The Fierce and the Fabulous: S.O.B. by Susan Bessire, Treat Me Right and Heatherette
Exotic, erotic and rock ’n’ roll. That’s how one person described the fashion event The Fierce and the Fabulous, held at the Key Club in West Hollywood on Nov. 5. And perhaps that best sums it up.
Eva DiShanni and Tracie May of Ben-Amun’s Fabulous showroom in the California Mart, in association with Allied Domecq, organized the event to benefit the Twin Towers Orphan Fund and to showcase their “fabulous” designers with a rock ’n’ roll fashion show and designer installations.On the runway, S.O.B. by Susan Bessire presented a hard-edged and sexually charged performance of dominatrix-style moves in rock ’n’ roll clothing: girls clad in leather minis and sexy vests, leather waist-cinchers and studded pants; guys in similarly tight leather pants and badass attitudes.Following was Treat Me Right by Grant Krajecki, whose Spring collection was presented by a high-energy dance performance from Psycho Dance Sho. The performance and the clothes were equally entertaining, both taking you away to another time. Colorful striped trousers and 1970s-style tops were like a funked-out “Brady Bunch” episode (although, even then, it still would have been too hip). And the performance? Well, photographer David La Chapelle may have described it best: “It kind of brought me back—like being in a time warp. It felt like ’Danceteria,’ 1985.”
Off the runway, other designers, including New York-based Heatherette, showed pieces from their collections in a fashion installation/party-type setting. Designers Richie Rich and Traver Rains (also known as “the Heatherette Boys”) were there to support their “fabulous” counterparts (DiShanni and May) and said that they hope to stage a fashion show here next season.
“We’re here to support our showroom, Ben-Amun’s Fabulous, for the Twin Towers Orphan Fund,” said Rich. “We come to L.A. a lot and wanted to help out. It’s a good cause.”
The event also included a silent auction with items donated by retailers, designers, artists, photographers and others who support and wanted to contribute to the event’s cause. —Joselle Yokogawa
