I <3 Interview Magazine

Am I living in the past? I asked myself this question while flipping through my stack of 90s Interview magazines last week. I feel such a strong pull toward what was instead of what is. This should probably worry me. I keep buying the old issues on eBay and Vinted, these artifacts from before the internet flattened everything into the same beige aesthetic (I strongly dislike beige!!!). But I also love to browse through the archives. LIFE LESSONS series all day all night (the one with Cher)!!!

Common sense, however, says you should live in the present, be interested in everything contemporary. You are here now! I am here now but I’m thinking about 1995. So… what if here now feels less interesting than there then?

A bit from my collection. The wooden floor is very good, too.

The Scam Interlude

I haven't written in weeks, partly because I was nursing the particular humiliation that comes from being scammed online. Still fighting to get my money back after a month of bureaucratic ping-pong. Still no success! It looks quite hopeless! The whole experience left me sad at the digital everything — so I retreated to my old magazines. The magazines, unlike the internet, don't lie to you. They just are there for you, asking nothing except that you pay close and full attention. It’s so rewarding when you pay full attention. Is it the secret to life??? 

Interview in the 90s

Andy Warhol started Interview in 1969 to get into movie premieres he wasn't invited to. Ha! By the 70s, it had become something else - conversations that kept every "um" and stutter, making famous people sound human. Bob Colacello called it "a hybrid of People and Vogue on elongated newsprint."

The 90s issues I collect show a specific moment when fashion still felt mysterious. The brands weren't lifestyle concepts yet. You discovered them. Yves Saint Laurent, Diane von Furstenberg, Halston - I feel like they were teaching us that getting dressed was serious business! And the covers! Whoa! Richard Bernstein's covers made celebrities look like beautiful aliens. That was the point? It looked like fame was supposed to transform you into something otherworldly, not relatable. As Warhol said, "He makes everyone look so famous."

I love today’s Interview a lot, too. Mel Ottenberg gets it. To me, Interview still feels dangerous and unpredictable, just like in the 90s. The covers still make you stop and stare. Also, I feel like Mel is always somehow one step ahead than everyone else. He is super cool, and so is

Liana Satenstein

and you should watch their interview here!!

And I also love the Ingrid Sischy's era there - she knew that good fashion writing should have real substance beneath the glamour. Her "Vintage Wintour" piece, her early profiles on Alexander McQueen and Miuccia Prada (both for The New York Times though, and both I know from

Rachel Seville Tashjian

) - she had this way of making you understand why these people mattered, not just what they wore. And as Graydon Carter said, "when she sat down to write, she looked for truth, not fantasy."

Did you know?

The Research

What do I do with all these magazines?? Well! I sit there and write down every brand mentioned and research each one. It's one of my most favorite things to do. I learn how ideas move through culture - how a detail from a Claude Montana jacket shows up in someone's collection twenty years later. I start to see patterns instead of just stuff. In my world, this passes for productivity. I find it educational. When I feel off, I know it's time to learn something. You know, skills and curiosity might be the only possessions that matter to me lately.

Look at me go!

What I Want to Show You

What I found in those Interview archives! The brands that mattered then, with examples of what you can still find on resale now. Do you remember these names? Did you encounter them in some long-vanished department store (Barneys?), shopping with your mother who probably had better taste than she realized? Please share your stories!

BRANDS (and other things) MENTIONED A LOT + a resale link

1. GAP (oh yeah, I saw this varsity jacket in a lot of American 90s films)

2. Diesel (vintage satin pants??)

3. Benetton (party bag? I mean for a Berlin rave)

4. Guess (not a bad one-shoulder crop top? was Guess cool?)

5. Matsuda eyewear (expensive!)

6. Silhouette eyewear (very yellow!)

7. Strenesse (silk skirt)

8. Wolfgang Joop (leopard bra for EUR10)

9. Alaïa (here’s a 1985 shirt)

10. Courrèges (what a fun tank top)

11. Something called “Cartroon Couture” with brands I’ve never heard of: Alpana Bawa, Lisa Shaub, Lars Nord, Kanae & Onyx

12. Donna Karan (vintage tote)

13. Claude Montana (runway blouse for one million euros)

14. Anna Sui (my kind of top)

15. Nicole Miller (a little silk scarf)

16. Todd Olham (good vest)

17. Bob Mackie (CAT JACKET)

18. Rifat Ozbek (maybe you like beige!)

19. Romeo Gigli (I like a scarf-shirt!)

20. Kenneth Cole (vintage flip flops in size 40)

21. Gaulthier Junior (what kind of ad is this?)

22. Isaac Mizrahi (mini skirt + shorts)

23. A lot of Vodka (Absoluttttttttt)

24. Robert Alrman’s films (which one should I watch? Prêt-à-porter??)

And now I WANT THIS! And so let's stop here!

Thank you for reading and have a great week!

Anni