Designer/director/etiquette expert Tom Ford is certainly quotable—take this clip of him from an Oprah Winfrey Network. Okay, so its been mashed up by Vancouver video-production company Steamy Window Productions, but there’s still plenty of lessons to be learned from the master here. If the rapid-fire delivery is too much for you, though, there’s one bit of wisdom you can walk away with: invest in Spanx!
Mdvanii
Truly a bore.It’s fucking clothes dude.
Mdvanii
Truly a New York bore. They are fucking clothes dude.
Indigo
He is one of the sexiest men alive.
Marie Cohn
He says that when he’s stressed out, which is so, so often, he will sit in his own filthy bathwater every hour! That’s self-love!
newcityspot
The is a communicative property to his ego to his clothes to his customers.
Esculapio Mitiríades Torquemada de la Cueva
@Mdvanii: The man got to the very top of a very competitive profession, and it wasn’t by thinking his chosen field is too silly to take seriously.
newcityspot
@Esculapio Mitiríades Torquemada de la Cueva: I think what he’s trying to say is, you know, in this world, where a small percentage own most of the wealth, is one suit going to save a village? Necessity v. luxury. Your design contributions don’t merit such self-aggrandizement, put it in perspective. It’s commercial product to preserve illusions which are maintained through a lot of suffering.
Esculapio Mitiríades Torquemada de la Cueva
@newcityspot: Is one suit going to save a village? What? I don’t even know what that means. If you’re so concerned about “necessity v. luxury”, sell the laptop you used to write your post in and help feed a hundred starving children in Africa (and don’t even get me started on the lives your monthly internet connection fee could save).
x
Is this supposed to be criticising him for talking about himself in a segment which, from what I understand, aims to get Tom Ford to speak about Tom Ford? That’s…moronic.
newcityspot
@Esculapio Mitiríades Torquemada de la Cueva: I missed a couple of words and was going to follow up with some clarification, but I thought its meaning was implicit. Clearly, you’re just here on some fashion defense mission.
Let’s break down your comment.
So I just did a random search on the cost of a Tom Ford Suit on bluefly…it’s $2800.00US.
Tom Ford is clearly stilted with visions of grandeur. (the observation of the blog post).
I use my refurbished mini laptop (Asus EEEPC) to do follow up work on my social work cases after I leave the office. To sell my laptop to feed famished people anywhere (I guess you chose the default children of Africa), would go not nearly as far as that one suit from Tom Ford and it would come at the sacrifice of expediency for public assistance for my social work cases…in other words, it would only be a band aid for said famished people, and people here would be affected as well. It would be an irrational act.
And of course the argument of internet service…I have basic service and use it to work, research, and on breaks survey topical issues (queer issues like on this blog)…yes it’s a luxury to have a break in an 8 hour workday compared with garment workers in China.
So the real question is to whom is the suit valuable as a social necessity? Likely the small percentage ownership of the majority of wealth. Is it being recognized as luxury or necessity, clearly in Tom Ford’s perspective, there is a lot of value to his contribution to the world, and how many will agree? The small percentage.
Sometimes it’s disheartening to see that people forget that realized dreams are distributed to the truly lucky few and to claim full responsibility for such fortune is disregarding a mass of anonymous figures.
Can’t he be a little more humble? That’s all dude. That was all.
Travelz
@Esculapio Mitiríades Torquemada de la Cueva: No need to be a c*nt. newcityspot’s comment was absolutely valid, well-presented and they certainly weren’t attacking you so don’t be such a mega-bitch.
newcityspot
@Travelz: Thanks for having my back there. I occasionally have a fully focused thought process towards a specific argument and this was one of those times and having it recognized and well-regarded felt really cool. Thanks!
Esculapio Mitiríades Torquemada de la Cueva
@newcityspot: I can’t argue with the fact that the guy comes across as a self-absorbed douche. Humble he ain’t. Agreed.
As to the other stuff: You say that the suit would go further than the laptop. But we’re talking degrees here. The truth of the matter is (whether we like to admit it or not) that all of us who live in the first world and are even vaguely middle-class are in the upper minority of what is now a global economic system. And we are all part of a machine of which guys like Tom Ford are but tiny cogs and by no means the prime movers. Of course there’s a discussion to be had about how the economy allocates its resources (which is, I think, what you’re trying to get at), but I don’t think such discussions can get anywhere if they start off from the premise that some consumer luxuries are OK (those we can afford), whereas others are too luxurious (those richer people can afford).
I think there’s also a point to be made somewhere in here about the role of the artist in society. Again: A long conversation, etc.; but I think that, in general terms, guys like this (i.e., talented people working within the commercial system) can be thought of as not unlike the painters and sculptors that the princes and popes and cardinals used to hire 500 years ago: talented people who must do their thing within the prevailing system of their time and place).
Was my previous post really bitchy? Sorry, dude. I’m used to other, more combative comments sections. My bad.
newcityspot
@Esculapio Mitiríades Torquemada de la Cueva: Damn, I knew I left out the word artist somewhere earlier – too many thoughts, how do you get them all out succinctly and really, I should be cleaning this damn house instead! – anyway, you echoed my point when I said “commercial product to preserve illusions which are maintained through a lot of suffering,” which I also meant “commercial product, not art…” so I guess the 1st comment could have meant economic value or artistic value…I guess I assumed economic, whereas Tom Ford most likely meant artistic. Then it’s SUPA-SUBJECTIVE cuz then I’m like WELL, Alexander McQueen was an artist and Tom Ford wasn’t and that’s a whole other can of sweet and sour worms and really everyone is right. Anyway, glad we didn’t get all forum-flamey and ultimately I respect your perspective as well as you did mine. Thanks. Cheers!
newcityspot
Or I mean, Tom Ford sees himself so grandiosely for artistic contributions, not because of just a nice tailored suit, but individual timeless art pieces.
This replaces some line in my last post.
Kuebler
Wow I love how that panned out. Nice going gents-
JKB
@Kuebler: I guess…I was going to microwave some popcorn. 😛
Stephen
I adore this man!
trevor bartlet
Why do you think homosexuality is often called “The Big Narcissism”?
Esculapio Mitiríades Torquemada de la Cueva
@trevor bartlet: Because there a lot of ill-informed people out there with little understanding of homosexuality?
Pip
how the fuck do you take a bath every hour or two?
Scott
He can’t be any worse than Thierry Mugler.
BubbasBack
Whoa, this dude is insufferable! Has a huge head, in more ways than one. Burp.