This season, V rounds up the buzziest books, gallery must-sees, and cultural moments making waves—from Paul McCartney’s unseen Beatles-era photos to Tommy Dorfman’s Tarot-fueled memoir, Amos Badertscher’s raw portraits of Baltimore’s queer underground, Bella Freud’s fashion podcast, and Dolce&Gabbana’s sun-soaked Light Blue revival.

PHOTOGRAPHER AMOS BADERTSCHER’S NEW BOOK DOCUMENTS AMERICAN QUEER UNDERWORLD FROM ’60S TO 2000S

The seedy and the salacious are brought to life in photographer Amos Badertscher’s (1936–2023) new book Images and Stories documenting the spectacle of Baltimore’s queer underground. Spanning the pre-Stonewall era to the throes of the AIDS epidemic, thousands of photographs divulge a subterranean universe of fervent ecstasy reckoning with an increasingly perilous force. Drag queens, sex workers, club kids, and hustlers emerge as primary subjects, the intimacies of their private life unraveling in front of an unflinching lens, and as Badertscher’s uncensored narrative on LGBTQ+ history unfolds, the psyche and spirit of a queer population endures lust, loss, and every lascivious lark in between.

Divided into three sections—‘Visage’ stars a collection of portraits, ‘Nightlife’ revels in the clubs and bars of Baltimore, and ‘Mirrors’ situates Badertscher’s own gaze in relation to his subjects—the book is interspersed with a collection of cerebral essays from leading queer-art historians examining how Badertscher’s work converges with race, class, sexuality, and the ever-shifting tenets of queer art. As the volume progresses, a selection of Badertscher’s notes indicate his affinity towards the city’s queer population, positioning the self-taught photographer as a documentarian chronicling an honest (and decidedly unseen) history of one of Baltimore’s oft-forgotten communities.

TOMMY DORFMAN BEARS HER SOUL IN DEBUT MEMOIR ‘MAYBE THIS WILL SAVE ME‘

Tommy Dorfman’s debut memoir is no fairytale. There’s no knight in shining armor saving Dorfman in distress, and there is certainly no villain as explicit as the malevolent Evil Queen. But there is some magic. Charmingly crafted and refreshingly original, the actor, writer, and advocate’s latest project is structured around a mystifying twist of fate and a touch of enchantment. Organized through a series of revelations from a single Tarot card reading, the memoir opens with Dorfman’s unflinching take on her troubled adolescence, before chronicling the joys and sorrows of her creative career, from her early struggles in theater (Dorfman recently made her Broadway debut, starring in Romeo and Juliet as the Nurse and Tybalt) to her breakout role in 13 Reasons Why.

The youngest of five children, Dorfman’s early life was steeped in decades of dysphoria. As clarity around her gender finally started to materialize and Dorfman had begun transitioning, she found that integral parts of her remained behind a mental deadbolt. Elements of her story were fastidiously locked away, and Dorfman was grasping for the key. Here’s where the magic comes in. Seeking guidance in a Tarot deck, the 32-year-old actress planned to utilize the cards as a tool to try to make some sense of her life up until then. Maybe This Will Save Me is guided by that force.

SOFIA COPPOLA & CORINNE DAY’S NEW BOOK PAYS TRIBUTE TO ‘THE VIRGIN SUICIDES‘

While filming The Virgin Suicides, the cult adaptation of Jeffrey Eugenides’s 1993 novel, director Sofia Coppola commissioned British photographer Corinne Day (1965–2010) to document the film’s creation. Through Day’s collection of intimate photos, a suburban universe constructed out of cultist cul-de-sacs and fledgling femininity unfurled. Stripped-down negatives and somber grunge distinguish Day’s M.O., and within the snapshots of dignified suburbia and brooding blondes, Day relays an empathetic tale of a brutal ascension into womanhood.

In the upcoming book, launching alongside the film’s 25th anniversary, Day portrays a mesmerizing exploit of world-building and costume design. Her clever curation of seemingly innocent moments and suggestively abandoned props hints at the yearning and the regrettable repression of a budding adolescence. The book’s selection, edited by Coppola from the original negatives held in Day’s collection, captures the young actors at work and in between takes, immortalizing glimpses of candid posture and wistful expression. At the hand of Day’s seasoned pictorial edge, the Lisbon sisters are eternally preserved, sitting crestfallen in rooms scattered with crucifixes and lipsticks.

BELLA FREUD’S “FASHION NEUROSIS” PODCAST IS THE ONE TO HEAR THIS SEASON

Each week, Bella Freud invites a special guest to lie on her couch and talk—not in the armchair therapy sense (although the show’s relaxed intimacy certainly encourages a kind of Freudian free speech), but more like hanging out with friends. A couple hundred conversations later, and you don’t even need to be face-to-face to remember what they look like. In the company of guests ranging from fashion icons (yes, Kate Moss makes an appearance) to prominent figures in art, music, sports, and literature, the renowned fashion designer’s latest podcast explores the connection between fashion, identity, and everything in between.

Engaging and thoughtful, Freud’s Fashion Neurosis podcast considers the unspoken language of clothing—analyzing its mechanisms with Rick Owens and exploring its endless nuances alongside Courteney Cox. The conversations begin with questions every fashion lover wants to ask—“Who are you wearing?” and “Why?”—as well as personal anecdotes and clever demonstrations of unprecedented colloquialism, before diving into deeper discussion of humanity’s universal themes. Within casual conversation, critical perspectives on culture emerge, and in the throes of playful pleasantries, political dialogues take shape. Love and identity are pondered and probed as fashion becomes the lens through which listeners navigate the world.

LOUIS VUITTON ANNOUNCES THE UPCOMING DEBUT OF LA BEAUTÉ LOUIS VUITTON WITH PAT MCGRATH

Louis Vuitton’s history in the realm of travel dates back to the 1920s, when the Maison started designing powder compacts, brushes, and mirrors along with a selection of innovative vanity cases. Even the first Louis Vuitton handbags were conceived to carry daily essentials, most notably cosmetics and perfumes—something today’s micrototes and miniature purses are doing less and less of. Buried in the Louis Vuitton archive are two pieces of preserved designer history: Le Milano, a bespoke makeup kit made for soprano Marthe Chenal, and a toiletry case created for Polish composer Jan Paderewski. Both artifacts foreshadow the Maison’s enduring commitment to jet-setting codes and the lust for life behind them.

Nearly one hundred years later, Louis Vuitton announces the launch of La Beauté Louis Vuitton, an expansion of its immortal vision rooted in the spirit of travel. The Maison, which will debut the line in autumn later this year, is placing world-renowned British makeup artist, Pat McGrath, at the helm of the project, appointing her Creative Director of Cosmetics. Having collaborated with numerous designers and fashion houses (including Louis Vuitton), and having launched her own eponymous brand, the makeup artist is poised to help usher in a lifestyle beauty experience steeped in luxury and expertise.

PAUL MCCARTNEY EXHIBITS PHOTOGRAPHS TAKEN DURING THE RISE OF BEATLEMANIA AT GAGOSIAN BEVERLY HILLS

In the early 1960s, the world was afflicted with a global phenomenon of unprecedented proportions. Thousands went delirious, and millions more were infected. Beatlemania was sweeping across the globe, vanquishing any semblance of a once-prevalent self-control, and as pandemonium ensued, all anyone wanted was to be in the room with the hallowed Beatles. Well, someone certainly was. Singer-songwriter Paul McCartney had infiltrated every girl’s heart, and his college-boy cut sparked a wave of copycat hairstyles amongst the guys wishing to acquire even a tenth of McCartney’s amorous acumen. The irresistibly charismatic star also happened to be quite the shutterbug, and Gagosian’s newest exhibition is set to host a selection of recently discovered photographs captured by McCartney himself.

The gallery’s Beverly Hills location will feature six works composed of images taken between 1963 and 64, offering viewers a penetrating glance into the development of the era’s musical zeitgeist. McCartney has provided the exhibit with a selection of rare and signed photographs pulled from his own personal archive, images of never-before-seen moments from the Beatles during their first U.S. visit. A combination of black-and-white and color prints, including self-portraits, provides candid vignettes of bandmates à la Macca, with the exhibition—as a whole—presenting a visual record of a Beatles-induced psychosis that gripped an entire planet.

PAUL MCCARTNEY is on view until June 21, 2025.

DOLCE&GABBANA BEAUTY RELAUNCHES ‘LIGHT BLUE’ FRAGRANCE FOR ITS 25TH ANNIVERSARY

Spritzes on the beach and olive trees in reach—the bucolic coastline of Capri is a summertime reverie we can’t all see. But don’t fret, V reader, your Federico Fellini film fantasies aren’t entirely lost. Dolce&Gabbana’s ‘Light Blue’ fragrance revival is a portal to that cinematic Italian universe of lemons and lovers, blending the glorious simplicity of la dolce vita with a newfangled sense of luxury.

The renewed fragrance icons, the Light Blue Eau de Toilette and Light Blue Pour Homme Eau de Toilette, now offer a more potent aroma, the scent lasting for up to sixteen hours and redesigned as a frosted bottle with a light blue glazed cap inspired by the vibrant shades of Capri’s traditional majolica tiles. Since its debut in 2001, the woody fruity fragrance has transported the sun-soaked spells of Capri as far as the coldest corners of the world. Top notes of zesty lemon and granny smith apple are softened by delicate floral bouquets, and woody notes of cedarwood trap the Mediterranean essence in a distinctly dazzling bottle.

Joining the Light Blue family are two new, and permanent, additions. Light Blue Capri in Love Eau de Parfum opens with a calming touch of jasmine, while Light Blue Capri in Love Pour Homme Eau de Parfum introduces the subtle heat of spicy black pepper balanced with delicate notes of Capri fig bush and patchouli. The Italian seaside awaits… get to spritzing.

PRADA AOYAMA TOKYO DEBUTS “SATELLITES” EXHIBITION BY NICOLAS WINDING REFN WITH HIDEO KOJIMA

In a series of gutted television sets, Danish filmmaker Nicolas Winding Refn and Japanese game creator Hideo Kojima confer. Framed by snaking wires and circuit boards, Refn and Kojima are suspended in conversation, their dialogue morphing into a sweeping discourse articulated in each talent’s native tongue. This spectacle is the focus of the new exhibition, “Satellites,” debuting at the Prada Aoyama in Tokyo this April. The stunning six-story building, designed by Herzog & de Meuron, will host the creative collaboration between Refn and Kojima as they explore an emerging digital landscape unified by the transcendental capabilities of modern technology.

The exhibit begins on the fifth floor of Prada Aoyama, as visitors enter a mid-century one-bedroom apartment, where everyday objects—a couch, bed, lamp, telephone—evoke a bygone era meticulously preserved. Within this feigned alternate dimension, six televisions sit. While a grainy Refn deliberates topics such as friendship, technology, and death in English, Kojima tackles identity, creativity, and communication in Japanese. In a nearby dressing room, a cassette player and stacks of tapes blend cinema soundtracks with AI-generated translations of their discussion, hinting at a future common territory made possible by technology’s expanding role.

With “Satellites,” Refn and Kojima find common ground in their shared thought processes, ones they have cultivated for decades in their respective fields of film and video game, demonstrating how both industries not only have the potential to overlap, but to merge towards a shared digital dimension. Through the use of technology, two previously distant entities are suddenly interconnected. Their paths are in orbit, and they don’t touch just yet, but the paving of a middle ground is already under way.

This story appears in the pages of V154 Summer 2025: now available for purchase!