Lepore And LaChapelle Make Mark On Martin Place

Local News, By Christian Taylor, 11th March, 2008

If you’re curious about the three metre high shopping bags that were installed in Martin Place this morning, wonder no longer.

They’re in Sydney courtesy of Montblanc. This company, renowned internationally for their writing instruments, as well as their watches, jewellery and leather products, commissioned six contemporary artists and photographers to create a unique art installation.

The artists involve include Jean-Marc Bustamante, Sam Taylor-Wood, Sylvie Fleury, Gary Hume, Anne and Patrick Poirier and David LaChapelle.

LaChapelle’s creation is undoubtedly the gayest of them all – this bag bears his striking image of American transgender performer Amanda Lepore, based on the Andy Warhol image of Marilyn Monroe.

Amanda Lepore is a fashion icon, not only in New York city, but on the world stage. Originally from New Jersey, she had her first cosmetic surgery at 15 and had a sex change in her final year of high school. Once a married suburban housewife, she fled her failing marriage for the bright lights and exciting scene of New York, where she met LaChapelle, becoming a muse and model for him. The rest is history.

These bags are well travelled – they’ve already been on show on Paris’ Champs-Élysées and New York’s Rockefeller Centre. If you’re in the city, be sure to check them out.

Photo: Cheetah77

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