16 WSJ. MAGAZINEEDITOR’S LETTERILLUSTRATION BY ALEJANDRO CARDENASOPENING GAMBIT Anubis and Bast, both wearing Dolce & Gabbana, challenge a formidable opponent to a game of chess in a setting worthy of Ingmar Bergman.ALL THE RIGHT MOVES
W
HILE PUTTING TOGETHER our August
issue, we were reminded that appear-
ances can be deceiving. Throughout her
fi lm and TV career, cover star Melissa
McCarthy has mined wild-card, foulmouthed char-
acters for comedic gold. You might expect her to
be the same off -screen, but in person she’s down-
to-earth in ways that are true to her Midwestern
roots. McCarthy’s new fi lm, The Kitchen—in which
she, Elisabeth Moss and Tiff any Haddish play three
women who take control of the Irish mob in 1970s
New York—showcases her talent for fi nding comedy
in drama and vice versa. “I want a good story,” she
says. “I don’t care what format it comes in.”
Lee Ufan has been misunderstood for much of
his career. As a Korean-born artist who joined anavant-garde movement in Japan, he was disparaged
by critics who labeled him and his group of like-
minded artists “Mono-ha,” or “School of Things.”
Lee decided to embrace the moniker as a refl ection
of his quiet approach to simple materials: sand, steel,
rock, wood. In recent years, the art world has cel-
ebrated his work, leading to solo shows including an
exhibition in September at the Hirshhorn Museum
in Washington, D.C. In our tech-saturated modern
world, his meditative pieces speak louder than ever.
Though Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia spent
years working under iconic designer Oscar de la
Renta, rising from interns to designers, they were
not initially picked to lead the company after his
death. Nearly fi ve years later, the pair has taken the
helm, helping the brand evolve in an increasinglycasual fashion environment. A new emphasis on
modern comfort that retains a heritage of hand-
crafted luxury, plus a boutique opening in Paris this
summer—signaling growing international ambi-
tions—are harbingers of the brand’s future.
And in our 18-page “Autumn Sonata” portfolio,
the stark simplicity of Sweden’s Fårö island, where
director Ingmar Bergman lived and worked, serves
as a backdrop for the season’s most covetable out-
fi ts—sculptural silhouettes set against a beautiful
stretch of coastline, the perfect inspiration for fall.Kristina O’Neill
[email protected]
@kristina_oneill