The rooftop bar of Ultra Supper Club was packed a couple of hours earlier than usual last Thursday night. Lifestyle quarterly YYZ Living Magazine was holding its eagerly awaited Summer 2011 Launch Party. If the insanity of the inaugural party that kicked-off their premier issue last winter was to be any indication, this was going to be one sick party. On a night that played host to a celebrity and sponsor loaded Power Ball, YYZ held its own.
The apex of luxury, YYZ (airport code for Toronto) presents a definitive vision of arts, culture, and society from the Torontonian perspective. What is the Torontonian perspective? That’s a great question. Toronto is a city that has developed an unhealthy obsession with luxury. I’m sure we’re not alone and to be honest, I can’t quite figure out when it all started. My guess is that it was somewhere in between the blinged out hip hop video programming of MuchMusic and the lunacy of Sex In The City.
It’s become the norm in Toronto for men to sacrifice everything for a lease on a car three times their annual take-home salary. The women are no better. How many insist on shoes that are somewhere in the neighbourhood of their monthly rent? OK, maybe I’m generalizing, but this city’s appetite for luxury that has maxed out many a Toronto credit card. It’s also spawned the birth of many local lifestyle magazines and Torontonians love their lifestyle magazines. They offer us a window into the world of 24-carat gold iPad cases, 120-carat diamond encrusted cell phones, exotic space vacations, expensive European furniture, and an insight to menus of the city’s top restaurants that few can afford.
Concentrated Vision: Photographed by Andy Lee, Styling by Amarsana Gendunova, Jennifer Lee
YYZ Magazine’s Summer 2011 issue is out on newsstands and bookstores this week. Publishers Thomas Jacob and Nash Misir have pulled together a great team that includes the talent of Editor-in-Chief Shivani Kumar, Managing Editor Annie Lam, and Marketing & PR specialist (and my buddy) Theresa Kim. The cover was shot by commercial and editorial fashion photographer Richard Dubois who you may recognize from his work with ELLE Canada or his appearances on Fashion Television, Project Runway, and Canada’s Next Top Model. Fresh out of college, my friend Amarsana Gendunova did an excellent job on her first off-figure assignment shot by Andy Lee. The men’s combos (photo above) in particular were very impressive. Great job Amarsana! The Colourful Bloom photo editorial plays on the florals, crisp lacing, pastels and bright colours – the magazine’s feminine fashion themes for summer. Shot by Dubois, Sutherland model Kim Foulkes’ bursts out of the page in Midencé Oliu Millinery headpieces painted in a rich assortment of pastels by MAC, Urban Decay, Makeup Forever, and Dolled Up brand cosmetics.
YYZ’s not exactly your go-to magazine for fashion, nor are they trying to be. Filled with great photo spreads, interviews, and features, is it enough to give Torontonians their cathartic fill on the luxury lifestyle they all crave? It’s a start. For event photos please visit the It’s All Style To Me Facebook Page.
