You know what they say: small TV, large book collection.
It is that same curiosity that draws her to books. “They are beautiful objects, but they are also learning tools,” she says. Standing in front of her seemingly endless bookshelves, she adds, “You know what they say: small TV, large book collection!” She primarily buys art and photography books, and struggles to name a favorite before landing on Danny Lyon’s The Destruction of Lower Manhattan, which she describes as “so personal, and so beautiful.”
The only thing that trumps her passion for books is the outside world. “Travel,” she reflects, “is the best education.” Born in the Middle East, Abu-Nimah has lived everywhere from Tokyo to Brussels and London. Exceedingly grateful for those opportunities, she continues, “Everywhere I have ever lived or visited has somehow influenced my work. The more you see, the better your ideas.” *
The LOVE Stamp
In 2017, Abu-Nimah developed a version of the Air Force 1 sneaker for Nike based on the 1984 LOVE stamp design by J. Bradbury Thompson. The United States Post Office issued its first LOVE stamp in 1973. The initial stamp, designed by pop artist Robert Indiana, was met with widespread acclaim, with more than 300 million printed that year. Initially created for the Museum of Modern Art’s Christmas card in 1965, the famous iconography was adapted from a series of poems originally written in 1958 by stacking LO and VE into its recognizable shape. The second U.S. LOVE stamp was issued in 1982 and a new design was released annually starting in 1984. Ironically, Nike’s original Air Force 1 was produced in 1982 and was initially discontinued in 1984.
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Persson was recently named creative director of L’Uomo Vogue and helped to relaunch the menswear title in June of 2018.
Thomas Persson
L’UOMO VOGUE
Luncheon
ACNE Paper
Raised by his grandparents and mother in Oslo, Thomas Persson had a happy childhood at home but less so in the real world; he was, as a result, an impatient child, eager to get on with things and prove he could make something of himself. Few could deny he has: He was creator and editor in chief of Acne Paper for its entire 15-issue run; was art director of global advertising campaigns for Armani; handled art direction for projects by Hermès, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Svenskt Tenn and Rizzoli; and, in 2016, launched Luncheon magazine with friend and Acne Paper contributor Frances von Hofmannsthal.
Persson does not have the attitude often associated with such a profile—nor is he someone who seems to have anything to prove. He has a stunningly relaxed charm; his disposition is wise and contemplative, and his ever-present smile is shy and sweet. He is new-gen bohemian: he throws a good dinner party and spends summer holidays on the Mediterranean at the Cap d’Ail, where his family has had a home since 1920, or on Patmos in Greece. He is part workhorse, part bon vivant, not too dissimilar from those figures honored as part of Luncheon’s editorial line—the Lee Millers, Somerset Maughams and Frank O’Haras of the world.
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Persson’s tips for a good party: “Generosity. Don’t put a limit on anything. Keep everything flowing—lots of food, lots of drink, great music and maybe a surprise, something unexpected.”
Lunch is an occasion. It’s about the conversation, not just the food.
Persson’s work shares a similar lineage, combining rigor and intellect with a certain ease that comes with ingrained good taste. Nothing is overworked, even if quite con-ceptual. Today, Persson is putting together a fashion story inspired by a French children’s book of Japanese fairy tales—Contes Japonais, published in 1960 by Fabbri Milan—that belonged to his grandmother. It will no doubt be magical.
The designer dives into his references but doesn’t dwell on them. “I would say I have a historical interest, rather than nostalgia,” he says. “I think nostalgia means having a longing for the past, which I don’t. But I think so much extraordinary work has been done over the centuries that I always feel kind of a responsibility to look at that before I do anything.”
A respect for the past can be seen even within Persson’s own career choices—Luncheon owes a lot to Persson’s time at Acne Paper. Both publications flawlessly mix old and new in a way that few, if any, other magazines do with such grace. And they share the same large, weighty format.
Acne Paper became the benchmark for brand publications from the moment it was first published in 2005. Its title aside, it was boldly Delphic about its origins, not mentioning Acne clothing at all. Instead, it communicated the company’s brand values through powerful images and fine journalism that mixed highbrow with counterculture, Fran Lebowitz with Leigh Bowery. Its design harkened a return to beauty and timelessness, at a moment when many were opting for edginess. Commercially, the return for Acne was similar, Persson has said, to what Prada or Cartier gained from their arts foundations—Acne wasn’t just selling culture; it was also a patron of it.
Before being tapped to create the magazine by the brand’s founder, Jonny Johansson, Persson was working in his hometown writing for Norwegian ELLE and a gay newspaper called BLIKK (now a magazine) and then as fashion editor of a glossy magazine for young women, IN-SIDE. But Acne found him not in Oslo, but in London, where he’d been at Central Saint Martins, pursuing a master’s degree in fashion journalism—a profession that he would, in some respects, help redefine.
Near the end of his time at Acne Paper, which ceased publishing in 2014, Persson began working with Armani, an experience he credits with honing his aesthetic. Beginning in 2013, he was tasked with the art direction of the brand’s international campaigns, working often with his compatriot, the photographer Sølve Sundsbø, and Swiss stylist Beat Bolliger. “You have to try to create one image that really stops traffic,” Persson says, on the difference between Armani and his editorial work. “It’s more condensed. To work with someone like [Armani], he’s an intellect. I’ve learned a lot. He really opened my eye to what an artistic image can be.”
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Persson’s interest in fashion dates back to his childhood. He frequently could be found cutting up fashion magazines or sifting through his grandmother’s closet.
The maturity that has come with that project is clear. Luncheon is warm and welcoming, its title dancing around the notion of what brings people together—or, rather, what might bring interesting people together. “Lunch is an occasion,” Persson says of the name. “It’s about the conversation, not just the food.” The magazine was cofounded with von Hofmannsthal after the two had worked together on two previous books about her father, the late Lord Snowdon. “She has a very sharp editorial mind,” he says.
But Persson and von Hofmannsthal don’t work from a bubble: few places in London could be more of a manifestation of what their magazine stands for than the studio building where it’s produced. The Rochelle School, a converted Victorian school building, is a walled oasis in busy Shoreditch, home to the likes of Jamie Fobert architects, jeweler Katie Hillier and Frieze. The Rochelle Canteen is frequented by many Luncheon subjects, including its chef, Margot Henderson, and several of its writers and photographers.
What truly makes Persson sparkle, though, is when he’s asked about entertaining. “I am quite shy, but I feel when I’m hosting I have a purpose—I can run around and do whatever I want.” He’s quick to list a few favorites—a gathering in Patmos that was intended as a drink before dinner and instead ended at 4 a.m.; a celebration in honor of Peter Schlesinger by Acne Studios in Dia Foundation’s warehouse, with tables decorated with magnolia branches, surrounded by an army of handsome waiters. “There is no greater satisfaction than waking up the next morning and knowing it’s been a great success,” he says.*
central saint martins
In preparing to launch Acne Paper, Persson spent a week at the art school’s library, where he studied everything from iconic magazines to niche publications. He was influenced not only by his interest in fashion but
also by sculpture, painting, theory and photography—he says the building itself even acted as a general source of inspiration. “A new style of a magazine started to emerge from that week,” he told Dialogue years later.
→ Sauvé’s style is often described as instantly recognizable. She rarely wears makeup, doesn’t smoke and quit drinking 10 years ago.
Marie- Amélie Sauvé
Mastermind magazine
T Magazine
W magazine
Balenciaga
Sauvé’s latest endeavor, the print publication Mastermind, was funded through a partnership with the advertising agency BETC, and comes with complete freedom for the creative director. It includes many of the big brands, but the clothes are uncredited, giving more focus to the storytelling.
“You evolve with the times, but the core point of view of your style is always there,” says Parisian consultant, stylist and creative director Marie-Amélie Sauvé from behind her glass-topped desk. Her office in the sixth arrondissement is extremely restrained: graphic black-and-white carpeting, lots of natural light, a shapely oversized desk lamp, stacks of Mastermind magazine—the biannual fashion and culture crossover publication she founded in 2017—and little else. The aesthetic has echoes of a Palau de Casavells interior that you can find on her Instagram.
In sartorial matters, however, Sauvé favors sharp silhouettes that spotlight “the architecture of clothes.” She created her own social media hashtags, #MASLook and #MASdaily, which regularly generate enthusiastic interest from the fashion world. After looking through her Instagram feed, model Maggie Rizer admits she’s “stalking her feet” and asks who designed her boots (answer: Paco Rabanne, for whom Sauvé consults). French actress Léa Seydoux effuses over Sauvé’s brocade frock with crisp wide cuffs. Mother-and-daughter muses Amanda and Tallulah Harlech debate the merits of a yoga rope below an image of an upside-down Sauvé doing a Sirsasana headstand (she practices daily). Today, Sauvé is wearing a pink pleated shirt under a black Louis Vuitton jacket, a chunky silver watch, black skinny jeans and Louis Vuitton Fireball Bottines (“halfway between a Chelsea boot and a cowboy boot,” she says).
Sauvé’s first job was an internship at Vogue Paris. It was “very demanding,” she remembers, “working with the best of the best.” She ascended the masthead but ultimately decided to go freelance to explore a “more underground” facet of the industry. “It was a gold box, but it was a box,” she remembers of her time at the iconic publication. “My departure was very sudden, and I didn’t know what to do, actually. I left and thought, ‘Okay, let’s see what happens.’”
Sauvé parlayed her Vogue network into a multidisciplinary approach, and one of unintended self-discovery. She began consulting at Trussardi in 1997 but left to join Nicolas Ghesquière, appointed creative director of Balenciaga that same year; their collaboration turned the maison into a highly acclaimed label, and the duo renewed their partnership when Ghesquière took the helm of Louis Vuitton in 2013.
“You go to the studio where the clothes are made—you learn backstage,” she explains of her consulting role. “It’s to rebuild, and say, ‘This is good for the brand, push this, avoid that.’” As Sauvé puts it, “I’m here to faire un éclairage different,” or shine a new light. “I’m here to see the essence.” Along with consulting, Sauvé continued her styling work for print publications, including Interview, Self Service and various international editions of Vogue, as well as brand advertisements. She became a senior fashion editor at W magazine in 2012, and fashion director of T magazine in 2016. Sauvé’s creative process is equally visceral and disciplined. “It’s important to get your ideas in your head very freely,” she says, “like in psychoanalysis. Afterward, you organize them.”
Despite her experience with more mainstream brands, she has also created an independent outlet for herself, spearheading her own publication and working as its creative director. “I tried to soigné the design of the magazine,” she explains. “The layout—the envelope—is very important. I wanted a beautiful object, but I also wanted people to read it.” Sauvé used the ’70s-era publications Nova (English) and Réalités (French) as touchstones, both of which were well designed and covered a broad range of topics. Mastermind’s inaugural issue included photographs by Steven Meisel, a profile with actor/director Xavier Dolan and an interview with Anne Sinclair, the French broadcaster and former wife of IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn. The magazine, underwritten by a division of the French media group Havas, fêted its launch with a private dinner at Manhattan’s Gramercy Park Hotel. Issue two included similar heavy hitters: theater director Bob Wilson and photographer William Eggleston.
It’s important to get your ideas in your head very freely, like in psychoanalysis.
“You open a magazine and there is no point of view,” she says. “There is much more information now than before, so people want to make sure they get it all.” Sauvé notes the difference between good and bad information, or simply uninteresting information: “Nobody is really editing. I had the impression I was reading so many unnecessary things. It’s tiring, you know? So it was important for me to do something more timeless. I prefer to talk about things that will last.”
So, how does Sauvé identify what will last? “It’s a question of discernement,” she says, noting how we can all process with intelligence and intuition. “It’s super important to be able to see when something is very strong, true and well done.” She makes the comparison to a well-expressed philosophy “It’s the same thing for fashion, for photography,” she says. “When you recognize an idea and think, ≠‘that’s right.’”
Sauvé sees discernement as a quality that is entrenched within her native French culture. “Fighting for your opinion—that’s very French,” she says. “We can be very lazy, very moody, never happy—but also, we love to discuss. I love that permanent dialogue.” It’s important, she says, to question all the time. “When you’re questioning, you’re not influenced by something that will last for one or two years,” she explains. But questioning does not mean wavering—rather, it ultimately leads to strengthening. The certainty, she says, is akin “to being clairvoyante—to seeing clearly what is going on.” *
I prefer to talk about things that will last.
RÉALITIÉS
Cited by Sauvé as one of the key influences for Mastermind, iconic French magazine Réalités was a cultural tour de force in postwar Paris. It flourished during the prosperous and optimistic 30-year period known as the “Trente Glorieuses,” from its first issue in 1946 up to the late 1970s. With a mission to introduce its readership to discover “how the other lives, whether a thousand kilometers away or close by, how they eat, dress, work, love, entertain,” the magazine—much like Sauvé’s Mastermind—covered everything from architecture and film to literature and travel, all through richly illustrated pages. Photography was central to the magazine’s creative direction, and it boasted an impressive roster of contributors including Irving Penn, Henri Cartier-Bresson and Richard Avedon.
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At the beginning, TANK printed only 6,000 copies and sold them out of the back of a truck. Today, the magazine makes more money from newsstand sales than advertisers.
Masoud Golsorkhi & Caroline Issa
Tank
Masoud Golsorkhi founded TANK, the British magazine covering art, music, architecture and design, from his London living room. The Iranian-born photographer, collaborating with art director Andreas Laeufer, wanted to produce a magazine without mainstream editorials—and did so, punk-style, independently of any backing. The tagline? “A thing of beauty and permanence in an age of transience, since 1998.”
When Laeufer left, Golsorkhi sought a fresh source of imagination and entrepreneurship. Enter Caroline Issa (by way of her aunt,Rose Issa, an Iranian curator and Middle Eastern art dealer). In Issa, Golsorkhi saw the perfect balance: she had “a business background, but also cre
ative sympathies and ambition,” he says. He recalls thinking that the Montreal native—blessed with Singaporean, Lebanese and Iranian heritage—was not only enterprising but also incredibly stylish.
When Issa met the TANK team, she was dispatching corporate strategy for a range of clients at the firm Marakon.† “I thought she was wasted on management consultancy,” says Golsorkhi dryly. “We tried to save her from a life of high salaries and international travel.”
Issa left and soon ventured into a more visionary universe. “They had the magazine, but were also creating a fantastic collectible publication for Levi’s RED,” she recalls. She invested personal savings in the company, becoming a shareholder and joining the mast-head as the magazine’s publisher in 2002.
She also contributed creatively. As fashion director and chief executive officer of TANK, she commissions photo shoots and launched BecauseLondon.com in 2007 and the print/app combo Fashion Scan in 2013.
Beyond the magazine, Issa has guest-curated a Sotheby’s auction in London (with pieces by Nan Goldin and Barbara Kruger), collaborated on a footwear collection with British label LK Bennett, launched a ready-to-wear collection for Nordstrom and appeared on Vanity Fair’s best-dressed list.
Golsorkhi met Issa when the Wharton graduate was working on corporate strategy for a range of clients, including Nord-strom, Snapple and Boots in London. She knew she would end up in business after working for her parents’ real estate company one summer.
“Caroline is a people person,” Golsorkhi notes, highlighting the duo’s markedly different approaches. “Where I see the glass half empty, she always sees it half full. You can use a lot of different metaphors—you get the gist.” Nonetheless, they recognized a certain complementarity. “It’s a really nice mix of both of our brains,” Issa says of TANK. “You definitely get the two of us.” Pragmatically speaking, Golsorkhi is involved with the editorial team, often commissioning long-form writing; Issa deals with fashion clients on the agency side (TANK Form) and takes the lead on brand strategy. “You need to have right brain–left brain balance,” she says. “We have a lot of appreciation and respect for each other’s expertise. We both make business decisions, and we both make creative decisions. Every duo has a different kind of magic in how they work. Ours has been really productive.”
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