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Bono Sees Red at Edun, Dishes on His Global Plan for a New Brand
Lindsay Sammon
Fashion Wire Daily - New York - "Who knew that when I first met Bono, he would turn into Bono?" Lou Reed cracked to much laughter Sunday night at the Fall/Winter presentation of Edun, the socially conscious fashion line created by Bono and Ali Hewson with designer Rogan Gregory.
"Now I follow him wherever he goes," said Reed of Bono, just back from Davos where he announced the launch of Red, his revolutionary plan to unite with designers and labels to create a major label to support the Global Fund.
Call the idea what you like - conscious consumerism, couture with a heart - just don't call it a "cause."
"Why are people always coming up to me saying 'I love your cause!' "It's not a f---ing cause. I have plenty of other things you can call causes, and I'll fight for anything. But this is an emergency," Bono told FWD at the event.
Currently the U2 front man and philanthropist has been going full speed ahead toward the fashion industry with a few very "big ideas" in tow. As Edun launched its new collection, inspired by the interaction between Art Nouveau and the Industrial Revolution, various artists - from Cecily Brown to Moby - came together to celebrate and revisit the concept. The event was held at Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn's elegant modernist Upper East Side mansion, Salon 94, the exhibition space inspired by the salon of Gertrude Stein.
Always one to call on the community for change, Bono and wife Ali have fought a very public battle against the AIDS epidemic and other problems plaguing Africa. By using local African factories to source Edun, the duo hopes to promote sustainable employment to thwart the issues constantly afflicting the continent. Spearheading the design and production process for Edun is the self-taught Rogan Gregory, who Bono was quick to identify as the heart of the operation.
"There's no one in the city that's of the best and brightest who doesn't want to work with him," said Bono of his partner. He went on to describe Gregory's vision as "very creative, very bohemian and very anti-bling. That day-glow neon moment might be over. There is a new kind of sexiness on the block."
For his part, Rogan insisted to FWD "I am not really a designer."
This season for Edun, sexiness took a look at the past, touching upon the Art Nouveau principle. To coincide with its theme, curator Bronwyn Keenan chose twenty artists to showcase at Sunday's event, while the Simon Coogan jazz trio from New Orleans was in the house for melodic entertainment and couture comfort cuisine, like slivers of cornbread with molasses butter, pleased the palette. Lou Reed recited his song "Busload of Faith" as a poem, with acidic asides, and last, but not least, Cabinet Magazine brought forth "different items that tell wonderful little stories about the world," according to editor in chief Sina Najafi, like random doodles from the sketchpad of former President Eisenhower.
It was a complimentary mix of art for Edun's Fall collection, which featured vintage-inspired prints on satin, and rich fabrics like velvet and silk that were shown in soft colors with attention paid largely to detail and construction.
And when it comes to the construction of the garment, Bono once again praised Gregory as a driving force behind Edun's success.
"He spends a lot of time in the factories, looking into their capability," Bono said. "That's the idea, we will increase their capability."
Having lost a significant percentage of the world trade since the 1970s, Africa is missing out on billions of dollars a year that could dramatically improve its current crisis situation. Alongside Edun, Bono and Bobby Shriver have teamed up with Georgio Armani, American Express, Converse and The Gap, on another fashion and luxury front for Red, a brand designed to further engage the consumer about this state of "emergency."
Asked about the choice of name, Bono responded, "I thought of it [Red] as the color for Americans," said Bono, associating the word with warning.
"A tsunami happens in Southeast Asia and 150,000 people die, but a tsunami is happening every month in Africa from a preventable, treatable, disease. Why is it not on the news?"
"Red is engaging the commercial world," he explained, "Engaging their marketing budgets rather than their philanthropy. And all the money from the products that are sold goes to the Global Fund for AIDS. So it's a very big idea."
So is there a line of demarcation between these two initiatives?
"Edun is, in essence, Red. Edun is already rooted in Red's ideas."
And the idea seems simple enough. If this concept of "ethical goods," already a major force in Europe, can take flight in America, the sums could be huge.
Perhaps Julie Gilhart, Vice President of Fashion Merchandising at Barneys New York said it best when she commended Bono and Ali for their ingenuity.
"They're trying to do the impossible, create fair trade and make a collection that is stylish and fashionable. Nothing else is really comparable to it that has the conscience behind it."
Clothing that breeds a conscience: leave it to Bono to create the one trend worth following.
Lindsay Sammon
Fashion Wire Daily - New York - "Who knew that when I first met Bono, he would turn into Bono?" Lou Reed cracked to much laughter Sunday night at the Fall/Winter presentation of Edun, the socially conscious fashion line created by Bono and Ali Hewson with designer Rogan Gregory.
"Now I follow him wherever he goes," said Reed of Bono, just back from Davos where he announced the launch of Red, his revolutionary plan to unite with designers and labels to create a major label to support the Global Fund.
Call the idea what you like - conscious consumerism, couture with a heart - just don't call it a "cause."
"Why are people always coming up to me saying 'I love your cause!' "It's not a f---ing cause. I have plenty of other things you can call causes, and I'll fight for anything. But this is an emergency," Bono told FWD at the event.
Currently the U2 front man and philanthropist has been going full speed ahead toward the fashion industry with a few very "big ideas" in tow. As Edun launched its new collection, inspired by the interaction between Art Nouveau and the Industrial Revolution, various artists - from Cecily Brown to Moby - came together to celebrate and revisit the concept. The event was held at Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn's elegant modernist Upper East Side mansion, Salon 94, the exhibition space inspired by the salon of Gertrude Stein.
Always one to call on the community for change, Bono and wife Ali have fought a very public battle against the AIDS epidemic and other problems plaguing Africa. By using local African factories to source Edun, the duo hopes to promote sustainable employment to thwart the issues constantly afflicting the continent. Spearheading the design and production process for Edun is the self-taught Rogan Gregory, who Bono was quick to identify as the heart of the operation.
"There's no one in the city that's of the best and brightest who doesn't want to work with him," said Bono of his partner. He went on to describe Gregory's vision as "very creative, very bohemian and very anti-bling. That day-glow neon moment might be over. There is a new kind of sexiness on the block."
For his part, Rogan insisted to FWD "I am not really a designer."
This season for Edun, sexiness took a look at the past, touching upon the Art Nouveau principle. To coincide with its theme, curator Bronwyn Keenan chose twenty artists to showcase at Sunday's event, while the Simon Coogan jazz trio from New Orleans was in the house for melodic entertainment and couture comfort cuisine, like slivers of cornbread with molasses butter, pleased the palette. Lou Reed recited his song "Busload of Faith" as a poem, with acidic asides, and last, but not least, Cabinet Magazine brought forth "different items that tell wonderful little stories about the world," according to editor in chief Sina Najafi, like random doodles from the sketchpad of former President Eisenhower.
It was a complimentary mix of art for Edun's Fall collection, which featured vintage-inspired prints on satin, and rich fabrics like velvet and silk that were shown in soft colors with attention paid largely to detail and construction.
And when it comes to the construction of the garment, Bono once again praised Gregory as a driving force behind Edun's success.
"He spends a lot of time in the factories, looking into their capability," Bono said. "That's the idea, we will increase their capability."
Having lost a significant percentage of the world trade since the 1970s, Africa is missing out on billions of dollars a year that could dramatically improve its current crisis situation. Alongside Edun, Bono and Bobby Shriver have teamed up with Georgio Armani, American Express, Converse and The Gap, on another fashion and luxury front for Red, a brand designed to further engage the consumer about this state of "emergency."
Asked about the choice of name, Bono responded, "I thought of it [Red] as the color for Americans," said Bono, associating the word with warning.
"A tsunami happens in Southeast Asia and 150,000 people die, but a tsunami is happening every month in Africa from a preventable, treatable, disease. Why is it not on the news?"
"Red is engaging the commercial world," he explained, "Engaging their marketing budgets rather than their philanthropy. And all the money from the products that are sold goes to the Global Fund for AIDS. So it's a very big idea."
So is there a line of demarcation between these two initiatives?
"Edun is, in essence, Red. Edun is already rooted in Red's ideas."
And the idea seems simple enough. If this concept of "ethical goods," already a major force in Europe, can take flight in America, the sums could be huge.
Perhaps Julie Gilhart, Vice President of Fashion Merchandising at Barneys New York said it best when she commended Bono and Ali for their ingenuity.
"They're trying to do the impossible, create fair trade and make a collection that is stylish and fashionable. Nothing else is really comparable to it that has the conscience behind it."
Clothing that breeds a conscience: leave it to Bono to create the one trend worth following.
