In Fine Fashion

To me, New York has always been a gleaming beacon of what is chic. It is where I was born, where I live and where, I imagine, I will always call home. New York is beautiful, but moreover, it is a city where people fantasize about what they want and actually fi gure out how to get it.

Though my first true love was fashion, I’ve always dreamed about being an editor in chief. Thus, it is perfectly fitting that I embark on this new journey at Gotham starting with our annual Spring Fashion issue.

After working for Anna Wintour at Vogue and Oprah Winfrey at her namesake magazine, I joined Niche Media in 2004 as Fashion Director, overseeing our multitude of magazines, from Gotham on the East Coast to Los Angeles Confidential on the West. With an extraordinarily talented team, I was able to grow our fashion department and help launch several new titles. To that end, I was utterly flattered to have been asked to take on this new role as editor in chief and truly value the internal support throughout.

Enough about me; here’s a snapshot of the March issue…. Manhattan native Alicia Keys graces our cover in colorful spring fashions. The superbly talented singer, songwriter and pianist’s personality is as lovely as her voice.

Precocious and precious New Yorker Abigail Breslin talks about opening in The Miracle Worker on Broadway; we discover what all that buzz surrounding Prabal Gurung is about; and West Village resident Andy Cohen gives a “mazel” to what he deems fashionable.

We are perfectly charmed by the Meatpacking District’s private club The Norwood, where we photographed a bevy of stylish city dwellers such as Jessica Szohr, Dani Stahl, Harley Viera-Newton and the Richards sisters.

From humble to haute, we discovered New York nooks in which to have the perfect glass of wine; explored the very essence of fashion with some serious New York street style; and uncovered various chefs who will no doubt impact the culinary landscape of your neighborhood.

Those who know me well know that one of my favorite things to do is bring a wide variety of people together to create dialogue, support great talent and introduce assorted characters to one another. With that goal in mind, designer Michael Kors interviews Stephanie Winston Wolkoff on her recent appointment as Lincoln Center’s director of fashion, model Jessica Stam asks friend and designer Chrissie Miller about her 10 favorite things and fashion-industry “insider” Robert Burke has a conversation with author and art advisor Sharon Coplan Hurowitz about their CounterpART project.

I thought this was a fabulous way to kick off my tenure and give just a taste of the city I love.

SAMANTHA YANKS

PHOTOGRAPH BY BELL SOTO