I ♥ MJ...

The appeal of Marc Jacobs ads, consistently shot by Jurgen Teller, usually eludes me. I don't want to say I never like them, for instance I thought the campaign for Spring Summer 2009 with Raquel Zimmermann was beautiful, but generally I feel like there's something I'm not quite getting, and that's never a good thing to feel. Given the delirious, over the top, glammy, clubby collection that Jacobs put out for fall I found myself really interested in seeing what the outcome for the ads would be. Then the first image (or rather, a collage of four images) was posted on the Fashion Spot back in June, and my interest was piqued. It was exactly what it should have been, if that makes any sense. Teller's signature washed out photography and candid shots combined with the gritty New York backgrounds and party clothes made for a perfect combination. Now the full series is up on marcjacobs.com, and for the first time ever I can honestly say that I love a Marc Jacobs campaign.

Like I said, the look of Teller's photography (that poorly done candid kind of look) suits the mood of this collection perfectly, and honestly I don't think the campaign would have been nearly as good were it shot by someone else. And even though I'm not usually a model person, I really love the casting here. The five girls, Natasa Vonjovic, Olga Sherer, Kamila Filipcikova, Irina Kulikova and Ajuma Nasanyana, really delivered, bringing life to the fun, chaotic mood of the photos (especially Natasa who is working the wild-child party girl vibe for all it's worth). I do wish we would have seen more of Ajuma, since she's kind of a favorite of mine and the fact that she was cast in such a huge campaign is kind of a big deal, but that's really the only complaint I have. Sure, the technicolor makeup and mega-sculpted hair from the runway has been toned down and disheveled, but I'm willing to overlook that since it adds to the trashed mood of the images, and they do create quite a mood. I absolutely love the whole "night out" vibe, with shots that go from waiting in your tacky, gaudy apartment or hotel suite to meet up with your friends, to wandering the graffiti covered streets and drunkenly hanging off of the scaffolding (admit it, you've done it too), to the next morning, wandering home in the same outfit you went out in the night before. They're almost like the party photos taken by those inhibition-free, exhibitionistic Facebook devoted youths, just with better clothes. All that's missing is the silly little caption underneath the images. Best of all though, I finally feel like I "get" a Marc Jacobs campaign. It probably won't last, and I'll be completely out of the loop by next season, but nothing good ever does last very long, does it?

all images from marcjacobs.com