Mr Porter's US Editor on iconic style, reading material, and the e-tailer's new Onia collab
If you come across a turn of phrase like, say, "Baedekers-style hokum" or "crown chakras raining serotonin all over the joint," congratulations, you've experienced the singular mix of colorful and cerebral that signifies a Chris Wallace original. A contributor to big-deal magazines (hello, The Paris Review and The New York Times. Sup, Esquire and Business of Fashion?), the former executive editor of Interview joined the Mr Porter team two years ago as US Editor, where he muses (and amuses) on everything from taco benders, Hollywood stoners, and Lawrence of Arabia-esque linen suits.
Just in time for the new Onia X Mr Porter capsule collection, we sat down with the always dapper, always dry Mr. Wallace to get some sartorial inspiration, reading material, journalism 101, and, since he's got a self-professed travel itch that doesn't quit, the spots he'll be heading to when we can finally fly again. Plus, Wallace runs his expert eye over the collaboration, narrowing down his gotta-have-it-now list to a pair of pieces straight out of his well-dressed dreams.
If you come across a turn of phrase like, say, "Baedekers-style hokum" or "crown chakras raining serotonin all over the joint," congratulations, you've experienced the singular mix of colorful and cerebral that signifies a Chris Wallace original. A contributor to big-deal magazines (hello, The Paris Review and The New York Times. Sup, Esquire and Business of Fashion?), the former executive editor of Interview joined the Mr Porter team two years ago as US Editor, where he muses (and amuses) on everything from taco benders, Hollywood stoners, and Lawrence of Arabia-esque linen suits.
Just in time for the new Onia X Mr Porter capsule collection, we sat down with the always dapper, always dry Mr. Wallace to get some sartorial inspiration, reading material, journalism 101, and, since he's got a self-professed travel itch that doesn't quit, the spots he'll be heading to when we can finally fly again. Plus, Wallace runs his expert eye over the collaboration, narrowing down his gotta-have-it-now list to a pair of pieces straight out of his well-dressed dreams.
In a perfect world everyone would dress in a way that helped complete their own personal self-actualization.
How did you get to where you are now? Did you always want to work in fashion?
It was accidental, but with a healthy dose of necessity. As a kid in L.A., I started writing celebrity profiles for magazines to support my novel and screenplay writing habit — I was cheaper for them than flying someone out from New York or London [full disclosure: we've omitted the emoji he used to accessorize this statement]. But, 10 years ago in L.A. wasn't really a great place for an aspiring anything, so I moved to New York. At that time — 2009 — the only places hiring (or hiring me, anyway) were style magazines. Meaning, I went to work for style magazines.
Part of your job is bringing an American perspective to Mr Porter’s content. Fill us in on the biggest differences between the US and UK's journalistic sensibilities?
I think the publishing world, like all of pop culture, has really flattened in the time I’ve been writing. For example, when I was doing my first big profiles and cover stories (for i-D in the early aughts), London seemed very far away from Los Angeles, stylistically and otherwise. Now, I'm not so sure.
At Mr Porter, one of my main missions is to address the US in all its myriad manifestations. I think that my UK-based colleagues can sometimes think of the States as a monolith (and I’m sure I don’t view Britain with the same nuance they do), so I try hard to communicate with people in New Orleans, and Seattle, and Detroit in ways that matter and make sense to the ways in which they live, travel, shop, and behave.
I will never get over being in L.A. in August (with 90-degree weather for the foreseeable future) and looking at covers of GQ with guys in all tweed and boots and being like..."that has nothing to do with me and my life at all."
How did you get to where you are now? Did you always want to work in fashion?
It was accidental, but with a healthy dose of necessity. As a kid in L.A., I started writing celebrity profiles for magazines to support my novel and screenplay writing habit — I was cheaper for them than flying someone out from New York or London [full disclosure: we've omitted the emoji he used to accessorize this statement]. But, 10 years ago in L.A. wasn't really a great place for an aspiring anything, so I moved to New York. At that time — 2009 — the only places hiring (or hiring me, anyway) were style magazines. Meaning, I went to work for style magazines.
Part of your job is bringing an American perspective to Mr Porter’s content. Fill us in on the biggest differences between the US and UK's journalistic sensibilities?
I think the publishing world, like all of pop culture, has really flattened in the time I’ve been writing. For example, when I was doing my first big profiles and cover stories (for i-D in the early aughts), London seemed very far away from Los Angeles, stylistically and otherwise. Now, I'm not so sure.
At Mr Porter, one of my main missions is to address the US in all its myriad manifestations. I think that my UK-based colleagues can sometimes think of the States as a monolith (and I’m sure I don’t view Britain with the same nuance they do), so I try hard to communicate with people in New Orleans, and Seattle, and Detroit in ways that matter and make sense to the ways in which they live, travel, shop, and behave.
I will never get over being in L.A. in August (with 90-degree weather for the foreseeable future) and looking at covers of GQ with guys in all tweed and boots and being like..."that has nothing to do with me and my life at all."
Who's the best-dressed man on earth?
Noboru Kakuta.
What about of all time?
James Baldwin!
Name something you wish men would wear more of...and less?
I’m certainly not the fashion police and I don’t even really like being all that prescriptive. In a perfect world everyone would dress in a way that helped complete their own personal self-actualization.
I have about three speeds: casual suiting; tee shirt and jeans; and Hawaiian shirts on holiday. I just wish I had more reason to do the latter.
How are you going to work the Onia X Mr Porter pieces into your everyday wardrobing?
Onia shirts [from the previous collection] have always been in my personal rotation — I'll wear these with suits or with swim trunks, but maybe that is the Californian in me who consistently feels beach-adjacent no matter where I am.
What’s your essential travel outfit when you need to look presentable on arrival?
A Rick Owens leather jacket and a cashmere sweater, plus Levi’s and desert boots.
Give us your travel bucket list (when we can finally travel again).
It's not so much a bucket list as it is a yearly plan — my top four at the moment are Buenos Aires, Dakar, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka.
What song do you have on repeat right now?
For work, I have Billie Eilish on a loop. For relaxing, Cesária Évora. At the gym, Rachel Maddow.
The bedside table book of the moment?
Outside of the stuff I’m reading for work, I’ve been into John Richardson’s art books, Charles Yu, Jeff VanderMeer — and, there's always some John LeCarré in the mix.
Who's the best-dressed man on earth?
Noboru Kakuta. [Bottom Image]
What about of all time?
James Baldwin! [Top Image]
Name something you wish men would wear more of...and less?
I’m certainly not the fashion police and I don’t even really like being all that prescriptive. In a perfect world everyone would dress in a way that helped complete their own personal self-actualization.
I have about three speeds: casual suiting; tee shirt and jeans; and Hawaiian shirts on holiday. I just wish I had more reason to do the latter.
How are you going to work the Onia X Mr Porter pieces into your everyday wardrobing?
Onia shirts [from the previous collection] have always been in my personal rotation — I'll wear these with suits or with swim trunks, but maybe that is the Californian in me who consistently feels beach-adjacent no matter where I am.
What’s your essential travel outfit when you need to look presentable on arrival?
A Rick Owens leather jacket and a cashmere sweater, plus Levi’s and desert boots.
Give us your travel bucket list (when we can finally travel again).
It's not so much a bucket list as it is a yearly plan — my top four at the moment are Buenos Aires, Dakar, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka.
What song do you have on repeat right now?
For work, I have Billie Eilish on a loop. For relaxing, Cesária Évora. At the gym, Rachel Maddow.
The bedside table book of the moment?
Outside of the stuff I’m reading for work, I’ve been into John Richardson’s art books, Charles Yu, Jeff VanderMeer — and, there's always some John LeCarré in the mix.
Wallace's Onia X Mr Porter Wish-List
"I have a bunch of Onia shirts in my personal rotation. I wear them with suits or with swim trunks, but maybe that is the Californian in me who always feels beach-adjacent no matter where I am."
"Funny, the sea urchin is source of my favorite food on Earth, but also a good symbol for how I feel right now. Short of curling up in a spiny exoskeleton, I’d be happy to sport this shirt somewhere by the sea right now."
"Man alive, these acid wash trunks are cut straight out of my dreams — they remind me so much of the shorts Andre Agassi played in when I was a kid. God, I want those, and want a vacation — remember vacations?"