ARTRAGEOUS FALL 2007

NEW YORK, NY . . . On September 5, 2007, Bloomingdale's will launch a storewide showcase for contemporary art and creative talent. Evolving for 16 weeks, Art will influence the store's fashion approach to windows, advertising, direct mail pieces, mannequin displays, in-store exhibitions, guest appearances and performances, corporate philanthropy and community involvement from coast to coast.

"We have always had huge recognition of the fact that contemporary art is a vital social force that extends beyond the art world into broader culture, perhaps none more notably than in fashion," said Jack Hruska, Bloomingdale's Executive Vice President of Creative Services. "Artrageous will portray a widely accessible idea of art and acknowledge its very relevant place in the lives of our customers."

Bloomingdale's has begun an extensive collaboration with The New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York's only institution committed to contemporary art by living artists. The museum is generating worldwide interest for its exhibitions, location and architecture of its new building, designed by cutting-edge Tokyo-based architects Sejima + Nishizawa/SANAA, which will open December 1. Bloomingdale's will install "pop-up" shops in its New York City stores to sell products selected from the New Museum's distinctive store. 90% of those sales will benefit the museum. The institution will also benefit from a silent auction of original signed designer sketches, which will be displayed in the 59th Street store.


Art (n); any craft or its principles: Elements of the Campaign

The work of many new and notable visual and performing artists will be incorporated in various elements of the campaign. Among the artists whose work will appear in Bloomingdale's flagship windows are Sydney Albertini, Brandon d'Leo, Cara Earl, Jason Hackenwerth, Michelle Handleman, Ran Hwang, Mika Ninagawa and Jean-Claude Wouters. The art will be shown alongside fashion from Marc Jacobs, Chris Benz, Lyn Devon, Ivana Omazic for Celine, Christopher Bailey for Burberry Prorsum, and others. And in a first time art and fashion collaboration, artist (and father) Stephen Posen's work will appear together with designer (and son) Zac Posen's fashion.

Once inside the store, the impact of art will be immediately conveyed through striking hanging and stand-up banners evoking the colors of Mondrian and main floor ledge treatments of abstract neon light sculptures inspired by minimalist artist Dan Flavin. Plasma screens in YES departments will show a DVD compilation of participating artists, their work and their environments.

Bloomingdale's print advertising and catalogs are canvases for artistic themes and locations. The cover of the 88-page Artrageous catalog features work by Herman Nitsch. Divided into chapters, each section of the book is reflective of, inspired by, or inclusive of art. Photography concepts and sets represent nods to modern art ranging from light installations to over-sized sculptural forms, among them, original balloon sculptures by Jason Hackenwerth. Locations highlight "it" cities for contemporary art from Berlin, Germany to New York's own Williamsburg, Brooklyn as well as art studios and galleries.

The shoot in Berlin contains artwork by Ter Hell and Jan de Mor (from the Lys Wakeman Galerie), and features the studio of Marek Schovanek and the architectural backdrop of the Deutsches Historisches Museum (German Historical Museum) and its dramatic new extension designed by I. M. Pei.

The Williamsburg shoot captures artists Sarah Bereza, Philip Simmons, Jina Valentine and Brandon d'Leo. Images were shot around the neighborhood, in galleries and in d'Leo's studio. Several pieces of art by these artists are featured in the backgrounds.

Appearing throughout the catalog are quotes from famous artists ranging from Ansel Adams to Andrew Wyeth. These inspiring musings on art, life and style will punctuate Bloomingdale's point of view on the season and emphasize important qualities of the featured merchandise - like color or shape.

Mastering the art in Bloomingdale's Best of Men's catalog, are Brandon d'Leo's carefully calculated and mathematically balanced mobiles, which are also on permanent display in Bloomingdale's stores in New York, Chestnut Hill, South Coast Plaza, San Diego, and the new Chevy Chase, MD store, opening September 27.

Art (n); human creativity: Special Events

Bloomingdale's will literally stretch blank canvas at the 59th Street store to launch the campaign on September 5, in partnership with Vanity Fair Magazine and the New Museum. Michael Gould, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Bloomingdale's and Lisa Phillips, Toby Devan Lewis Director, New Museum of Contemporary Art will host the invitation-only reception, which will include cocktails, hors d'oeuvres and a number of static, active and interactive presentations of art and performance, literally providing guests the chance to paint the store red.

Special events throughout the fall season will feature art for all ages. One highlight will include inventive and whimsical children's art in collaboration with the Children's Museum of Manhattan. Bloomingdale's has also invited the Children's Museum of Manhattan and the Children's Museum of the Arts to participate in their 2007 Holiday Windows. Artists and educators from each museum have worked with teams of 9-12 year olds to create paintings, collages and sculptures. The amazing results are the inspiration for Bloomingdale's visual team and will be displayed in Bloomingdale's holiday windows along with life-sized interpretations of the artwork.

Art (n); a making of things that have form or beauty: Exhibitions

More than any other store, Bloomingdale's enjoys a unique legacy with the arts, most distinctively represented through its historic and historical shopping bags. In 1961, the store commissioned artist Jonah Kiningstein to create a special shopping bag for one of its import fairs. The design was daring for its use of color and for flagrantly omitting the store's name, yet it was unmistakably Bloomingdale's. Over the next three decades artists, architects, photographers, graphic designers, and fashion designers created bags for Bloomingdale's and raised the medium to fine art. For the Artrageous celebration, the store has gathered 60 of these landmark shopping bags for exhibitions in seven stores. It includes works by Antonio Lopez, Michael Graves, Franco Moschino, Matthew Rolston and Ettore Sottsass, among others.

Shopping bags will be on display in New York-59th Street; Century City (Los Angeles, CA); Chevy Chase, MD; Chestnut Hill, MA; Michigan Avenue (Chicago, IL); Roosevelt Field, NY and San Francisco, CA stores.

Among the original autographed designer sketches, created for Artrageous by special request, are works by Donna Karan, Diane von Furstenberg, Norma Kamali, Cynthia Rowley, and Francisco Costa. The pieces will be displayed and sold through silent auction in New York benefiting the New Museum of Contemporary Art, while reproductions will be on exhibit in fifteen stores.


Founded in 1977, the New Museum of Contemporary Art is the premier contemporary art museum in New York City and among the most important internationally. The Museum's program of dynamic solo exhibitions and landmark group shows defines key moments in the development of contemporary art, reflects the global nature of art today, and spans a vast array of cultural activities and media. Their magnificent new building, at 235 Bowery, will open on December 1. www.newmuseum.org

Bloomingdale's is America's only nationwide, full-line, upscale department store; and a division of Macy's, Inc. It was founded in 1872 and currently operates 39 stores in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Illinois, Minnesota, Georgia, Florida, Nevada and California; and will open its 40th store in Chevy Chase, Maryland later this year. For more information, or to shop any time, visit www.bloomingdales.com.



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