Latest news with #Antwerp
Vogue
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Vogue
Milk of Lime Berlin Spring 2026 Collection
Towards the end of Milk of Lime's strong and accomplished show, a look came out worn by a male model—Milk of Lime does both womenswear and menswear—comprised of a black tee whose cap sleeves were edged in a fabric version of barbed wire, and a pair of slouchy black pants, long ribbon ties trailing in their wake; it was both effortless and ineffably cool. Yet what really made it stand out: Emblazoned across the tee was the legend, I Demand Poetry. 'We need poetry back in fashion, because it has been forgotten lately,' said Nico Verhaegen, who along with partner Julia Ballardt makes Milk of Lime. 'We find there's so much diva-ism, and so much irony, when what's really needed in our industry right now is honesty. Irony,' he went on to add, 'is over.' Verhaegan (he's Belgian) and Ballardt (she's German) first met when they were studying at the Royal Academy in Antwerp, and there was definitely something of that city's raw and dissolute Flemish romanticism in this collection, particularly that of the '90s persuasion. Milk of Lime's third outing—made all the more impressive given Verhaegen and Ballardt's relatively tender years—focused on a sinuous silhouette of jacket, billowing shirt, long skirt, and soft, wide pants, which embraced both construction and deconstruction, and it was one blessed with a wistful, almost melancholic charm. The collection was built around a multitude of those jackets of theirs, shaped close to the body, with defined shoulders. Some were crumpled, some frayed, some pieced together, as if they'd been constructed then reconstructed. (I really liked those which had rows of buttons running from the cuffs to the elbows.) 'The refined roughness is a big part of the poetry,' said Verhaegen. 'A blazer might be perfectly finished but we've cut it off, cut it open, cut it back together again. The cut of the jackets is the same, but every one is different because of the materials we've used.' Many of those fabrics, incidentally, are from deadstock supplies, and the new life Milk of Lime brings to them can involve layering them one on top of the other, like building up a series of veils; it was particularly evocative when used for their trailing paneled skirts, putting lace with chiffon with a silk and linen jacquard. Their color palette was mostly black in all its myriad variety, mixed with what Ballardt called, 'non-colors…they have an indefinable quality to them. We had this idea of a layer of mist over them.'
Forbes
2 days ago
- Sport
- Forbes
Four Members Of 2024 U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Team To Compete At U.S. Classic
ANTWERP, BELGIUM - OCTOBER 04: Gold medalists of Team United States celebrate winning the Women's ... More Team Final on Day Five of the 2023 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships on October 04, 2023 in Antwerp, Belgium. (Photo by) The push for the 2025 World Championships in Jakarta is fully underway. Held just outside Chicago, the 2025 U.S. Classic will serve as a key qualifying event and stepping stone for August's U.S. Championships in New Orleans. In a social media post released on June 30, USA Gymnastics confirmed its initial entrants for the 2025 U.S. Classic, set for July 18-19 in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. The list included 35 senior and 38 junior women's athletes. USA Gymnastics vows to provide updated registrant lists 'every Monday' leading up to the event. Past winners of the U.S. Classic include Simone Biles, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas, and Shawn Johnson. In 2024, Simone Biles claimed the title over six-time World medalist Shilese Jones and two-time Olympian Jordan Chiles. Olympic Names In Illinois Among those registered were 2024 Olympic team champion Hezly Rivera and 2024 Olympic alternates and World team champions Leanne Wong and Joscelyn Roberson. Tiana Sumanasekera, also a 2024 Olympic alternate, will continue her push for Jakarta at the U.S. Classic. Rivera made her return to the elite stage already in 2025, helping Team USA to gold at the 2025 Pan American Championships. Though Rivera showed inconsistencies while on the mat in Panama, she claimed two bronze medals to go with her team gold. Wong and Roberson both return to the elite ranks after completing collegiate seasons. 21-year-old Wong wrapped her final season with the Florida Gators, finishing a decorated career with seven NCAA top-three finishes and nine perfect scores. Known for her longevity in the sport, Wong's appearance kickstarts an impressive seventh year as a senior elite on the U.S. National Team. While with Team USA, Wong has collected four World medals, including two team titles and individual medals in the all-around and on floor exercise. MINNEAPOLIS, UNITED STATES - JUNE 30: Leanne Wong competes on the beam during the women's U.S. ... More Olympic Gymnastics Trials on June 30, 2024, in Minneapolis. (Photo by Nikolas Liepins/Anadolu via Getty Images) While Wong completed her collegiate career in 2025, Roberson's has just begun. The Arkansas Razorback delivered a record-breaking season for her program that ended with an individual berth at NCAA Nationals – the program's first for a freshman athlete in nearly a decade. The All-American gymnast set numerous Arkansas scoring records in her first season, tallying personal highs of 9.9 or better on all four events. Her performances earned Roberson all-SEC honors on every event but uneven bars. Highly regarded for her power and high difficulty, Roberson was a breakout star during the 2023 and 2024 elite seasons. In 2023, her performances powered her to the World Championships, where she ultimately withdrew from competition due to an untimely ankle injury. In 2025, she looks for more individual success. Sumanasekera was also part of the gold medal-winning team at the 2025 Pan American Championships, but the Olympic alternate could not contribute fully due to an injury incurred onsite. Known for her stellar beam work and artistry on floor exercise, fans hope to see the UCLA commit appear on more events in Illinois. Noteworthy Newcomers One of the biggest challengers for the title is not one of the four Olympians. In early June, 17-year-old Jayla Hang put the gymnastics world on notice with a dominant performance at the Pan American Championships. Hang claimed gold in the all-around in Panama and managed to clinch medals on all four events. Along with the team gold, Hang's hardware haul measured at six, the most of any female gymnast. HARTFORD, CT - MAY 18: Jayla Hang competes on the balance beam during the 2024 Core Hydration ... More Classic on May 18, 2024, at the XL Center in Hartford, CT. (Photo by M. Anthony Nesmith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) Perhaps more impressively, Hang's all-around score marked the highest total at a continental championships in 2025. With her performances in Panama, the Florida gymnastics commit added her name to the list of top American contenders for the 2025 World Championships. Another rising star is Claire Pease, the 2024 Junior U.S. National Champion and club teammate of Hezly Rivera. In 2024, Pease completed an undefeated domestic season, winning all-around gold at the junior editions of Winter Cup, U.S. Classic, and the U.S. National Championship. Pease has already collected medals in 2025, winning gold on balance beam at the Winter Cup and again at the Antalya World Cup. At the 2025 City of Jesolo Trophy, Pease finished second in the all-around behind two-time Olympic medalist Manila Esposito (ITA). In her first season as a senior elite gymnast, Pease looks to fight her way onto national and international podiums. UCLA Gymnastics commit Ashlee Sullivan also made headlines in 2025. Sullivan impressed fans and judges at the Winter Cup, where she claimed gold in the all-around, silver on floor, and bronze on balance beam. With steady gymnastics reminiscent of Aly Raisman's, Sullivan has already delivered internationally. In April, she competed at the City of Jesolo Trophy where she helped Team USA to silver and claimed bronze in the all-around, vault, and beam. Fan favorite and Olympic trials competitor Simone Rose will also appear at U.S. Classic. Rose competed alongside Sullivan and Pease in Italy, where she claimed gold on the uneven bars. Surprise star Gabrielle Hardie also makes her return after a stellar senior international debut at the Pan American Championships. The dark horse claimed gold on uneven bars and bronze on floor exercise in Panama.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Meryll Rogge Wins 2025 ANDAM Fashion Award
PARIS — Meryll Rogge scooped the Grand Prize of the 2025 ANDAM Fashion Award, whose jury of the year was all about the French touch. A 2008 graduate of Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts who dreamed of being an illustrator as a child, she swapped paint for textile swatches when moving to New York. After working her way up to lead designer at Marc Jacobs over seven years, she was back in Antwerp working for Dries Van Noten as head of women's design in 2014 before going solo in 2020. More from WWD Stephane Ashpool Opens Souvenir Pigalle Store Sarah Paulson Talks Working With Kim Kardashian at Ami Paris Show EXCLUSIVE: Willy Chavarria Among Finalists for 2025 ANDAM Fashion Awards The Ghent, Belgium-born designer shows her women's collections in Paris. Several of her pieces have been acquired recently by the MoMu Antwerp museum and Brussels' Fashion & Lace Museum and last year, she became the first woman to be named designer of the year at the 2024 Belgian Fashion Awards. View Gallery She beat out fellow finalists Willy Chavarria, Alain Paul, Zomer and EgonLab. In addition to the cash award of 300,000 euros, she will be mentored by 36th jury president Sidney Toledano, an adviser to LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton chairman and CEO Bernard Arnault, as well as president of the Institut Français de la Mode fashion school. Taking home the runner-up Special Prize, its 100,000-euro purse and a year's worth of mentoring by Toledano is Alain Paul, who parlayed a 10-year career working for the likes of Vetements and Louis Vuitton into his eponymous Alainpaul brand in 2023. The Pierre Bergé Prize and its 100,000-euro purse went to Burç Akyol, whose eponymous genderless label marries sexiness with austerity — and flawless tailoring. He will be mentored by Alexandre Mattiuissi, the founder and artistic director of Ami who scooped up the grand prize in 2013. The brand came on board as a sponsor of the design competition with this edition. Also in the running in this category dedicated to emerging creative labels were Jeanne Friot and Mouty by couple Bertille and Thomas Mouty. Belgian designer Sarah Lévy of Sarahlevy beat out footwear designer Philéo Landowski and jeweler Marco Panconesi to win the 2025 accessories prize, which comes with 100,000 euros and purse and mentoring by Sophie Delafontaine, creative director of Longchamp. This year, the innovation prize was awarded separately in May and went to Losanje, a fashion tech company based in the central French city of Nevers that is helping brands implement the use of circular textiles. The edition's jury included 11 guest members, including Pascal Morand, executive president of the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, Sarah Andelman and fashion documentary director Loïc Prigent. Joining them were multihyphenate actress and author Lou Doillon; Lucky Love, the singer who performed at the opening ceremony for the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games; musical artist Eddy de Pretto; art gallery founder Emmanuel Perrotin, and model, actress and entrepreneur Liya Kebede. Rounding out the 2025 group sitting alongside permanent members, who are mainly executives drawn from sponsors, were creative consultant Carlos Nazario; writer and fashion critic Sophie Fontanel, and Beka Gvishiani, who's behind the Stylenotcom Instagram account. Created in 1989 by Nathalie Dufour with the support of the French Ministry of Culture and the DEFI, a body that promotes the development of the French fashion industry, and with the late Pierre Bergé as president, ANDAM has been a springboard for designers who would go on to achieve international recognition. In October, a retrospective at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs gave an overview of the ANDAM's 35-year run, featuring works by winners across fashion and accessories including Viktor & Rolf, Jeremy Scott, Marine Serre, Y/Project, Christopher Esber and Ukrainian milliner Ruslan Baginskiy. Best of WWD Bottega Veneta Through the Years Chanel's Ambassadors Over The Years Ranking Fashion's Longest-serving Creative Directors
Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
AI-generated ‘experts' writing for online magazines
Belgian editions of Elle, Marie Claire and other women's magazines are claimed to have been using artificial intelligence to write hundreds of online articles under the names of fake journalists, complete with photographs and profiles. 'Sophie Vermeulen', who has written an impressive 403 articles for Elle online this year, was, according to a profile complete with photograph, 'always ready to inspire you with fascinating stories or practical tips. Her passion for fashion and beauty is complemented by a love of travel and literature. Offline, you can spot her on a long walk in nature'. Her equally personable colleague 'Marta Peeters' was presented as a 'fashion and lifestyle journalist from Antwerp with a passion for stories that touch people', and has written 150 stories this year. 'She has a background in communication sciences and an inexhaustible curiosity about everything related to femininity, creativity and culture,' the profile said. • ChatGPT blocks Iranian network pushing Scottish independence Over on the Belgian Marie Claire website, owned by the same publisher, Ventures Media, almost half the online articles are by 'Claire De Wilde', who has 'developed a passion for travel, beauty and wellbeing'. None of the writers actually exist. Their photographs and articles are creations of AI, although the artificial journalists appear only online and not in the print editions. Perhaps more seriously, the online site of the magazine Psychologies, a publication dedicated to women's 'personal development and wellbeing', published the work of 'Femke'. Described as 'an editor specialising in psychology and well-being', the AI expert wrote articles describing herself as an 'experienced psychologist'. In the real world, the Commission of Psychologists, the ethics watchdog for the profession in Belgium, is up in arms. 'The example of Femke, who presents herself as a psychologist under a journalistic profile and provides advice from that role, is not only misleading but also legally and socially unacceptable,' Carl Defreyne, the commission's chairman, said. Confronted by the Belgian public broadcaster VRT, the publisher has removed the fake names and profiles with articles now bylined 'Elle Belgium' or with a disclaimer that 'content was generated using AI and then reviewed and modified by our editorial team'. 'We understand that the use of aliases can lead to confusion and that is why we have now also adjusted this practice to make it clearer,' the publisher said. 'We generate articles that are entirely created by AI and have not been editorially reviewed. Aliases have been used within the framework of the test. It remains limited and is separate from the editorial team.' The magazines are published as the Belgian version of the brand franchises. In Britain, Elle is published by a different company Hearst Magazines and Marie Claire is produced by Future Plc. There is no suggestion that either company uses AI. The Dutch Elle is also published by Hearst. Gigi van der Zwaan, the company's digital editor in the Netherlands told the Dutch broadcaster NOS: 'They have very strict rules when it comes to AI. We are only allowed to use it to translate a word.' • Danish citizens to 'own their own faces' to prevent deepfakes Hearst publishes the US, Spanish and Italian editions of Elle and does not use machine or AI translation for shared content. Publishers of the British editions of Elle and of Marie Clare have been approached for comment.
The Herald Scotland
3 days ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Antwerp boss' vow over Celtic target Michel-Ange Balikwisha
Reports in Belgium had suggested Antwerp were willing to lower their asking price for the 24-year-old to £4.6 million as they are in need of the funds. But new manager Wils has appeared to suggest he is keen to keep the player as part of his squad. He told Belgian media: 'Of course I want to keep him. I also think that it can work.' Read more: Queen's Park vs Celtic: TV channel, live stream & kick-off time John Kennedy reflects on Celtic's 2024/25 season in rare interview appearance CEO Sven Jaecques previously admitted they did need funds but would not be sanctioning an exodus. He told HLN: "Marc (Overmars, director of football) and the scouting are working very hard to put together a competitive core. "It is a fact that the departures are needed and has an impact on the group. We have to deal with that. This is an opportunity for other guys to stand up. 'But we are not going to allow an exodus."
