Ai For Ai: Contemporary Focus Inspired by Different Worlds
The Ai sisters of Los Angeles’ Echo Park neighborhood hail from different worlds. Carol designed children’s clothing for a private-label company, and Elizabeth is a writer and filmmaker. She produced the “Dirty Hands” documentary, which was screened at New York’s Museum of Modern Art on Valentine’s Day.
But they merged talents and inspirations for contemporary line Ai for Ai last year, and it has sold in prominent boutiques such as Satine in Los Angeles, E.P.I.C. in their L.A. neighborhood of Echo Park and Eva of New York.
In the label’s short history, the sisters Ai have repeated key looks, such as the “Batwing Button-Down” shirt, which is a button-down blouse with pleats in back and batwing sleeves. There’s the “Transcendent” dress, inspired by the mystery and romance of trench coats, but this dress was not meant for protection from rain. The dress’s back is open, sleeves and hems are short, and there’s a zipper on the dress’s front, giving it an avant-garde look.
Ai for Ai’s dresses typically use fabrics such as silks, crepe de chine, cotton voile, jacquard, jersey and rayon. The Fall 2011 line debuted at the Feb. 19–21 run of the Capsule trade show in New York. Wholesale price points range from $52 to $152. For more information, call (213) 915-6829 or (626) 627-2389, or e-mail info@aiforai.com. —Andrew Asch
