Review of Lafayette 148 Fall 2024 Ad Campaign by Creative Director Emily Smith and Photographer Amit Israeli with models Conie Vallese, Mathilde Brandi, Liisa Winkler, and Isha Senghor
Lafayette 148 explores an architectural legacy and an iconic art-collecting practice with its Fall 2024 campaign, shot by photographer Amit Israeli.
The brand’s latest collection draws inspiration from a lesser-known treasure – the Rockefeller Guest House. Tucked away on Manhattan’s 52nd Street, this landmark was designed by Philip C. Johnson for Blanchette Rockefeller, an art patron and collector. The collection channels the quiet elegance and artistry of this private residence, nodding to the sophisticated simplicity of mid-century design and the persona of the art collector.
“I’ve walked by the Rockefeller Guest House countless times over the years,’ says Lafayette 148 Creative Director Emily Smith. ‘But it wasn’t until recently that I discovered its rich artistic history as a residence commissioned by Blanchette Rockefeller, who sought a space to showcase pieces from her collection and entertain friends from the creative fields. From ’50s-inflected silhouettes recalling Blanchette’s MoMA tenure to richly textured fabrics evoking the Guest House’s wooden furnishings and private courtyard, Fall 2024 acts as an homage to timeless yet modern style.”
Captured both on the streets of Manhattan and in the mid-mod sanctuary that is the Guest House, the campaign brings the collection back to its point of departure. Framed by backdrops of art and architecture, Amit Israeli’s portraits see their subjects as inheritors of this legacy of a powerful, graceful woman who exists at the focal point of a creative universe.
Lafayette 148 Creative Director | Emily Smith
Photographer | Amit Israeli
Videographer | Robert Nethery
Models | Conie Vallese, Mathilde Brandi, Liisa Winkler, and Isha Senghor