Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/439445
in this ISSUE JANUARY 2015 | STYLE | FASHION | SOCIAL 4 , 6 P O P. C U LT U R E . G O S S I P. I am amazed at and thrilled about our new website. I would love to take credit, but the truth is I had nothing to do with the new site. Kate Stukenberg, executive editor fashion/digital, cobbled her own team together, bringing on Anna Schuster 18 months ago, then adding Jailyn Marcel, and topping it off with Francine Ballard, digital/style editor, who brings expertise from her years at InStyle and Lucky magazines and the launch of her own website, Designer Social. Director of integrated marketing Jackie Effenson, who moved to Houston via Hearst in NY, has also been instrumental from the get-go. The site is modern and chic, witty and informative. Interiors stories have a shop-the-shoot section; there are Pretty City beauty interviews (Ashley Putman and C. Style blogger Carly Lee are in rotation now); interviews with fascinating designers (Aerin Lauder this week); and art chats with luminaries such as Dallas Museum of Art's Jeffrey Grove, and London artist Michael Craig- Martin. I can't get enough. Go to papercitymag.com to see — and check back often. As we go to press, the PaperCity team is dispersing for the holidays, some to finish a flurry of shopping (we have five new babies this year, so Santa is busy), some on personal sojourns to Hong Kong, New York and, in my own case, to my farm to prepare for 15 people arriving Christmas Eve. Happy 2015! Holly Moore Editor in Chief holly@papercitymag.com 12 Film: Richard Finger's movie debut, Sex, Marriage and Infidelity 8 Party: Contemporary Arts Museum Houston's Another Great Night 22 Art: Angelbert Metoyer 17 Decoration: What's new in the design whirl 29 24 Social Calendar: Your go-to guide for spring's top events Design: Architect Karen Lantz's (Almost) All-American Home PC House + Art HUNT SLONEM S ince 1883, Lucchese has handcrafted boots in the Old World tradition. But, frankly not much had really changed about the Western-style ropers and cowboy boots made in Texas, until recently. With a Dallas billionaire majority shareholder behind the brand (one who happens to play high-goal polo, too), it was his mandate to bring in creative director and branding expert William Zeitz to restore Lucchese's dated logo, launch the company's first ecommerce website and introduce a sophisticated collection of shoes and handbags. A slew of stylish glossies — including Vogue, W, Elle, Harper's Bazaar, GQ and Departures — snatched them up for their fashion spreads. Now comes part two of Lucchese's rebranding initiative: Jay Hamby, VP of stores and formerly of Polo Ralph Lauren, oversaw a stunning new store in Highland Village — Lucchese's first in Houston — designed by Dallas architecture firm Droese Raney, which created the company's archetype storefront in San Antonio more than a year ago. The Highland Village iteration has a rarefied ranch-house air and offers men's and women's footwear crafted from materials ranging from ostrich and alligator to supple calf leathers. There are exclusive styles of Western boots handmade in El Paso, and you can customize your own boots by changing up the toe shape, heel height, exotic skin inlays, embroidery … If you can imagine it, they can make it. But there's more: Lucchese has collaborated with heritage brands Hamilton Shirts, Filson for luggage and Clint Orms silversmith belt buckles with leather belts made in house. 4051 Westheimer Road in Highland Village, 713.960.1121, lucchese.com. Laurann Claridge BOOTS on the Ground Amalfi Ristorante Italiano & Bar 6100 Westheimer Road, 713.532.2201, amalfihouston.com It's a long way from Houston to Salerno, the coastal town where chef Giancarlo Ferrara spent his formative years. But his new eatery, Amalfi Ristorante Italiano & Bar, feels like a friend's place in that seaside haven, surrounded by warm, honest hospitality and food to match. Ferrara is the maverick chef in the family that boasts four generations of cheese makers (their ricotta graces the menu, natch). He left the area when he was all of 21 to travel the world, cooking from Germany to Ireland to France before making his way to American shores, where he notably served as chef at Arcodoro Houston for 11 years. Cooking with a restrained simplicity that allows both Italian imports and local ingredients to shine, he's gained a loyal following for his beautifully executed fish dishes at Amalfi. Dinner seafood highlights include filetto di biranzino al carciofi, sea bass with roasted baby artichokes and black saffron rice ($28), and filetto di dentice al limone, a signature Amalfi coast dish interpreted here with Gulf red snapper roasted in a light lemon, parsley and cherry-tomato broth ($22). You can drop into Amalfi anytime from 11 am to 11 pm and nosh on a diavola pizza dotted with slices of spicy soppressata ($14) or a lemon-tinged Amalfitana seafood salad with copious amounts of octopus, cuttlefish and shrimp on heirloom tomatoes and butter lettuce ($13), accompanied by a glass of Chianti. The simple blue-and-white surrounds, built in the shell of a former strip shopping center off Westheimer, invite you to linger over the beautifully prepared food, wine and cocktails without feeling the rush to join the madding crowds in the Galleria area. Laurann Claridge Amore AMALFI I n the early 1950s, Vladimir Kagan's modern sculptural furniture spawned a radical new look in American design — sexy, curvaceous and reductive, the standard for minimalist glamour had been set. Marilyn Monroe, Gary Cooper, Xavier Cugat, Lily Pons and Frank Sinatra were all clients. Luminaries of the 21st century covet Kagan's works, which are in the private collections of Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, David Lynch, Tom Cruise Courtney Cox, Tom Ford, Giorgio Armani and Donna Karan. Kagan, 87, has been producing his furniture quietly for decades, mostly for private clients. Until now, it's been unavailable anywhere in Texas. The first few pieces of Kagan's classic creations have arrived in Houston at David Sutherland Showroom, hand-picked by Sutherland and Kagan together at Kagan's New Jersey factory. The VK Chaise, Crescent sofa and Fettuccini chair will whet your appetite for more. Stay tuned for a date update, as Mr. Kagan will be making an appearance in Houston at Sutherland in late February, early March. As soon as we know, you'll know. Vladimir Kagan to the trade at David Sutherland showroom, davidsutherlandshowroom.com. Rebecca Sherman Vladimir Kagan chaise The handsome new Lucchese store in Highland Village Shopping Center Giancarlo Ferrara Amalfi Ristorante Classic Curves Vladimir Kagan Crescent sofa MAX BURKHALTER H appy New Year, and welcome back! The holiday season was wonderful, but we are excited to move into 2015. Hopefully everyone has made their New Year's resolutions, and they are holding steady. We closed out 2014 with the launch of papercitymag.com, and it is thriving, gaining unique visits every day. Be sure to check back daily for fresh content covering home design, fashion, beauty art, people and social. Hopefully you saw the chic Chanel online ads last month and the beautiful Cartier ads this month. Both luxury brands bought out the ad spaces in the entire website for a month. Speaking of Chanel, the boutique reopened its doors on December 10 in the Galleria after a massive renovation, and it is stunning. As for my ad sales team, we are in full gear, signing new advertisers daily. New national brands for 2015 are farfetch.com and MaxMara, with more to come. If you aren't familiar with farfetch. com, you need to be. In a brilliant strategy, Farfetch invites the chicest boutiques in the universe to be part of the Farfetch world — with Tootsies and Laboratoria the exclusives for Houston and Forty Five Ten for Dallas. You can literally shop from sea to sea. Gabrielle de Papp, a former Neiman Marcus public relations exec, is senior VP, brand and business development, North America. Cheers to the first month of what we know will be a fabulous year. We look forward to sharing it with you. Monica Bickers Publisher monica@papercitymag.com