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  Robert de Montesquieu, Joseph Beuys and Helmut Berger
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  Ekaterina, by Owens, 2006

Fashion, it seems, is getting nicer by the minute. After Alber Elbaz's politely deferential explanation of the lateness of the Lanvin show, today Rick Owens sent a handwritten note of apology for the problems experienced at the door to his Paris show. Unexpected but more than welcome as Rick's note was, it didn't arrive alone: Owens also sent a copy of his book L'Ai-Je Bien Descendu? - a quote from Parisian showgirl Cécile Sorel, roughly translated as "How did you like my descent?" - marking ten years of his fashion work. This tome, as beautiful as it is weighty, is crammed with photographs in ever-stylish black and white from the likes of Edward Steichen, Corrine Day and Annie Leibovitz alongside those snapped by the designer himself, both documenting and inspiring Owen's individualistic ouvre: definitely worth sharing with the SHOWstudio public, I reasoned.