This story is part of the April issue of Image, “Dream”- an invitation to lean into the spaces of dreams and fantasy. Enjoy the trip.
What is a dream but a vacation for the mind? Getting lost in a reverie is a momentary respite from the prison of the possible: a chance to experience the impossible for a second. If you can't change your environment, you can at least change your perception of it. Vacations are dreams in which you can really change your environment. They are fantasies of how you would live if you were a different person, with a different life and different priorities. A whirlwind romance, a chance encounter that could change your career prospects, a series of horrible wardrobe choices that, fortunately, none of your friends or colleagues will ever see. Everything is possible on vacation. The greatest luxury of a vacation is the right to reinvent yourself, to see the world in a different way. And there is no better way to see the world differently than through a beautiful pair of sunglasses.
Nikola wears Cartier Signature C; Kenzo Rose fitted shirt in faded pink mesh polyamide; pink turtleneck top in faded pink mesh polyamide; Leather kitten heel covered by Kenzo rose print fabric in faded pink.
The exchange uses Cartier Signature Cs; Amiri Men's Floral Beaded Sweater Vest; men's sequin covered shorts; Saint Laurent shoes from Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills.
I have at least a dozen pairs, of varying costs and quality: Gucci, Eyeworks, Persol, Garrett Leight, and maybe one or two from the CVS bin. But if I had to imagine the ideal vacation, I wish these Cartier Signature C sunglasses would fall from the sky into my lap. A striking pair of sunglasses recontextualizes your entire face, hiding your eyes and enveloping you in a sense of mystery that would not otherwise be present on your same bulging face. They also envelop the environment around you in a haze of smoke, making everything you see more dramatic.
The Cartier Signature C are frameless and come in a variety of colors, with my personal choice being the green lenses. So your vacation will be somewhat green most of the time. But that revision of the natural is what dreams are about. Real dreams do not usually take place in normal colors. They are black and white, red or blue. The gold finish on the temples is what justifies the exorbitant price and attracts attention. There is a gentle curve to the bridge at the front of the frames and what almost look like horseshoes on the hinges that connect the temples to the lenses. In all dreams there is a bit of fantasy.
Swap is wearing Cartier Signature Cs, Lujo Depot X Freak City suit and Saint Laurent loafers.
Trying the Signature C is an experience in itself. The Cartier store is a big fantasy world, full of objects that most people can't afford but crave. It is a favorite of celebrities and aspiring celebrities. Seeing Timothée Chalamet wearing a Cartier Crash watch recently made me want to sell all my plasma just to afford a knockoff. Tom Cruise wore a pair of Cartier aviators in the latest “Mission: Impossible” movie, and Michael Douglas wore a spectacular pair as the disgusting Gordon Gekko in “Wall Street.” Larger than life shades for larger than life characters. The Cartier store is as elevated as the celebrities who sport their products, intimidating a normal human being like me. I tried on the Signature C and immediately wanted to take them off. Not only did I not want to break them and be on the hook for over a thousand dollars worth of product, but I also didn't feel like I should use them. More than even the fanciest frames I have, it felt like punching above my weight class. I left as soon as possible.
For most, sunglasses are a disposable item: something you can lose on a long flight or sit on by accident. My girlfriend has gone through more than a few pairs in the two years we've been together. It's what stops most people from investing in a pair of luxury sunglasses. They cannot be investment pieces, because over time they will surely disappear. That's why I dream about the Signature C. I can't think of anything more luxurious than taking something disposable and elevating it; be so rich and stylish that something people accidentally drop down a sewer drain or a hotel bathroom while on vacation can cost $1,200.
Nikola wears Cartier Signature Cs; Courrèges textured vinyl cropped jacket; vinyl reissue miniskirt; Ferragamo shoes from Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills.
Swap wears Cartier Signature Cs; Amiri Men's Floral Beaded Sweater Vest; Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills Men's Covered Sequin Layered Shorts.
On my big dream vacation, I'm by the pool most of the day. Everyone I meet smiles at me because I'm so interesting. My amazing, rare sunglasses make people stop and look twice, wondering if I'm some kind of celebrity or a visiting dignitary. I'm a normal vacation guy, but they don't have to know that. Martinis magically appear in my hand every few minutes, but I never feel sick. For some reason, the rice balls at Capri Club are the only food offered, but I'm not even in Eagle Rock. Everything I want is there and everyone wants me there.
But why do we dream in broad daylight? What makes us long for something more than what's in front of us, especially here in Los Angeles, of all places? For decades, people have come to Los Angeles to pursue their dreams. As a great woman once said: “We come to this place for magic.” You hope that in Los Angeles you will be discovered, respected, elevated and understood. For most, that doesn't happen, or it happens on a much smaller scale than they imagined. And not all dreams are the same, of course, although I suppose you could say that most of them involve being rich. Even if you don't explicitly want to be rich, the natural byproduct of success in the entertainment industry.
Swap is wearing a Cartier Signature Cs and Simone Rocha RTW Spring 2024 shirt and Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills pants.
Nikola wears Cartier Signature C; Givenchy RTW Spring '24; Rabanne miniskirt with fringe trim; cropped tank top with tweed fringe trim; Bottega Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills Veneta Shoes.
The reality of life here, the need to survive and the limits of ambition undermine the dream day by day. Paying ever-increasing rent, bowing to the whims of trillion-dollar conglomerates that view your work as simply a line on a spreadsheet, and boy, how's that traffic? In the end, you roll your eyes when people talk about how hard it is to live in Los Angeles, because you are.. It's not a dream, it's a reality. So what do you do when you live in Dream Factory (or Dream Factory-Adjacent, if you're trying to save money)? They left.
Vacations are something that not everyone can afford. Just picking up and escaping the city is a luxury in itself. A pair of sunglasses, even the most modest ones, can connect the wearer with the feeling of being in paradise. That paradise might be Van Nuys, but that's all connected to perception. The way you look at a shopping center or a gas station defines what it is and what it means. Maybe you can't stand eating the same food or looking at the same faces every day, but have you considered that here in Los Angeles, you're living a version of the dream that brought you here? Maybe you can't afford $1,200 sunglasses (you probably can't), but you can always find a new way to see the world. And that's really free.
Nikola wears Cartier Signature C; Courrèges textured vinyl cropped jacket; vinyl reissue miniskirt; Ferragamo shoes from Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills.
Producer: Mere studies
Models: Nikola Bogdanovich, trade
MUA: Carla Perez
Hair: Adrian Arredondo
Photography assistant: Sadie Spezzano
Illumination design: Ethan Benavidez
Styling assistant: Izzy Huynh
