147 - Unreal

My bedtime reading this evening BBC article about an AI Vogue model.

It reminds me of a film by Federico Fellini (Roma?) where all the beautiful women had thick underarm hair. People will soon get bored of perfection and goon out. The ideal beauty will be deformed.

And I just fell down a Fellini rabbit hole - I was checking out the film reference and I saw a clip from the film Roma of a 'Vatican Fashion Show' of religious vestments. And I remembered a story David Sedaris read recently on Radio 4 about fashions at the Vatican when he visited. And I wondered if it was a homage to Fellini or just a coincidence.

David Sedaris The Hem Of His Garment 2024 

"The cardinals were resplendent in their black cassocks, which had bright-scarlet buttons and a matching sash called a fascia. Better still were the Papal Gentlemen, who wore morning coats and white bow ties coupled with elaborate bibs, often with medals hanging off them."

"As at any good fashion show, the majority of our time was spent waiting, but the clothes we saw made it all worthwhile. The difference, I thought, was that these outfits weren’t for sale. Then my friend Austin wrote from the States and told me that while in Rome I had to go to Gammarelli, a bespoke tailoring business, founded in 1798, that’s been dressing the Pope and his associates for generations. "

Pipped this post in at 5 past midnight - had to cheat by tweaking the Visible date. I sometimes slip into a pattern of staying and getting up later and later...