Gen Art Trophy
Gen Art Trophy

LOS ANGELES, Mar 18, 2004/ FW/ — Now on its 10th year, Gen Art continues its support to upcoming designers by producing high profile fashion shows.

On March 29, at the Ten9Fifty Studios, located at 10950 Washington Blvd, just 2 miles from Smashbox Studios in Culver City, from 8:00-11:30pm, three young designers will be closer to their dreams as Gen Art features them on the Los Angeles runway.

Featuring the Fall 2004 collections of the feminine and ornately designed knitwear of Central St. Martin’s alum Coryn Madley, the dramatically minimal and finely tailored line Society for Rational Dress by Corinne Grassini, and the avant-garde innovations of Cosa Nostra, the show promises to be an exciting look in fashion.

Converging passions for art, music and emerging cultural phenomena led Michel Berandi, a native of Paris, and Angeleno Jeff Sebelia to form Cosa Nostra.

Crafting unique custom-made fashion pieces, the pair’s influences stem from their edgy lifestyle and well-honed style sensibilities.

Cosa Nostra

Cosa Nostra, Italian for “Our Thing”, deconstructs mass-produced garments to reveal the authenticity of the materials and rebel against the store-bought aesthetic with leather and denim being their medium of choice.

The design duo’s backgrounds before the creation of Cosa Nostra are evidenced in their work. Michel history includes founding a magazine devoted to art and extreme culture and then becoming a stylist for music videos and fashion magazines.

Jeff, also a former musician, then became a successful production designer. Their clothing is worn by celebrities including No Doubt, Lenny Kravitz, Steven Tyler, Christina Aguilera, Dixie Chicks, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Shania Twain and even Sir Elton John.

Cosa Notra can be found at Maxfields and Fred Segal in Los Angeles.

Madley

Madley is a clothing and accessories line dedicated to the whimsical and feminine.

Co-founded by Coryn Madley and Naama Givoni in 2002, Madley provides a precious alternative to mass-produced apparel. Each object is elaborately handmade with vintage materials, hand dyed yarns, and painted leather.

Madley’s Fall 2004 collection is inspired by sea horses, jellyfish and medieval royal apparel. Each garment combines materials such as silk, leather, and vintage beading to create an intricately eroding silhouette.

Coryn Madley studied textile design at the Rhode Island School of Design and knitwear design at Central St. Martins in London before moving to Los Angeles.

Partner Naama Givoni has worked for many years as a buyer at Fred Segal. Madley has been featured in such publications as WWD, Surface, Lucky, In Style, Us Weekly, California Apparel News, LA Weekly, and Allure.

Celebrity clients include Shalom Harlow, Jennifer Garner, Paris Hilton, Scarlet Johansson, Nellie Furtado and Rachel Lee Cook.

Madley can be found at Fred Segal Flair and Tiara, Showpony and American Rag.

Society for Rational Dress

Society for Rational Dress was established in 2002 by designer and patternmaker Corinne Grassini.

The company’s focus is to offer intricately draped and tightly tailored pieces that engage the wearer, and encourage experimentation with figure and shape. Each piece is cut to be layered with the others in the collection to create unique and dramatic silhouettes.

The designs are a balance of extremes; opposites are juxtaposed in such a way that a symbiosis is created.

The clothing has appealed to celebrity clients such as Britney Spears, Alanis Morrissette, and members of the Dixie Chicks.

Society for Rational Dress is currently carried at Scout and Naked in Los Angeles.

[HEIDE WINKENWERDER]