ARCHITECTS AS NEW STARS

You can't throw a blueprint these days without hitting a starchitect.Brad Pitt's appearance on the January 2009 cover of Architectural Digest marks the latest example of a growing number of stars bringing a celebrity halo to architecture - from a Canadian guitar-hero turned estate home-builder to a fashion giant trying his hand at villa design.Brad Pitt knows the travails of trying to foster socially responsible consumerism. When the actor had to choose a scent for his new line of environmentally friendly body wash for Kiehl's, he ran into a problem: "Not much biodegrades," he said. "There were only three scents to choose from. I chose aloe." It's all part of a zeitgeist in which a tree falling in the forest doesn't make a sound unless it lands on a public figure. "In our celebrity-obsessed culture, people are often willing to pay top-dollar for items with (stars') names attached to them," says Patricia Leavy, a professor of sociology at Stonehill College in Massachusetts. "This is another form of celebrity branding."

Canada.com
Jan 1 2009