This piece from the NEW YORK TIMES, 1993, by GERRI HIRSHEY is a definitive must-read. Enter a time when ANNA WINTOUR’s VOGUE was being eyed as “too downtown.” Read, and be happy that MTV’s HOUSE OF STYLE existed. Read, and ask, “How progressive are our sentiments about the fashion industry, moving in to 2017?” In 1993, “democratization” was a watchword of the industry. The conglomeratic swelling of fashion houses seemed to loom over every creative decision. Does this ring familiar, and why? We’re far from any time in which a 555 SOUL beanie is a badge of cool and the term “channel-flipping” could be convincingly used as a metaphor for anything. TV got sucked into something called omni-channel, and no single type of screen can claim cultural supremacy these days. We’ve got #internet for that now. When I look around, I do see experimentation and (dare to say it) hope. How can we cover it? There’s no answer, it’s more an open question. Finally, read the NYT article for the best brief on twentieth-century fashion I’ve come across in a long time. Whip-smart history, should that be a podcast?… I always thought the best fight against mediocrity was to not chatter on about it, in any medium… Shoutout to MATTHEW LINCOLN and ABRAM FOX for this fantastic study of LONDON’s auction scene from 1780–1835. It brings together data sourced from the GETTY RESEARCH INSTITUTE with some refreshing and nuanced discussion about how timing is key. Quite relevant for fashion. How often do you see research on seasonal flows backed by quantitative analysis, combined with nuanced interpretation of primary sources? Congrats to the authors. The presentation’s sleek too… A fashion photographer is using a large-format camera to document individuals holding strong at STANDING ROCK. This piece, which pairs images of people at Standing Rock with their respective voices, is a great way to see past the headlines. There's also an AMAZON wishlist to support them. Now that's 2016.