORT for a dynamic and exhilarating drive; and CORSA allows for advanced and performancestyle driving. The additional features in the Urus consist of three off-road functions: NEVE for slicksurface performance; TERRA for off-roading; and SABBIA for sand surfaces.

On the inside of the Urus, the car features three thin film transistor (TFT) screens, elevating the vehicle’s technology to the next level. The three screens are used for driver controls, infotainment and comfort features. Through Lamborghini’s customization options, the internal lighting systems and materials selections can be adjusted to match each personal desire for the car, making it the widest range of selections on offer for the brand.

The Urus has paved the way for the SUV market by creating enhanced features for these types of vehicles, providing bold statements in sports car elegance and performance. Ferrari, Lamborghini’s major competitor, is awaiting the right moment to step into the SUV segment following the success of the Urus. Ferrari is one of the only automotive brands that doesn’t have a footprint in this market.

Visit Lamborghini’s website to learn more about the Urus and the brand’s entire lineup.

GENERAL SPECS ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION: BI-TURBO V-8 ENGINE AND FOUR-WHEEL DRIVE POWER: 650-HORSEPOWER TORQUE: 850 NEWTON METRES (NM) 0-100 KILOMETRES PER HOUR (KPH): 3.6 SECONDS TOP SPEED: 305 KPH WEIGHT: 2,200 KILOGRAMS per cent in all-wheel-drive action — while still maintaining a maximum super-speed of 210 kilometres per hour.

Like all car buyers of today, if you’re going to own one of these distinct, high-end vehicles, you want to feel not only fashionable on and off the road, but also safe with family and friends, all while trying to impress them in the new ride. And the starting price? About C$232,000, with additional fees for personalization.

Don’t sweat it. You will be fashion-forward and pleased.

The Urus has mixed Italian sports car heritage with elegance, remaining true to all Lamborghini vehicles by incorporating the brand’s signature “Y” silhouette from the front to the rear. While sleek in design with a coupe-like feel, notes of power and

PHOTO BY REMI DARGEGEN

www.lamborghini.com

The all-new Lamborghini Urus decorates the streets and commands off-road terrains

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HandcraFtinG PerFection 4

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Commanding the world in ways few brands have done before, Carrera y Carrera celebrates its successful expansion into Canada with the company’s Yorkville boutique Written by cece M. scott interVieW by Victoria scott

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1.. The Shanghai Mini Pendant with diamonds brings mythological creatures to life with dragons in yellow and white gold 2. From the Seda Imperial collection, the Orquídeas necklace in yellow gold, rubies and diamonds represents fine jewelry 3. The sophisticated Gardenias maxi ring in yellow gold with diamonds and rock crystal represents images of Cuba that were brought over to Spain 4.. From the Peacock collection, the Río necklace in white gold, green tourmaline, iolite, blue sapphires, tsavorite garnets and diamonds mimics the movement of peacock feathers 5. A symbol of good luck in various Eastern cultures, the Zen maxi ring in 18-karat yellow and white gold with diamonds is inspired by bamboo 6. The Aqua ring in 18-karat yellow gold is a tribute to the streams and springs in Spain 7. This Tiger ring exudes energy and vitality in white gold, smoky quartz and diamonds, representing the life and power within the animal kingdom

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xquisite. Joyful. Evocative. Singular.

Passionate. These words perfectly encapsulate Carrera y Carrera’s jewelry creations. An icon of Spanish craftsmanship, the company has its roots in a small jewelry shop opened in 1885 by Saturio Estevan Carrera in the Barrio de las Letras (Literary Quarter) of Madrid. It was the same bohemian neighbourhood where the first edition

of Don Quixote was printed. By 1920, Saturio’s son, José Esteban, who trained to be a jeweler in Paris, had opened up a workshop in Madrid’s hub. José went on to teach the business to his four nephews, José, Saturio, Pedro and Andrés. The company began to flourish. Fast forward to 1965, when Saturio’s great-grandson, Manuel Carrera, the founder of Carrera y Carrera, opened a shop in the Madrid of the Austrians, a name used for

the old centre of Madrid. “I was hypnotized by the process of jewelry creation from the time I was a small boy,” Carrera says. “I was 14 years old when I first entered the workshop as an apprentice. I went step by step, knowing that I was on the only correct path to making my dreams come true.

Now, I can say that this was my destiny; it was great luck that I was able to see that from the very beginning.”

The company, which has expanded internationally over the past several decades, opened its first Canadian boutique in winter 2015, in the historic and upscale Toronto neighbourhood of Yorkville. The location was chosen for its beauty and its vibrancy. “Imagine yourself in a big European city like Paris or Madrid. The neighbourhood looks like and has the feel of Europe, which is unique for a big city,” says store owner Natalia Lisochkina. “It is very fitting in terms of the history of the brand.”

Carrera travelled from Spain with family members in February 2016 to visit the Yorkville store and take part in the celebration of the launch of the brand in Toronto. He says that while Toronto presented a new challenge for his brand, the opportunity to partner with Lisochkina made his decision easier. “Natalia completely understands the essence of our brand; she is the perfect partner,” he says.

Interestingly, before Lisochkina opened the Yorkville boutique, she had no prior experience in the jewelry business. She did, however, know the brand intimately. Before coming to Canada, Lisochkina lived in St. Petersburg, Russia, where the brand is very active and well advertised. “I was drawn in by the brand’s uniqueness,” Lisochkina says. “There is so much to tell about each piece.

The jewelry, a combination of sculpture and jewels, has gone through several distinctive techniques. In the 1970s, there was the matte gloss and polished finished, and later on, the sandblasting technique.

All of the designs are steeped in Spanish culture, nature and architecture.”

Although Lisochkina is not currently involved in design, it is something that she dreams of doing.

She finds that, because jewelry embraces both art and beauty, the business of selling jewelry is ensconced in joy and happiness. “When you are buying jewelry, it is usually around a celebration, around something happy in your life,” she says.

Carrera’s design style, the secrets of which are embedded in the brand’s DNA, were in the 1950s at the opposite extreme to the traditional, classic jewelry style of the time. Carrera found this tradition too conservative for his creative spirit.

At the end of the Franco dictatorship, however, Spain entered into a lively period of renaissance.

“It was the moment to create, to cross the borders, to dare,” Carrera says. “‘Dare to be different’ has always been our credo. We didn’t hesitate; we tried the boldest ideas. Mini sculptures, the beauty of naked bodies — we didn’t doubt, we created.

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photos courtesy of carrera y carrera canaDa

JEWELRY

“We didn’t doubt, We created”

photo courtesy of natalia lisochkina

photo by carlos a. pinto

It represented, at the time, a significant revolution important annual event for the jewelry and sapphires evokes the colours of Spain’s Golden within the jewelry world. Now this style, this mini watch industry. Because everything is handmade, Age. The Círculos de Fuego (circle of fire) collection sculpture, has become an essential characteristic sometimes it can take up to two months to create draws from the mystery of fire dragons, which are for Carrera y Carrera.” one piece of jewelry. revered in Asian culture. Horses, which have a In 1960, Carrera y Carrera was awarded its first In the Yorkville location, some of the most prominent place in art history, are represented in royal commission, a wedding tiara for the nuptials popular pieces (and those with the highest volume the company’s Ecuestre collection, which evokes of King Baudouin I of Belgium and Spanish of sales) are from the Love collection, an affordable power and elegance as a golden tribute to the aristocrat Fabiola of Mora y Aragón. Suddenly, collection popular around Valentine’s Day. famous Andalusian (the pure Spanish horse).

Carrera y Carrera had arrived. International The Spanish, Aqua, Círculos de Fuego and bridal Sensuality reigns in of all of Carrera y Carrera’s expansion quickly followed, with the 1979 collections also sell particularly well. jewelry collections. Passion shines particularly distribution of the Carrera y Carrera brand in If Lisochkina could choose only one favourite in Carrera’s 2015 collection, Romance en el loto New York’s Cellini Boutique, piece, it would be the Allegoria located in the luxurious ring from the Universo Waldorf Astoria Hotel on collection. “It is inspired Park Avenue. By the 1990s, by notes from an old travel the brand had become a journal called Universo, which hit in Russia and Eastern was found in a second-hand Europe. And by 2013, bookstore in Madrid,” she says.

Carrera y Carrera collections “The pieces are inspired by could be found in Japan and travel stories.”

Beijing. “It was essential What attracts Lisochkina for us to expand,” Carrera to the ring is the energy of says. “Spain represented a the ametrine stone, which is a limited market for us. Our style was so different that art lovers from all over the world became our faithful clients. From a local small workshop, we evolved into a jewerly house that is easily recognizable all over the world. It is a real acknowledgment.”

The owner of Carrera y Carrera’s Yorkville location, Natalia Lisochkina (middle right), joined by the boutique’s staff Since its original royal commission, Carrera y Carrera has gone on to receive several more commissions from Spain and Belgium’s royal houses. In fact, the company is now one of the 30 most prestigious jewelry companies in the world and is considered a pillar of the Spanish jewelry industry, as well as a fashion favourite for the crème de la crème.

Manuel Carrera at the opening celebration of Models Eugenia Silva and Alejandra Alonso have the Yorkville boutique been the face of the jewelry icon. Celebrities and fashion influencers such as Lady Gaga, Jennifer combination of amethyst and citrine ametrine.

Lopez, Taylor Swift, Christina Hendricks and — Manuel Carrera A rare and unusual stone, it occurs in quartz Madonna often wear the brand’s creations. when the two stones reside in the same crystal.

Carrera’s designs feature flowing volume, shape “It feels like your inner soul is being energized, and symbols that embrace myriad storylines and suddenly your creativity will burst out,” says (many of them Carrera’s own): there are human Lisochkina. Known for its ability to encourage themes based in the feminine and, famously, (Romance in the lotus), which pays homage to decision-making, no two ametrine are ever fanciful depictions of the animal kingdom.

Manuel’s wife and muse, Marina, and their love exactly alike.

These unique takes set apart Carrera y Carrera’s story, which spans more than 50 years. Whimsical Although Carrera says that he cannot choose breathtaking jewelry, including its collection of golden frogs (gold features in many of Carrera’s a favourite piece or collection, he does say that rings, earrings, bracelets, pendants and cufflinks. collections) represent the couple and are symbolic Bonadea (the female hands) is the most significant.

The Bestiario collection, for example, features lions, of the many firsts in their epic love story. Carrera “All of our pieces come alive in Carrera y Carrera’s tigers, serpents, leopards, elephants, monkeys and also places this symbol of mutual love on his lotus artisans’ hands,” he says. "They treat every single butterflies, sculpted and positioned to capture leaf designs, the lotus being an emblem of purity piece as high jewelry. It is incredible to see how their inherent strength and life force. The Tesoros of body and soul, beauty, perfection and grace — traits intrinsic to Marina. from a sketch, step by step, the piece becomes a del Imperio collection, inspired by the paintings of Carrera y Carrera launches new collections true piece of art.”

Diego Velázquez, one of Spain’s greatest painters, carreraycarrera.ca every year at Baselwood (held in Basel, reflects the most fruitful period in Spain’s history. @carreraycarrera_official Switzerland), the world’s largest and most Its exquisite mix of gold, diamonds, amethysts and

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SUCCESS STORY

GRACE

CODDINGTON: Model, author and the creative heartbeat of Vogue magazine

Defying both tragedy and naysayers, who told her that she didn’t have what it took to be a fashion model, Grace Coddington, now 77, is and will always be the epitome of fashion, courage and heart WRITTEN BY CECE M. SCOTT

First published in 2002, this book showcases a selection of photographs and photo shoots created by Coddington that were displayed in both British and American Vogue

PHOTO BY DAVID M. BENETT

W

ho would have thought that the remote island of Anglesey, situated on the foamy north coast of Wales, would spawn a fashion figurehead the likes of Grace Coddington?

Born Pamela Rosalind Grace Coddington in 1941, this unforgettable icon — more familiarly known as Grace — is the definition of creative innovation.

Throughout her childhood and most of her teenage years, Coddington’s family managed the Trearddur Bay Hotel, a 42-room guest house surrounded by cliffs and rocks. True to its rustic setting, the hotel had no television, room service or ensuite toilets. White china chamber pots were tucked away under each bed, and the upscale rooms enjoyed the luxury of in-room wash basins. Coddington loved to sail the Argo, her sailboat, and play table tennis with the guests, most of whom she beat handily. (Later, she would take inspiration from children’s books by Lewis Carroll in some of her favourite fashion shoots.)

As a teen, Coddington dreamed of a more glamourous life by perusing the pages of the traditional British weeklies, as well as her sister’s copies of Vogue magazine. Vogue’s avantgarde images appealed to Coddington. She was enthralled with movie stars such as James Dean, whom she watched at the local theatre in the neighbouring town of Holyhead.

Eventually, Coddington felt like rough-andtumble Anglesey was closing in on her, so she set off to London’s West End to take a two-week

Coddington first became a fashion editor at British Vogue in 1968 and went on to become the overall creative director of Vogue in 2016

“[CODDINGTON IS THE] HEART AND SOUL OF VOGUE, ITS GUARDIAN AT THE GATE, ITS BEACON OF EXCELLENCE” — Anna Wintour

course at Cherry Marshall modelling school. In 1959, the aspiring model moved to the Notting Hill district of London, where she waited tables. That same year — ignoring a tutor’s pronouncement that she didn’t have what it takes to be a model — Coddington entered a modelling competition in British Vogue and ended up winning the “Young Idea” category. Some of her tests shots were taken by none other than Antony Armstrong-Jones, the future Lord Snowdon and future husband of Princess Margaret.

Coddington was on her way. She graced a series of high-end covers, including Vogue (U.K.), Harper’s Bazaar (U.K.), Elle (France) and Queen.

She met with Eileen Ford, the guru of modelling agencies (although that meeting did not go well — Ford plucked out all of Coddington’s eyebrows); modelled for Mary Quant, the era’s toast of the town; and became the inspiration for newly minted hairdresser Vidal Sassoon.

A trés chic fashion model and long-time creative director of both the British and American editions of Vogue, Coddington is famous for her ever-changing look. She’s been Debutante Grace, Go-Go Grace, Jet-Set Grace and freckled Flower Child Grace, to name but a few of her looks.

The chameleonic Coddington has consistently been a mirror reflecting the styles of the day. In her early 20s, she was in a serious car accident that sliced off her left eyelid. A model’s face is her stock in trade, so many thought she would never work again. But then, poignantly, Grace the

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PHOTO BY ARTHUR ELGORT CONDÉ NAST PUBLICATIONS

PHOTO BY PETER LINDBERGH PHOTO BY BRUCE WEBER

Phoenix emerged. After two years and five plastic surgeries, she went on to become one of the most definitive faces of the trendsetting ’60s.

When Coddington was 27, she was told by an ill-humoured fashion editor that she was too old to model anymore. Coddington agreed.

Innovative and intrepid, she met with Vogue editor Beatrix Miller, who gave her a job as junior fashion editor at the paltry annual sum of £1,100.

But Coddington was undeterred and, in fact, was quickly recognized for her ability to intuit coming fashion trends before they happened. She rose from the rank of junior editor to fashion director of British Vogue, before taking the role of creative director of American Vogue under the wing of famously larger-than-life editor-in-chief Anna Wintour. On the occasion of Coddington’s 70th birthday, Wintour credited her with being the “heart and soul of Vogue, its guardian at the gate, its beacon of excellence.”

Coddington’s photo shoots have been described as “transforming static studio portraiture into modern vivid tableau and turning location shoots into cinematic narratives” (Grace: Thirty Years of Fashion at Vogue). She travelled the world, creating glossy photo spreads that graced multiple

Her ability to transform an idea into a fullfledged narrative is a part of what has made Coddington so effective as a creative director

full pages in Vogue. Collaborating with A-list photographers, including Norman Parkinson (it is said that he discovered Coddington), Arthur Elgort, Mario Testino and the inimitable Annie Leibovitz, upped Coddington’s game. Together with photographer Bruce Weber, she developed a unique pastoral photographic style steeped in Aestheticism and authenticity. Another photographer, John Cowan, gave her the nickname “The Cod” to match supermodel Jean Shrimpton’s nickname “The Shrimp.”

There have been numerous art exhibitions honouring Coddington’s work, including Short Stories: Celebrating 25 Years of Vogue Fashion

by Grace Coddington, at L.A.’s Fahey/Klein Gallery in 1994. In 2002, Coddington, along with Karl Lagerfeld, was awarded a lifetime achievement award by the Council of Fashion Designers of America.

Even now, at 77 years of age, Coddington remains a paragon of creative innovation. She launched her eponymous perfume, Grace by Grace Coddington, in collaboration with Comme des Garçons. The fragrance is inspired by her love of English roses, and the bottle stopper is shaped in the likeness of a cat’s head — a whimsical nod

to her passion for felines. Coddington believes that cats can feel their owners’ emotions, and she regularly consults with a cat psychic. The former and current owner of several cats, Coddington’s home is known as “Cat Central” to her New York friends. And in 2006, Coddington and her partner, Didier Malige, compiled her many sketches of her cats into a book, The Catwalk Cats.

Coddington writes four stories annually for American Vogue, and in September 2018, she hosted a new six-episode original series, Face to Grace, on the video network Made to Measure.

And although Coddington was dead set against being profiled in the influential 2009 documentary The September Issue (about the production of the September 2007 issue of American Vogue), fashionistas can look forward to eventually seeing her story on the big screen. Coddington’s Grace: A Memoir (written with Michael Roberts in 2012) was optioned for film in 2015 by well-known independent company A24. She’s come full circle from the days of travelling to Holyhead to swoon over movie stars — fittingly, it’s life imitating art, imitating life. www.gracecoddington.com @therealgracecoddington

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A dv e r to r i A l

BE PREPARED AND SAFE FoR

LIFE-CHANGING PLASTIC SURGERY Dr. Nicolas Guay shares his advice after years in the industry to ensure those interested in plastic surgery are properly educated

photos by carlos a. pinto

Having worked as a plastic surgeon for over 18 years, dr. Guay is qualified to help inform those interested in learning more about plastic surgery

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e recently met with dr. Nicolas Guay at the beautiful Kleinburg Clinic for Plastic Surgery in Kleinburg, ont., and his patient-centred approach to plastic and esthetic surgery resonated with our editor and staff. it was clear that dr. Guay understands the power of education in his own life and in the life of patients seeking plastic surgery. After studies at the University of ottawa, Université de Montréal and the renowned UClA, dr. Guay practised in ottawa from 2000–13 and then moved to the Greater toronto Area (GtA) to become corporate chief of surgery of three hospitals in the northern belt of toronto. to bridge a gap in information on breast reconstruction in Canada, dr. Guay created and founded a groundbreaking website, breastreconstructioncanada.ca, where cancer survivors are presented all options in care, are able to select an option and find a surgeon in their region who offers that option.

With recent tragedies in the news related to plastic surgery performed by non-surgeons in nonsurgical facilities, dr. Guay understands there may be a lack of education related to esthetic/cosmetic surgery. We must also ask ourselves why a patient would take the risk of having plastic surgery in another country, when there are more than 100 board-certified plastic surgeons in the GtA (for example). Patients explain that they understand there are a lot of good surgeons in their region, but that some do not communicate in the way they want. Patients also clarify that communication is where trust is born, and that is how they select their surgeon. to avoid misleading information, dr. Guay believes that if patients prepare for their plastic surgery consultation, they can remain safe and close to home. dr. Guay shares with our readers the three steps to complete before an esthetic/cosmetic procedure in order to improve overall satisfaction and to help move this life-changing decision from emotional to rational: 1) Do your homework: Patients can easily find the best peer-reviewed information available through links on the websites of the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons or the Canadian Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.

Also, look for some excellent websites from members of these associations.

Social media can be helpful, but be careful: 80 per cent of current social media posts in the United States are from non-plastic surgeons.

2) Select your option: through his experience in the development of breastreconstructioncanada.ca, dr. Guay learned that when people were given the right information, 95 per cent of them were able to select their

dr. Guay joined by his two daughters in his office at the Kleinburg Clinic for Plastic Surgery

PAtieNtS AlSo ClArify tHAt CoMMUNiCAtioN iS WHere trUSt iS borN, ANd tHAt iS HoW tHey SeleCt tHeir SUrGeoN

option before seeing a surgeon. He believes this also applies to the esthetic/cosmetic procedures.

Patients therefore should find a plastic surgeon who is a member of the Canadian Society of Plastic Surgeons and who offers the patient’s options in that region and then start the conversation.

3) Select your surgeon: once you meet your plastic surgeon, clear communication on your option or an alternative should only make you feel more confident about your decision. if you feel more confident about your decision after the visit, then this is your surgeon.

According to dr. Guay, from a surgeon’s perspective, a good candidate for an esthetic surgical procedure will clearly state their goal, that goal needs to be attainable with a surgical procedure and the doctor needs to be the best surgeon to perform that surgery. if the surgeon is not, they will refer the patient to an experienced colleague who can become that patient’s trusted surgeon. this preparation will assure that patients get a safe procedure by a board-certified plastic surgeon close to home. Also, the improved communication with your physician will help you better tackle the unavoidable emotional ups and downs after an elective cosmetic procedure. dr.Guay states that these emotional ups and downs stem from guilt. the mommy makeover guilt is precipitated from: social interactions and the reactions of friends and family; feeling bad for spending money on yourself; or related to the time taken away from work/family/spouse. dr. Guay asserts that if a trusting relationship was established before the procedure, it will be easier to navigate those unavoidable ups and downs. the goal of your life-changing plastic surgery is that it will make you say “i am so glad i did it.” the improved communication with your surgeon will also assure that you will be given all the options, and be involved in the decision. With this kind of experience, patients are not only left happy, but end the journey with their desired choice, which is the ultimate goal for both patient and surgeon after any esthetic/ cosmetic plastic surgery. to continue this conversation you can reach dr. Guay at the Kleinburg Clinic for Plastic Surgery for a consultation.

Kleinburg Clinic for Plastic Surgery 8 Kellam St., Kleinburg, Ont., L0J 1C0 breastreconstructioncanada.ca Dr. N. Guay, B.Sc., MD, FRCS(C) 437-776-8887

dr. Guay has been able to help hundreds of people, and he even founded breastreconstructioncanada.ca to help cancer survivors

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LifestyLe

FIFTY YEARS OF STYLE Sassoon Salon and Academy in Yorkville celebrates a milestone with its golden anniversary

photoS by geoff fitzgerald

The team of Sassoon Salon and Academy in Yorkville

Nhi Tran, one of Sassoon Salon's creative directors

written by Shaun Melady interview by victoria Scott

photoS courteSy of SaSSoon Salon

H

This year’s A Night in Style paid homage to Sassoon’s golden anniversary by showcasing quintessential looks from different decades in its history

ow do you define style? Through the perception of colour? The elegance of fabric designs? How about the shape of a well-crafted sculpture?

There are many forms of style and art that can be defined as the “right one,” but there are certain professionals who may be a hair ahead of the rest of us. One strand in particular is Sassoon Salon in Yorkville, located at 122 Scollard St. in Toronto, as this established brand is celebrating its 50th anniversary in business this year.

In October, Sassoon Salon hosted A Night in Style and showcased the elegance of pampering and stylistic endeavours created from the heritage of the company.

“We are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sassoon Salon and Academy here in Toronto. It’s a milestone,” says Nhi Tran, a creative director of Yorkville’s Sassoon Salon. “We have had previous Nights of Style, and we usually like to celebrate the evening with our dedicated guests by bringing the community together. It’s a way to showcase creativity and to celebrate an evening with the Sassoon team.”

This night was particularly special, as the Sassoon Toronto team was celebrating the history and ancestry of the salon. There was a great deal of pride in the cutting-edge art forms and the classical training techniques that have been developed from the original Sassoon Salon in London.

“The salon opened here [in Toronto] in 1968, and it was pretty much taking the idea from London and introducing it to Canada, to Toronto,” says Tran. “The idea really is to focus on the philosophy of Sassoon and training people and following the high standard of work. Basically, we really owe it to the team. The team has always dedicated their heart and soul to the company, to the work that we do, due to that high standard.”

The Sassoon team and their guests are a key focal point for the salon. The company has noticed that its work has been and continues to be seen throughout the community and held in high regard due to the esteemed mark the salon has made over the past 50 years.

The Sassoon Academy has elevated the level of professionalism in the beauty and hair industry from the curriculum and the training used, including a dedication and focus on cuts, colour precision and a “gold-standard” for hairstyle training.

“Most important are the people, our guests.

Our guests who come to visit us on a regular basis. Our guests who believe in our work and really showcase our work through their lifestyle.

Our guests also include the students who come through our academy and study the Sassoon cutting technique,” says Tran. www.sassoon-salon.com @sassoonsalonofficial

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Set against a stark background, she explodes in a mosaic of colour

far from barren beauty

TOP Retrofête PANTS Retrofête JACKET Ritual LEATHER SKIRT Ritual SHOES Oneteaspoon

Nothing to see but dirt for miles.

But wait, there she is — a vision.

In this deserted landscape, fashion makes itself seen TExT by VictORia scOtt

Visit www.dOlcemag.cOm tO watch behind-the-scenes fOOtage Of OuR fashiOn shOOt in lOs angeles

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This faux fur coat makes a statement: you will not blend in FAux FuR Oneteaspoon PANTS Rta brand TOP Rachael cassar bOOTS Pskaufman bAg fauré le Page

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No matter the location, this sequin suit will take centre stage bLAzER any Old iron PANTS any Old iron bOOTS Pskaufman

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The selection of accessories completes this blinding look DRESS Zhivago bOOTS Pskaufman HAT manokhi bAg faurĂŠ le Page EARRINgS Rinaldy a. Yunardi RINg Queenie cao

Model: Livia Pillmann @livia_pillmann Photographer: Thomas Louvagny @thomaslouvagny Assistant and videographer: Ludovic Nortier @focustheblur Stylist: Oretta Corbelli @orettac Makeup artist: Teal Druda @tealmuah Hairstylist: Robert Steinken @robertsteinken1

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O C T O B E R 2 7, 2 0 1 8

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THE HAUTE COUTURE QUEEN

She’s an illustrious figure in the world of fashion, a smoky-eyed siren whose life in the industry to date has combined high classicism with modernity, sex, excess and tragedy. Even as her eponymous brand enters a brave new era, Donatella Versace stays true to herself and remains as timeless as one of her company’s designer creations WRITTEN BY PETER WALLACE AND PAOLO BIANCHI

n unmistakable aura surrounds Donatella Versace. Perhaps it stems from her chosen industry — fashionistas are often considered steely, aloof and intimidating — or from her standing as a woman at the head of a billion-dollar business. Perhaps it comes from her instantly recognizable look; with her long, bleached-blond tresses and charcoaledged eyes, she is distinctive, even when standing among the world’s most renowned models. She has a natural exoticism, with her rolling vocal cadence that’s as rich as the taut black leather with which her brand staked claim to the fashion world’s heart.

Her image is a product of her family name — Versace, a whispered sibilance — and her name is a product of her image. Neither has meaning without the other. For although her company was brought to life by the innovation of her late brother, Gianni, it is Donatella who has carried the burden of the business on her impeccably tailored shoulders. Few brands can claim to have survived and thrived in the manner that Versace has.

Various former members of the company’s senior management can attest to Donatella’s iron will, but — incredible as it may seem — behind her self-described “facade” of bleached hair and makeup is a tendency toward self-criticism.

“Being strong doesn’t mean being

invulnerable,” she explains, her heavily accented words filling the air like a heady perfume.

(Versace has claimed to wear four combined scents at any one time.) “Even a strong woman has her weaknesses — but that doesn’t make her weak, it makes her human. Being a strong woman for me means to play the game following the rules, pushing the limits and breaking down barriers, overcoming weaknesses and fighting for what you believe in.”

It could be argued that the successes of both the Versace family and the brand were tied to these very principles. During the late ’70s and early ’80s, they certainly pushed the limits, flying in the face of convention with bold prints, flesh-baring overt sexuality and a rejection of

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PHOTO BY JAN WELTERS / TRUNKARCHIVE.COM

The woman at the helm of one of the world’s most famous fashion brands, Donatella Versace has become synonymous with the brand itself

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PHOTO BY ALFONSOCATALANO/SGPITALIA

‘‘

EVEN A STRONG WOMAN HAS HER WEAKNESSES — BUT THAT DOESN’T MAKE HER WEAK, IT MAKES HER HUMAN”

PHOTOS COURTESY OF VERSACE

Pieces from the Spring/Summer 2019 Collection utilize patterns and layering, as well as various fabrics, to create looks that will make a bold statement and stand the test of time

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‘‘

I DISCOVERED THAT OUR IMMENSE ARCHIVE IS SOMETHING THAT CAN TEACH ME A LOT AND THAT CAN BE REINTERPRETED WITH THE EYES OF TODAY”

the concept of “good taste.” It was Gianni who, from the relatively humble beginning of his Milan boutique, opened in 1978, powered the family name into the national consciousness, but Donatella’s influence on her brother cannot be overstated. She acted as her brother’s muse and alter ego all at once, pushing the notoriously controversial Gianni’s designs even further.

“When we were doing fittings with Gianni, he’d say, ‘Let’s shorten the skirt a bit,’ and then pin the skirt’s hem just above the knee,” she reminisces. “But as soon as he turned his back, I’d sneak in and hike the skirt right up to the crotch and pair it with thigh-high, stilettoheeled boots. I’d be like, ‘Let’s go for it!’ and he would scream, ‘You’re going to destroy me!’

But ultimately, he would embrace it. We’d all be laughing our heads off, having a great time. He enjoyed taking risks.” ven now, some 20-plus years since Gianni was murdered on the steps of his Miami Beach, Fla., mansion, the reverence that Donatella feels for her company’s pioneering namesake is obvious. Tales are told of the family’s guarded nature, their closing of ranks, when it comes to some aspects of their history, and yet, Donatella holds absolutely nothing back in her effusive praise of her late brother. Her sultry, thick voice grows even thicker with emotion whenever she talks about the lasting impression Gianni has had.

“He was a true revolutionary and completely

E

changed the course of fashion,” she says. “He was the first one to use black leather and bondage for women’s evening wear, for example.

In the ’90s, all the other houses followed suit and used leather in their collections, but when Gianni first did it, black leather was only to be found in a handful of seedy gay bars in downtown New York. Gianni never played it safe; his work was radical and divisive. You either loved it or hated it,” she says.

“He brought a lot of courage and he broke a lot of rules. What he was doing, no one else was doing at the time. That’s why he became Gianni Versace, and young people today like to hear our brand’s story — it’s a story of love and of suffering, and we do something different than everybody else.”

That story could easily have suffered an end as premature as its originator’s, had Donatella not stepped up. Indeed, the modern incarnation of Versace has all the same swagger and braggadocio as it did during its stratospheric rise, but it is owes as much to Donatella as it does to her brother. Perhaps even more so, given that her 21-year tenure as creative director outnumbers Gianni’s by a full two years.

It was Donatella Versace who negotiated the famously capricious industry, steering the company through the loss of its founder and into the contemporary era. It was she who, by virtue of her connections with the entertainment A-list and her own implacable celebrity

entourage, ensured Versace was the brand that the showbiz elite turned to whenever they wished to turn heads on the red carpet. Think Liz Hurley’s safety-pin dress in 1994 (a design so memorable that it has threatened to overshadow its wearer’s career ever since) or Jennifer Lopez’s famous emerald-green dress in 2000. And it was Donatella who oversaw the company’s forward-thinking transition into the social media age, teaming up with brands like H&M to bring luxury designs to a new generation of fans, followers and buyers.

“The biggest challenge has perhaps been to keep this brand alive and relevant,” she says.

“It is not easy to keep up a brand DNA while still making it appeal to the new generations.

What has always helped me is my interest in the contemporary world, as well as the fact that I have always surrounded myself with young, creative people who have been able to bring the outside world in to the Versace maison.

“We’re not the same thing we were in the ’90s. I always try to be in touch with reality and with what’s going on in the world and how young people think and what young people want. You have to have the courage to evolve.

My goal is to keep the brand relevant in today’s society and culture, while still promoting those messages of women’s empowerment, equality, freedom that we have always supported. Versace will also always evolve and be excited about the future.” ou’d be hard-pressed to find a better expression of Versace’s enduring success than those words, as spoken by one of fashion’s most prominent figures over the last 30 years. Indeed, to meet Donatella Versace is to see a fashion goddess incarnate. And her mythic quality is fitting, as her brother plucked Medusa, the snake-haired gorgon, straight out of Greek mythology to serve as the emblem of the family brand.

A staunch supporter of the seismic shifts that have recently brought women’s rights to the fore — “I wish #MeToo had happened before … Finally, we can talk about it.” — Donatella is all too aware that, like many woman before and after her, her career and her life are analyzed differently than those of the Armanis, Vuittons, Hilfigers and Lagerfelds of this world.

“Everything is more difficult for a woman!” she says. “We can’t compare a man’s experience of the workplace to what women have to go through. They’re more likely to be scrutinized and criticized than men. Even in fashion, which is meant to be a progressive industry, there is much more pressure put on women.”

Perhaps due to the stereotypes often ascribed to successful women, never mind intimidating matriarchs of fashion brands, Donatella has sometimes been portrayed as cold and distant. But that mischaracterization

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PORTRAIT BY RAHI REZVANI

Versace has kept the legacy of her brother, Gianni, alive as she has nurtured and developed the brand he created in 1978

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF VERSACE

With boutiques all across the world, Versace will be opening a two-storey Canadian flagship store on Yorkville Avenue in Toronto, in 2019

is directly contradicted by her obvious love for collaborative work.

“When I get into the studio in the morning and am surrounded by my design team, I feel this is my family,” she says. “I believe in my team and the faith they have in me and my sense of duty and work ethic. I want people to feel free to talk, to tell their thoughts, even if I don’t like it. I push people to do that to me because I like to be challenged. I respect what’s different from me and allow people to be who they want to be.

When [Gianni] founded the company, I became the one person who dared to contradict the king. He was annoyed, but listened. And he had the good sense to correct his decisions when he needed to.” ianni’s spectre still looms large over the brand. But whereas a lesser designer might have written off her own creative efforts as insignificant compared to her sibling’s groundbreaking achievements and retreated

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entirely, Donatella Versace emerged from the challenge triumphant. She will likely never be free of comparisons to her brother in the media — neither would the fiercely loyal Donatella wish to have that blood tie forgotten — but just as she has surpassed Gianni’s reign as the company’s creative director, so, too, has she proven herself as an innovator of record in her own right.

“At the very beginning, I felt I was a bit trapped by my brother’s genius. I was afraid to go too close to his creations, or use the archive for inspiration, because I was scared people would then say, ‘Look, she’s copying her brother; she’s not as good as him!’ So I tried to do different things. Sometimes I also tried to move away from our DNA. Some experiments worked, some didn’t — but that’s OK, it’s life!

“Recently, I feel I have finally found my own voice. I discovered that our immense archive is something that can teach me a lot and that can be reinterpreted with the eyes of today, and that

respecting our DNA does not mean copying my brother, but to bring the DNA of Versace into today’s world and in a completely different way.” he pioneering spirit in that sentiment echoes Gianni Versace’s efforts to expand the brand ever outwards, from clothing to jewelry, soft furnishings and home textiles.

Gianni worked outward, bending external elements to the sheer force of his creative will, making everything around him a concept for the catwalk. It was this ideal that led to his creation of the supermodel. “Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawford and all the girls who Avedon shot for our campaigns would never do the shows because they were considered to be print models,” Donatella explains. “But when Gianni saw the pictures, he asked, ‘Why don’t we put these girls on the runway?’”

Donatella’s creative energy, on the other hand, is an integrative whirlpool, constantly pulling in new inspiration from outside the

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acquisition was hard to stomach for some of Versace’s followers. Days after the announcement, Donatella’s personal social media pages were filled with outrage about what fans saw as the intrusion of MKH Ltd., an American company that has sold luxury fashion for more than 30 years, into the world of haute couture. owever, it is evident that the sale of Versace to the ambitious MKH Ltd. (which will be renamed Capri Holdings Ltd. after the acquisition) will allow Versace to continue serving the values it passionately upholds, as befitting its Italian heritage. Modernity and classicism, tradition and innovation, the past and the future: these juxtapositions have always been at the heart of the Versace concept. And to emphasize this point, Donatella herself took to Instagram to deliver a rebuttal of the criticism over her decision to sell: PHOTO BY ALFONSOCATALANO/SGPITALIA

industry and translating it into her chosen medium.

“What is healthy is to look around you and know what’s going on in the world. You shouldn’t ignore anything that isn’t related to fashion — it’s important to know about people’s worries, what they are interested in. The world constantly evolves, and it’s important to stay informed and keep up with the times. Having this sharp perspective is absolutely crucial.

In today’s society it’s even more important — and easier to cultivate, thanks to the Internet, where you can follow the opinions of different generations and cultures. To produce good work, you need to keep your eyes open.” lso crucial to Donatella is maintaining a work-life balance. “It’s vital,” she says, nodding fervently. “I live far from my office, and I do certain activities that have nothing to do with my job, which are important for me to re-energize myself. I like to talk to my children about music, books and movies — anything that isn’t related to my job. I think that thinking about your job 24-7 is a mistake that many designers make. They convince themselves that it’s the only way to survive, and in my opinion, that’s not healthy.”

Donatella’s opinions carry an undeniable weight. Her sure-handed direction of the company and mastery of public relations —

Since acquiring the company, Versace has helped it evolve, and the sale of the company to Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. is just the next step in the brand’s life

which has evolved from being personally close to the celebrity sphere into having at least one Versace piece on every red carpet — have only strengthened the intangible sense of awe that accompanies any mention of her family name.

“Nothing gives me more pleasure than seeing the strength of Versace right now, and how women around the world are responding to my family’s brand,” she says. “It gives me the confidence to do more, push further and make Versace the best it has ever been.”

And Versace will not be forging ahead alone.

Fluctuating profit margins since the turn of the millennium have led to the recent sale of the company to Michael Kors Holdings (MKH) Ltd. for a figure in excess of $2 billion. The

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First of all, I wanted to let you know that I am NOT going anywhere, so for those who wanted to get rid of me, well…it ain’t happening! I also wanted to reassure you that Versace will remain ITALIAN, made in Italy, and that it will keep its GLAMOUR, DARING and INCLUSIVE attitude that has made you all love it. This is just the beginning of an exciting, new adventure that I hope you will live together with me!

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VERSACE IS A DREAM. IT’S A DREAM THAT PEOPLE WANT TO BE PART OF”

Versacegram @donatella_versace

Her closet is one we all dream of having — a legendary closet fit for a legendary woman in the fashion industry

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Engaging in activities separate from work is crucial in order to maintain a healthy work-life balance

PHOTOS FROM INSTAGRAM

onatella Versace would not be the designer she is known to be, were she to shy away from such controversy. The impact of the acquisition on the brand will reveal itself in time, of course. No doubt its creative process going forward will cleave to the Versace traditions, as it has since 1978.

“Take the legendary Versace prints: back then, they were made in just four colours, while [Gianni] printed them with 18, sometimes even 20 colours!” she exclaims. “He used the past to move forward and describe the future. He had the courage to transform the story into joie de vivre and thereby give [it] a living language.”

Gianni passed on his mission — “to develop the line and to make it innovative, elegant, while at the same time staying true to the Versace DNA and roots” — to Donatella long ago, on the steps of the Miami Beach mansion. Her actions ever since have made her as influential a figure in the industry as her brother. They are two sides of the same Medusa-head-emblazoned coin. Whereas Gianni had the pleasure of overseeing his brand’s meteoric rise, Donatella uses every collaborative tool at her disposal to preserve that legacy.

Versace is not only clothing; it has extended the brand to include lifestyle products such as headphones and phone cases

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are to question, as some have, her commitment to the brand that bears her name, and you’ll see the warmth in her eyes replaced with a fiery defiance.

After all, she is Donatella Versace.

“Being a family always matters, in every history,” she says. “I am lucky because my brand is also my family. In Versace, we laugh and we work hard, we fight and we reconcile.

Family is everything to me, and by family, I mean everyone who is connected to me — not only by blood, but through their souls, also.

I mean my friends, my collaborators, the big Versace clan made of all those inspiring men and women who throughout the years have crossed paths with me,” says Donatella.

“Versace is a dream. It’s a dream that people want to be part of. To be part of the dream, you don’t need to have the outfit to wear.

You can have also a little thing — an ashtray, a little thing for the house. And you’re a part of Versace forever.”

www.versace.com @donatella_versace

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She exudes power and strength in this simple white dress with its ornate sleeve and collar Gown irene luft www.ireneluft.com Jewelry Catherine Sauvage www.catherinesauvage.de

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