Something within me awakens when I am around Italians. Like a parrot, I speak back to them in romanticized, broken English and excess pleasantries. There’s a sense of humor ingrained in the culture, a wink in every thank you. You can imagine my excitement, then, walking to Prada Mode, a yearly cultural event that’s taking place in New York for the first time this week. I was eager to see what the most fashionable Italians had prepared.
I made my way out of the morning sun and into the shadowy Hotel Chelsea, the event’s epicenter, where I would soon discover the work of the artists and hosts Nicolas Winding Refn, a Danish filmmaker, and Hideo Kojima, a Japanese video-game designer. They join a 13-year legacy of artists who have created immersive experiences for the fashion house. Shortly after my arrival, a friend showed me a photo of Miuccia Prada last night at Bar Oliver, the perpetually packed Lower East Side haunt. We live in a city where being at the right place on the right night is everything.
