Prada on the Road

Events are starting to heat up in Los Angeles around the next edition of the Frieze art fair.

On Feb. 16 and 17, Prada will present the seventh iteration of its Prada Mode traveling social club and cultural residency in L.A. at a location to be revealed later. The event will feature an immersive installation by artist Martine Syms.

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Based in L.A., Syms’ multidisciplinary practice blends publishing, video, installation and performance in works that comment on race, gender, digital life and media consumption, often with interactive elements inviting viewers to call a phone number, text or connect with chatbots. No stranger to the fashion world, she has collaborated with Etudes on a capsule collection, appeared in a campaign for L.A. streetwear label Total Luxury Spa, and interpreted Prada’s spring 2021 men’s collection as part of its “Multiple Views” digital presentation.

Prada debuted its Mode cultural residency events during Art Basel in Miami in 2018 and has since touched down in London, Paris, Hong Kong, Shanghai and, most recently, Moscow in December 2021, taking over the Levenson Mansion for two days with Damien Hirst’s “Pharmacy” installation, a slate of programming, including talks with local curators and gallerists.

Over the years, celebrities have also flocked to the Prada Mode events, including Kanye West, Gigi Hadid, Leonardo DiCaprio, Naomi Campbell, Chloë Sevigny, Saweetie and more.

Frieze L.A. runs Feb. 17 to 20 with a new venue in Beverly Hills, more than 100 participating galleries, and a new section of the fair called Focus L.A., which spotlights emerging artists. Fashion brands that have hosted events around past Frieze L.A. fairs include Matchesfashion and Rimowa. — BOOTH MOORE

H.E.R. MOMENT: Grammy- and Oscar Award-winning singer H.E.R. has been named a global ambassador for L’Oréal Paris.

The first campaign she stars in will be for the new Elvive Dream Lengths Curls starting next month.

“When I use my voice, I need to stand 100 percent with what I represent,” H.E.R. said in a statement. “So I am beyond happy to join L’Oréal Paris, and to add my voice to this sisterhood representing the diversity of beauty on this planet, with the message for every girl to know her worth deep in her heart.

“H.E.R. is one of the music world’s new superstars, and she’s only 24,” said Délphine Viguier-Hovasse, L’Oréal Paris’ global brand president, who also called H.E.R. “one of Gen Z’s most resonant young voices.”

“Her talent and her confidence make her an inspirational L’Oréal Paris spokesperson, speaking not only to young women, but to all women, to trust in the power of their worth,” she said.

H.E.R. — an acronym standing for Having Everything Revealed — is an eight-time nominee at the 2022 Grammy Awards. She’s also among the second most-nominated artists at award’s 64th edition, where her album “Back of My Mind” is in the running for Album of the Year. Her “Fight for You” is up for Song of the Year.

“My music is what’s inside me,” H.E.R. said. “I’ll always write about what matters to my heart and to my fans.”

H.E.R. was born Gabriella Wilson. She released her debut EP in 2016. She plays five instruments and has won an Oscar.

H.E.R. joins the L’Oréal Paris spokespeople lineup that includes Helen Mirren, Camila Cabello, Liya Kabede and Amber Heard. — JENNIFER WEIL

DYNAMIC DUO: Michelle Yeoh’s upcoming film “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is already making “must-see” lists months ahead of its March premiere.

“Just when you think, ‘How can you have an original film? We’ve seen it all, we’ve done it all’ — but the Daniels are just evil geniuses,” she said of the directing duo who helmed the film.

It’s the second sci-fi film from the pair, Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, who made their mark as music video directors — perhaps best known for DJ Snake and Lil’ Jon’s “Turn Down for What.”

“Actually even I’ve done the movie and I’m wondering what it’s all about,” Yeoh said. The title takes on taxes, middle age, divorce and other assorted catastrophes. “Sometimes you wonder, ‘Why am I holding on to everything?’ but maybe sometimes you have to wander to the end of the world to discover who you really are,” Yeoh added cryptically, deftly sidestepping spoilers.

Yeoh was taking in the front row of the Elie Saab couture show. She has a long-standing relationship with Saab, having worn his work to the Oscars and BAFTAs. The U.N. goodwill ambassador added she thinks the fashion industry is making steady, if slow, progress on sustainability.

“I have pieces that I wear from 10 years ago. I love classic things and I really love when something becomes ‘vintage’ and then you can bring it out again and say, ‘Oh yes, it’s a vintage piece.’ I don’t shy away from rewearing things.”

As for the “Everything” premiere, it is scheduled for March 11 at the SXSW film festival in Austin, Texas — more cowboy boot country than couture. “It’s a little bit dressed down, but I’d love to throw in something from Elie. It’s always fun to mix it up.” — RHONDA RICHFORD

NO FILTER: Boohoo is introducing a new social-driven campaign #boohoofilterfree, which aims to eradicate filter abuse and reduce comparison culture.

Boohoo believes the use of filters and face-altering apps have damaging effects on young people’s self-esteem and with a lack of policing by social media apps, filter abuse in communities has become the norm.

Under the new campaign, influencers and customers are being encouraged to post across their social channels “filter free” using the Instagram story effect available on Boohoo’s profile (@boohoo) to spread awareness about negative self-image and comparison culture.

A study showed that 39 percent of women compare themselves with women they think look pristine without effort and 58 percent of women say that social media has changed how others view them and how they view others.

Consultant psychiatrist Dr. Sara Vohra @themindmedic will be supporting the campaign alongside influencer and burns survivor Sophie Lee.

“With social media constantly serving us up highlights of other people’s lives, it is hard to separate what is real from what has been edited or filtered,” said Vohra. “Whilst for some these filtered images may be inspirational or aspirational, for others it can spiral into comparison with our unfiltered selves, make us feel ‘less than’ and fuel low self-esteem; it can be hard to resonate with images where bodies and skins are portrayed as seemingly perfect and blemish-free, but it’s made even more difficult when that is seemingly all we see online. #Boohoofilterfreecampaign is a powerful reminder of what life is really like beyond the filter, bringing images that are far more relatable to the forefront; the images we compare ourselves to and we perceive to be ‘better than’ us are actually not the reality,” she said. — LISA LOCKWOOD

ENERGY JOLT: Laverne Cox brought a much needed injection of infectious energy to the front row of Paris Couture Week, as the “Orange Is the New Black” actress attended her very first couture shows.

She gamely posed for photographers in a sculpture of a headpiece at Schiaparelli on Monday, a party-ready fringed dress and thigh-high platform boots at Alexandre Vauthier Tuesday, and a sheer black gown and crystal headpiece at the Jean Paul Gaultier show Wednesday.

“There are so many pieces I would love to wear — in the spirit of André Leon Tally, it’s like Christmas morning,” she told WWD about taking in the collections.

With a few hours of downtime before the Vauthier show, Cox binged the upcoming Netflix series “Inventing Anna,” ahead of its release Feb. 12. She declared the Shonda Rhimes-produced series about the story of a scammer who conned New York City’s creative elite “amazing” — and not just because she’s one of its stars.

Due to COVID-19 measures, the series premiere will be virtual, but Cox is prepping for her next big red carpet moment. She’ll host the SAG Awards arrivals Feb. 27. And while she’s worn flowing silk dresses for her past appearances as a nominee (“I had to lie down in the car so as not to get wrinkled,” she noted) being on the other side will present a whole new set of sartorial challenges.

What look is she going for? “I’m really in a space of wanting to have fun and to push boundaries, and to do something different. I don’t know who I want to be exactly,” she mused. “My 2022 is sort of girl next door with an edge — maybe I’ve always been that, but I’m really interested in the edge right now.”

After a year of hosting her eponymous podcast and the People’s Choice Awards for E! last December, Cox is relishing in the excitement of interviewing her acting colleagues. “I’m not nervous, I don’t know if I should be,” she said. “But there are so many moving pieces you really have to be on your toes.”

And surely those toes will be in fabulous shoes. — R.R.

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