Fashion Feature

The One and Only Malcolm Harris



FMFB: First time I saw you out in the NYC nightlife scene I immediately liked your self assured style and vibe not to mention your fashion sense, please tell us your thoughts on the difference between style and fashion…

MH:I think the fundamental difference between style and fashion is that style is innate and cultivated over time; fashion is dictated by the times in which we live… My overall aesthetic is reflective of pursuit and commitment to both...

FMFB: What do you have brewing for the immediate future and are you planning or have any involvement with NY Fashion Week in September and if so are you free to fill us in?

MH:I don’t really follow NY Fashion Week anymore… I think NY Fashion Week, 7th on Sixth, the CFDA and organizations like these are tantamount to organized religion. And I don’t do religion… I have always taken a page from Robert Frost, and chosen “the road less travelled” so therefore present my work minus the backdrop of the traditional fashion system or timetables.

FMFB: The streets are a breeding ground for cutting edge style & fashion, in your opinion which NYC neighborhoods are the most stylish and fashionable and how so?

MH:I recently moved to the Financial District from Soho and thought I was committing myself to a sequestered and “fashion-less” life… But what I have noticed here in FiDi is that it is a hot-bed for emerging trends and style… The “tourist-couture” alone is worth the price of admission… But what I’m noticing is this very unique opportunity for fashion / artistic types as well as the straight laced finance types to borrow bits and pieces from each other’s overall aesthetic; the results of which, as seen on the streets of FiDi, are quite interesting…

FMFB: Describe your love affair with NYC and Paris

MH:New York City is a city that is constantly in the movement of the moment – you are always hanging by the edge of your seat… Paris is the exact opposite… Everything in Paris happens via a long thought out process… It is perhaps one of the most analytical cities on the planet. And as I am an extremist (LOL) these polar-opposite cities and approaches to life suit me depending on where I am in my life journey or creative process…

FMFB: Your fondest memory in fashion

MH:When Diane Von Furstenberg said to me, “I think you have discovered your own version of the wrap dress with the invention of the One-Dress… It’s your golden ticket…” I will never forget this moment as long as I live…

FMFB: You are a Stylish, Fashionable Philanthropist. For some it takes years before they realize the work they want to be involved in, your work involves the fashion industry and you have also combined that with humanitarian efforts so there is a joy behind the efforts. How early on did you realize you wanted to pursue fashion & philanthropy as your life's work

MH:I am very lucky to have grown up with parents that both worked as social workers as well as serial entrepreneurs. It was instilled in me from a very early age that “fabulous is as fabulous does…” So I decided that I would not only design beautiful and fabulous clothes, I would also try my best to design a more beautiful and just world…


FMFB: OK here are the staple FMFB questions:

Favorite FilmMaker and why and who will you style him/her:

MH:For me it would have to be Pedro Almodóvar. I am very fortunate to have lived in the same building in Soho as Pedro many years ago when he was living and working in New York City. Over the years I still see him and he is always in the same drab black uniform… I would love to see him in the bright Technicolor and spirit of his movies; same silhouette but a brighter and livelier palette.


Favorite Musician/Band and why and how will you dress them

MH:Antony and the Johnsons - - - They create music that captures the imagination and the spirit - - - I would dress them by covering them in little light bugs… But in all seriousness, I don’t believe that artists should actually dress other artists - - - I only believe that a collaboration should take place wherein a designer can help to facilitate an artist’s overall vision.

Designer or Fashion figure that has had a great influence on you and why

MH:Diane Von Furstenberg - - - she designs from a place of empowerment and not fashion. She is always thinking of how to empower her client base.


Favorite "Babe" Thespian or Model and how will you style her or him:

Charlotte Gainsbourg!!! I wouldn’t change a single thing about her… Each piece would be credited “model’s own”.


Fashion Editorial

This editorial is based on a film
by The Brothers Quay "Institute
Benjamenta or This Dream People Call
Human Life"

The Brothers Quay as they are jointly known, are identical twins and have worked together all their lives, first as illustrators celebrated for elaborately detailed puppet films shown in art houses and on MTV and as filmmakers.




Most of their films feature dolls,
often partially disassembled,
in a dark, moody atmosphere.

From their most favorite stop animation "Street of Crocodiles"
to Peter Gabriel's music video "Sledgehammer."

Institute Benjamenta was their
first live-action feature film
bringing together the
fantastical, fairytale and the
mystical.



Their latest projects include:

"The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes"
"Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass"




Previous fashion issues:
B-clothing SFMC
redbuttafly LeeLee's Jewels Licia Sbardella
SFMC redbuttafly