Financial Times Weekend 22-23Feb2020

22 February/23 February 2020 ★ FT Weekend 5

Style

A

t 9am on a winter’s morn-

ing in Tel Aviv, Ifind myself

dancing in a room full of

strangers. I am punching

the air infront ofme,

experimenting with a loose swing and

then a tightly wound jab as I move in

time to the music’s insistent beat.

Laughing, the eclectic group drop to the

floor, limbs wildly shaking as we shift

from horizontal to seated in afrenzied,

marionette-style variant of a sit-up.

This is Gaga, a movement class that

refuses tofit neatly into any ofthe com-

mercial dance genres — such as hip hop

or swing — currently in vogue. Devel-

opedbylegendary Israelichoreogra-

pher Ohad Naharin, who presided over

the Tel Aviv-based, internationally

acclaimedBatsheva Dance Company —

Israel’s largest dance company — for 2 8

years, it began in 1998 as a wayfor Naha-

rin tofind pleasure in his body after

years of accrued dance injuries.

After thefirst classes in 2001,fans

soon included Natalie Portman, who

turnedto the methodtohelpher train

for her Oscar-winningrole as a prima

ballerinain 2 01 0’sBlack Swan.And

although Naharin has shied awayfrom

publicisingGaga, itsfollowingcontinues

togrow indance studios across North

America, Europe andJapan.

In some ways, Gaga resembles adance

class. Overanhour, thegroup of80 is in

constant motion, swayingrhythmically

to the left and then to the right as wefol-

low the instructions ofSaar Harari,

Gaga’s lean, scruffy-haired artistic

director.But therearenomirrorsinthe

studio. Andthelanguagethat Harari

uses — urgingus to liftfrom our armpits

and explore the undulation ofour spine

— encourages individualexpression. By

the time theclassdraws to a close, the

atmosphere isgiddy. Thefinal minutes

erupt into a boisterous dance party of

teenagers, retirees and professional

dancers in oversizedsportswear.

WhileGagarevolves aroundimprovi-

sation, it is underpinned by Naharin’s

Wellness| The Israeli dance movement Gaga offers an antidote to self-conscious

fitness fads, and now it’s taking off around the world.Pip Usherjoins a class

Gaga’s US presence before returning to

TelAviv as artisticdirector in 2018.

Central to Gaga is the practice of self-

inquiry, termed“research”, that encour-

ages students to tune in to theirbody.

Along with the obvious benefits that

come with dancingfor an hour, devotees

seemhookedon the more intangible

experience of physical freedom. As

Harari observes:“After a class, I think

people alwaysfeel alive.”

Annabel Engels, an English market-

ing executive who relocated to Tel Aviv

toheadan internationalagency, credits

Gaga with giving her more confidence.

She had sufferedfrom anxietyfor years

and had started to experiment with

meditation and mindfulness-based

movement as a supplement to conven-

tional therapy. Herfirst class allowed

her toletherguarddown andmove in a

way that she hadn’t known she could.

After that, she was addicted.

“We live in a world which is quite nar-

cissistic,” she says. “But with Gaga, there

are no mirrors. There are a lot ofyou in

the room, but it’s a very individual expe-

rience. Like someone has handwriting

that’s theirs, youfind your own signa-

ture ofmovement.

“I went to some clubs afterwards, and

danced, and Ifelt more confident

within dance as aform,”she adds.“If

you could say one line about Gaga, it’s

about letting go. It’s such a simple but

powerful tool.”

The bestselling novelist Nicole

Krauss, author ofThe History ofLove,

was introduced to Naharin’s work dur-

ing a visit to Israel in 2010. It came ata

period when shefelt bereftofthe pleas-

ure and playfulness that had informed

her earlier writing and was astonished

tofind in Gaga another iteration ofthis

same search.

Since then, Krauss has religiously

attended Gaga classes, both in Tel Aviv

andathome in Brooklyn, watching the

New York programme swell from its

early days, when it was based in a pre-

schoolauditorium, to adozen weekly

sessions across the city.

In addition to the physical exhilara-

tion that accompanies a class, she often

finds herself emotionally affected.

“Sometimes it will be the way a class

builds, sometimes it will be the waya

teacher offers a metaphor in that

moment,”she says, recallingthe time

Naharinasked thedancerstomovefirst

asifthey weregiving, and then as ifthey

were receiving.“You would never stop

to experiment with that.”

Over the years, Krauss andNaharin

have become closefriends. Duringhis

most recent visit to New York,the con-

versation turned to Gaga’s origins.

Naharin explainedthat, to some

degree,his injuries mean thatheis

always consideringnew ways to appre-

ciate his body. Sometimes, he said, he’ll

imagine alittle marbleperchedatop

hishead.Helets it rollslightlytothe

right. What was the effect? He tries

again, this time to the left.

“Wehad thiswholediscussionabout

which one he liked better,”marvels

Krauss.“Ijustfelt like it’ssofascinating

to haveamindlike that.Andamindlike

that leads to this entire languagefor

peopleallaroundtheworldwhoare

movingin these new ways.”

W

alkingwithslow

processional

stepsdown the

catwalk, a

model’s faceis

framed within agigantic ivory silk

hood.The extravagant piece,

whichfalls to the waist, is

adornedwithSwarovski crystals,

beadsandpearls, andtrimmed

with white ostrichfeathers.This

is thefinal look ofBritish designer

RichardQuinn’s Autumn/Winter

2020 show — and somethingofa

surprise,given thatbridallooks

are typically reservedfor the

finale ofhaute couture, rather

than ready-to-wear, collections.

“All the designers that I love

from the past like [Christian] Lac-

roix andYves Saint Laurent, they

alwayshadthatbridalelement in

their couture collections,”said

Quinn backstage.“It is perhaps

themat their most creativeandI

wanted to set myselfand the team

the challenge.”

Challengeitwas—thehood

tookthreedays to sew, used

6 11,000 pearls, andfrom pattern-

cuttingto embroidery to stitching

took a team of15 people to create

—allofwhomworked aroundthe

clockto produce thelookin time

for the show.“The biggest chal-

lengeisbalancingtheweightand

proportion ofthefabrics to make

thesilhouetteworkandfallbeau-

tifully,”Quinn said.

He wasn’t the only designer to

sendabride downthe catwalk

this season. In New York,

Rodarte’sKate andLauraMul-

leavyfinished their show, held

underthebarrelvaultofStBar-

tholomew’s churchinMidtown

Manhattan, withabrideina

creamfloral-print dress and blue

veil, herfaceframed, doll-like, in

awreathof blue flowers.

Over in London, Dilara

Findikoglu offered her own kooky

take onbridalwearwith two looks

writ withher signature vamp-

meets-Victorian style.

Oneballet-inspireddress was

pairedwithaHandmaid’sTale-

stylebonnet-visor hybridfes-

toonedwith blackroses.The

secondlookwas slightly more tra-

ditional: a white,floor-length silk

dresswithtendrilsofblackfabric

creepingup thebody. It was styled

with a simplewhite veil.

Findikoglu wished to“riffon the

otherworldly and occultic”,she

said— certainly atypicalinspira-

tionforbridalwear.

Dublin-born Simone Rocha,

whoalwaysleans somewhat

bridalwithinhercollectionswith

use ofpearls and lace, ended her

show with two pretty ivory

dresses over puffball petticoats

that skimmed the ankle. White

crystalheadbands were attached

tolonglace veilsthat trailed

behind themodelsasthey

walked.“Procession, baptism;

birth, life and loss,”said Rocha

after her show.“My collection was

thecircleoflife.Thelast three

looks werefuneral shrouds, but

couldbebridaltoo.”

But whyisbridalcreepingon to

the runway — andwhynow?Mar-

ket demand could be thereason.

Globalsales forbridalwear will

exceed $80bn by the end of 2020 ,

accordingto California research

firm Global Industry Analysts.

Technavio, a London-based

market researchcompany, esti-

mates that bridalwearwill

increase at acompoundannual

growth rate of5 per centfrom

2019 to 2023, notingthat while

spendingon weddingceremonies

hasflatlined, the average amount

splashedout on a weddingdress is

increasing.

UKforecastingagency Spring-

boardsays the new obsession

withbridalis partlydue to the

“Meghan effect”: The royal wed-

dingin 2018 increasedfashion

retailsales in theUKby £196m

over thefour-month period

between May andAugust.

Here comes the bride

Trend| Wedding dresses

were a surprise at the

London shows. ByFlora

Macdonald Johnston

T

here’s a magnetic

click when you

replace the lid ofa

new Hermès lipstick

(pictured centre).

It feels rich, effortless, a little bit

space-age, withthe just-right

smoothness of an iPhone swipe.

There’s a lot riding on this little

bullet of branding, which is one

in a line of 24 lipsticks — as well

as threelimited-edition shades,

alipbalm,brush,andpencil—

launchingon March 4. It marks

aforay into the highly profitable

—andhighly competitive—

make-up category for the French

heritagebrand,whichhas

annual sales of almost €6bn.

The packaging, designed by

Hermès creative director of

jewellery andshoes Pierre Hardy,

is seductively lovely. Distinctive

cases are madefrom lacquered,

brushedandpolishedmetal,

whilelimited-editionversions

come with Corbusier-like

bands ofcolour. Each one is

refillable — sustainability is

a status symbol now, not

leastbecause you needthe

luxury of time to get

around to buying that refill.

The proofis in the

pout, though, and the

Hermès lipstick delivers,

gliding across thelips.

I prefer the satin-finish

version because, while

matteis now more

fashionable, you need

perfectly groomed lips to

pull it off.

But just how aspirational cana

lipstick be? At £58for a new tube,

(£62for the limited edition)and

£33 for a refill, it’s in the upper

floors ofthe price hierarchy,

thoughnot quite in the

penthouse. A decade ago, a £2 1

Rouge Coco lipstick by Chanel

representedan expensive

product. Then, the race to the top

was kick-started by Tom Ford in

2011 with £36 lipsticks(they now

start at £40), and later fuelled by

Christian Louboutin’sflashy yet

sinister amulets(£70), released

in 2015, which resemble

something a medieval poisoner

mightdeploy. Andat thepeakare

Bond No. 9’s blingy refillable

cases($105)and three-year-old

French label La Bouche Rouge,

which now has a line of$16 4

plastic-free lipsticks tucked in

refillable leather cylinders.

But whatdoyouget when you

pay £40 or morefor a tube oflip

stuff?Hermès declined to break

down its costs, so I turnedto

Beauty Piefounder Marcia

Kilgore, whose

disruptive cosmetics brand has

made transparent pricing part of

its USP. By charging customers a

monthly membership fee, Kilgore

is able to offer products at cost

price — what would be a £2 5

lipstickis just £6.28. When you

buy a branded lipstick, you’re

paying only a tiny amountfor the

product itself, she explains: the

product, packaging, safety and

testing typically represent only

8 to 10 per cent of the retail price

before VAT, so a £40 lipstick

wouldprobably cost no more

than £4 finished in its packaging.

Afull 50 to 60 per centgoes

directlytothe retailer. Everything

else? “Middlemen. Celebrity

marketing. Corporate overheads.”

Without breaking into the

factories, disguised in a lab coat,

it’s impossible to know what goes

into each lipstick. But many

luxury products are madeinthe

same group of factories, and

beyond around £4“there

isn’t really much more you

can put in that bullet”, says

Kilgore. Loading a lipstick

up withtoo many

moisturising ingredients

can backfire, she adds, as it

may end up too soft:“If

you’ve had a lipstick that

fell over and got crushed,

that’sdowntothe

formulation, or maybe the

spikes that hold it in aren’t

long enough.”

Getting the recipe right

can take time. La Bouche

Rougefounder Nicolas Gerlier

says it took “four years and 42 3

formulations”to create its Serum

Formulalipstick.Itwould have

been easier, he adds, to order an

organicformula or customise one

witha supplier in France or in

Italy, but that wouldn’t have

achieved the same outcome.

“Our ambition was and is to

create a lipstick that offers the

most extraordinary make-up

results... without any

microplastic, preservative,

paraffin, parabens, animal

fat or beeswax.”

While there are plenty of

make-up lovers motivated by

value, often the purchase isa

willing embrace of the luxury

fantasy. It’s like when you know

aHollywood romcom is usinga

tried-and-testedformula to tug

at yourheartstrings,but you are

enjoyingit too muchto care.

“Lipstick has the benefit of

offeringinstantgratification,”

says Mia Collins, head ofbeauty

at Harrods, whichwillstockthe

Hermèslipsticks.

There’s also somethingdeeply

ritualistic about its application:

time seems to briefly stand still,

waiting as you sweep the colour

across your mouth.

And, ofcourse, it’sa

status symbol. “Your lip colour is

likelythemake-up you top up

most,”says Collins.“So the little

bullet you’re constantly pulling

out ofyour bagrepresentsa

perfect opportunity to make a

statementandturnadrab task

into a consideredgesture.”

For brands, it’s the perfect

opportunity toget up close and

personalwithconsumers.

decades-long and exacting obsession

withmovement. EachGaga teacher

undergoes intensive training that

includes daily classes with Naharin.

They emerge equipped with a lexicon of

instruction—suchas thecommandto

move like“spaghetti in boiling water”or

to soften the hand, gently closingfingers

inward in an imitation of a “baby palm”.

There is a liberating unorthodoxy

to the practice, whichdiscardsthe

achievement-based, appearance-

focused dictates ofmany traditional

dance genres infavour ofa more inter-

nal, unselfconscious experience.

There’s a reason that mirrors are

banned — ifyou could see yourself

writhing around like spaghetti, you

mightfeel too silly to continue.

“Being playful and letting go, not tak-

ing myself too seriously but taking what

I do seriously — all these things are giv-

ing me cause to live a better life,”says

Harari as we sip coffee after class. A

dancer since childhood, Harari shifted

gears when he spent six years servingin

the Israelimilitary. He met Naharin

when thechoreographer wasbeginning

to test out Gagaonasmall group that

met twice a week. After relocatingto

New Yorkwithhis owndance company,

LeeSaar The Company,heheadedup

How luxe can

a lipstick be?

Carola Long

Beauty

Simone Rocha; Dilara Findikoglu; Richard Quinn— Jason Lloyd-Evans

The hood took three

days to sew, used

611,000 pearls, and

took 15 people to create

‘It’s about letting go’

Mirrors are banned — if you

see yourself writhing like

spaghetti, you might feel

too silly to continue

‘After a class,

I think people

always feel more

alive,’ says

Gaga’s artistic

director Saar

Harari— Ascaf

ti

w

a

Chaloner Woods

photo, 1955— Getty Images

In Gaga classes, devised by choreographer Ohad Naharin, participants are encouraged to move freely and expressively— Ascaf