SoHo’s Melissa turns to
Instagram influencer
to create unique
Valentine’s display
BY BOB KRASNER
Art and commerce have become
more and more entwined over the
years, frequently resulting in the
creative participants bending to the will
of capitalism. But this SoHo shop upends
that formula.
Let’s welcome the collaborative spirit of
Melissa, a brand that makes hip shoes out
of a proprietary material that is recyclable
and shares its space at 500 Broadway with
artists who are given free reign to share
their vision.
“Before COVID, we had art shows in the
store,” explains Camilla Barreto Adao, the
assistant creative director at Melissa. “Now
we are using the window space, so that
people can enjoy the art from the street.”
For their second installation (the fi rst
was by Pedro Silva), Melissa reached out to
Stella Rose Saint Clair — one of the many
social media “infl uencers” you may have
heard about — to create a Valentine’s Day
pop up and window display.
“Stella has a very cool style,” notes
Melissa’s Creative Manager Helena Sasseron.
“She’s very creative, with a lot of
personality. She’s a perfect ambassador for
the brand.”
“I’ve been wearing their shoes for over
ten years,” Saint Clair adds. “It’s a real treat
when a brand you know and love wants to
work with you.”
The fi rst step was to create some exclusive
items for the store to sell during her
residency, but Saint Clair was hesitant
about embracing the obvious.
“Making masks felt cliche,” she explains.
“Everyone was doing it. But eventually I
Kirsten Bode, Helena Sasseron and Stella Rose Saint Clair in front of Stella’s
pop-up section of thhe Melissa Galeria.
Stella Rose Saint Clair and Kirsten Bode, in the entrance to Melissa Galleria,
wearing Stella’s handmade masks and Melissa shoes. Bode’s film of Saint Clair
is seen on the screens.
bit the bullet and designed a heart shaped
mask out of recycled fabric, with colors
inspired by the store’s palette.”
After also creating hair poms, pussy
bows (yes, that’s actually what they are
called) and t-shirts that she silk screened
by hand, it was time to generate the video
for the window display.
When you’re a Renaissance woman
— Saint Clair can claim clothing design,
illustration, graphic design, model, singer
and actress on her resume — it makes
sense to turn to an equally talented collaborator.
Her friend Kirsten Bode, whose
credits include photographer, hair stylist,
make-up artist, model, fi lmmaker, actress
and painter, was the perfect choice.
“I needed someone who could shoot
something compelling, something stunning,”
Saint Clair notes. “And fun! Everything
I do, I want it to be fun.”
“We defi nitely had fun!” concurs Bode.
“Stella had done a mood board with colors,
tinsel and smoke,” she recalls. “We wanted
the video to look big and glamorous,
dreamy and psychedelic. Stella’s aesthetic
was the theme.”
The shoot took about eight hours, with
just two other friends in the crew. Bode did
the edit, sent it to Melissa and waited for
their critique — but it never came.
“We approved the fi lm with no changes,”
confi rms Adao. “It’s amazing, we love it !”
she adds. “And we’ve been getting a great
response from our customers.”
Sasseron notes that when she goes out
PHOTOS BY BOB KRASNER
for lunch, she has to get past the selfi e
photo shoots to leave the shop.
Saint Clair, having modeled since she
was discovered in a coffee shop and tapped
to appear in a Lanvin ad campaign in 2012,
became her own muse as the subject of
Bode’s camera.
“We’ve been missing collaborating with
our creative friends,” she refl ects. “Now
you need a good reason to get together
and make art.”
“It was a pleasant surprise how beautiful
it came out,” gushes Bode, adding, “It was
the easiest thing I’ve ever done. They said,
do whatever you want and we’ll put it in
the window.”
Her early infl uences include hanging out
on movie sets as a kid with her father, who
was a special effects and scenic painter for
fi lms such as Hook and some Star Trek
fl icks.
“This project has made me get more serious
about doing fi lms,” Bode says.
Saint Clair’s two-tone heart shaped
masks will only be available at the store,
until the day after Valentine’s Day.
“It’s a hogwash corporate holiday, but it’s
still fun!” opines Saint Clair. “And how odd
it is to be celebrating closeness when we
have to keep apart. That’s why the theme of
the pop-up is ‘Tainted Love.’ It’s a COVID
valentine.”
The Saint Clair/ Bode window installation
and pop-up shop runs through Feb.
15 at the Melissa Galeria, 500 Broadway.
For more info on Instagram and online,
visit Saint Clair’s Instagram @itsstellarose
and itsstellarose.com; Bode at @
koko_bode_photo_ and kokobodephoto.
com; and Melissa @melissaoffi cial and
shopmelissa.com.
Filmmaker Kirsten Bode switches to
model mode at the front door of Melissa
Galeria.
Schneps Media February 11, 2021 15
/itsstellarose.com
/shopmelissa.com
