Does Emmanuelle Alt ever wonder, “Is there life on Mars?” My guess is yes, she does wonder if there is life on Mars, where everything is strange and unfamiliar, and by the way, if so, do they have time-shares? Her love of all things David Bowie would point to that. Mercurial and otherworldly, Bowie continually reinvents himself and his music. What remains immutable about his work is his poetic intensity and his striking visual presentation.

It is no secret that Emmanuelle Alt takes inspiration from the incomparable David Bowie. Take a look at one of Alt’s editorials for Vogue Paris from October of 2010, back when Carine Roitfeld was still at the helm, entitled "Androgyne." If you peer closely, don’t tell me you can’t see the Thin White Duke in there posing.

Four months later, Emmanuelle took the reigns as editor-in-chief and immediately tricked out her chic Vogue Paris office with an iPod sound system. She rocks out as she works, mostly to 80s influenced fare, and the music of David Bowie is on heavy rotation.

Perhaps Emmanuelle Alt and David Bowie share the same alter ego, Ziggy Stardust. The essence of Bowie made a grand entrance on the cover of the December 2011/January 2012 issue of Vogue Paris, for which Emmanuelle appointed the high-cheekboned, red-shagged Kate Moss to channel Ziggy Stardust with an eery similarity.

As an added bonus to devoted Vogue Paris readers, that same issue, dubbed the “music issue” revealed a playlist of Emmanuelle’s favorite songs on the magazine's site. Obviously her beloved David Bowie made her list of favorites twice with "Let’s Dance" and "Dancing in the Street."

An even stranger twist in all of this Bowie worship is that Emmanuelle not only hires Kate Moss to impersonate Ziggy Stardust for the cover of her magazine, she also hangs out with Kate on her down time, dancing and singing karaoke. I bet they can belt out a mean “Under Pressure” together.

Finally, there is Emmanuelle’s personal style, an andro-cool, rock based presence that obviously pays tribute to the androgyny of David Bowie. She trusses her enviably long, skinny legs in tight black Topshop jeans and frequently tops it off with an au courant designer jacket, sporting the newest incarnation of masculin. Of course, Ziggy Stardust is much more flamboyant than Emmanuelle Alt. After all, no one can rock a red shag and blue eyeshadow quite like Ziggy. Except perhaps Kate Moss, that is. Rock on!

Emmanuelle Alt/David Bowie photos courtesy of fanpop.com, Condé Nast, last.fm, handson.provocateuse.com, Fashion Spot.

It is no secret that Emmanuelle Alt prefers to keep her private life just that, as evidenced by the dearth of information available online about her personal time. For instance, some of the last comments she made on the subject of her life at home were in a 1997 interview with Elle Decor: "My days are full of people and commotion. Home is a place I escape to.” In further reflection, Emmanuelle remarked: “It's where I seek comfort, relaxation, and tranquility.”

Among the comforts of home are her adorably stylish offspring, Antonin and Françoise, but did you know about Emmanuelle's third child? For those of us who love pets, you know this is no exaggeration... Meet her dog, Pomme,Emmanuelle Alt, Franck Durand, Pomme which translates sweetly to “Apple,” no doubt considered la prunelle de mes yeux by Emmanuelle. A playful breed that is at its best when considered a member of its human family, terriers are known to be intelligent, obedient, and loyal — all traits that I am sure La Alt admires in those closest to her, especially her pet. Pomme reportedly goes everywhere with his beloved owner.

At first glance it is clear that Pomme is the stylish sort and favors fashion’s classic colors: black, white, and tan. Also note that he shares the sentiment of his chère maman when it comes to accessories — keep it simple. Speaking of Emmanuelle Alt’s signature adornments... I wonder if her Hermès Collier de Chien cuff is a bit of an homage to her sweet pup?

Photographs of Emmanuelle Alt's dog, Pomme © 1997 Hachette Filipacchi Media, U.S., Inc. and © 2011 The Bund Weekly. All Rights Reserved.

During the 1990s, the magazine 20 Ans queried Emmanuelle Alt, “What are your top 10 fashion favorites?” We all wanted to know. At number two on her list of favorites: "Des collants noirs en microfibre Wolford (à cause d'une sublime campagne de Newton)" or in English, “Black stockings by Wolford (because of the sublime campaign by Newton).” And by Newton, Ms. Alt meant Helmut Newton, of course, the famed photographer whose fashion work is ironically best known for the nudity. Helmut Newton’s photographs dramatically cast long-legged Amazonian models in black and white. They titillate us with provocative poses — they wear their sexuality on their sleeves. Or maybe "sleeves" is not the right place...

We all know that sex sells and when it came time to sell luxury pantyhose, Newton was the perfect photographer for the job. The Wolford campaign features leggy blond beauties dressed in nothing more than black bras, Wolford stockings, and shiny black pumps. Their faces were hidden, their perky posteriors were not. Who could forget the image of a pair of leggy beauties embracing by the sea? Or the one of the blond bobbed femme fatale clad in a Wolford bodysuit, thigh-highs, and those now familiar black pumps, face hidden once again, holding a gun behind her back...

No matter how erotic an ad campaign is, $45 is still a lot of money to spend on a pair of stockings but Wolford has legions of devoted fans who readily buy in bulk for the season. The sex brings them into the store and the quality keeps them coming. Wolford pantyhose are insanely comfortable and at the same time iron-clad, justifying the steep price tag.

Wolford stockings are so iron-clad that women who never even noticed the Newton campaign in the 90s proudly proclaim, “I wore Wolford before anyone knew about Wolford.” Legions of women proclaim this, in fact, which translates as, “I wore Wolford before my friends knew about it and at the time they thought I was nuts to spend $45 on a pair of pantyhose... but now they do it too.”

And so does Emmanuelle Alt.

Wolford advertising campaign by Helmut Newton images © Wolford. All Rights Reserved.

alternative - al·ter·na·tive adj \o l-ˈtər-nə-tiv, al-\
Existing outside traditional or established institutions or systems: an alternative lifestyle. Espousing or reflecting values that are different from those of the establishment or mainstream: Different from the usual or conventional, as existing or functioning outside the established cultural, social, or economic system.

Whether applying the term "alternative" to music, magazines, or style, an image of Emmanuelle Alt’s approach comes to mind. With her edgy cool, rock yet chic look, it’s no surprise that from 1998 to 2000, Madame Alt served as the editor-in-chief of the now (sadly) defunct alternative French magazine Mixte. From its première issue in 1996, Mixte paved the way for an emerging generation of models, artists, and photographers who were obsessed with the cultlike following of the magazine. Equally interesting to both men and women, the alternative audience of the well-traveled in-crowd with a passion for life, art, fashion, decorating, and even sports, all fixated on Mixte and its contents. Covers brought vivid eye catching colors and notable models included the androgynous Tilda Swinton, the now iconic Naomi Campbell, the Icelandic genius Björk, and the eternally fabulous Monica Belucci. It was bold, edgy, and took liberties in the styling of innovative spreads in a fashion that no other magazine dared up until the last issue, published June 2009. The demise of Mixte was tragic for many, and now Madame Alt has another opportunity to let the memory live on to some degree for the gone but not forgotten Mixte. After all, you can take the girl out of the alternative magazine, but can you ever really take the alternative out of the girl? Emmanuelle's time at Mixte and the work she accomplished are some of her favorite memories and this foundation is likely a strong influence for her now as she transitions to editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris. As Giambattista Valli notes: “It’s a very logical continuation for French Vogue. She’s really somebody who’s going to make it. She has a point of view, a lot of vision. I remember when she was editor-in-chief of Mixte she did some amazing stories. She worked a lot with Corinne Day at the time. She’s French, but she’s extremely international as well." Let's hope Emmanuelle applies that Alt-ernative je ne sais quoi to her new magazine...

Mixte cover images © 2009 Mixte. All Rights Reserved.

There has been a stylistic shift at the helm of Vogue Paris, at least when it comes to the personal style of its reigning editor-in-chief. The sexed up, vampy insouciance of Carine Roitfeld has been replaced with the boyish, casual insouciance of Emmanuelle Alt. It’s not a seismic shift though. Emmanuelle Alt’s style is an androgynous riff on what is considered Parisian chic now — which includes uncoiffed hair, sex appeal, and very high, very expensive footwear. The forced elegance reflected in a matched Chanel suit is considered staid. Instead legions of young ingenues follow the cult of Alt — namely, expensive clothes with an undone attitude à la Mom’s Chanel jacket thrown on with a pair of jeans. And a tshirt by Isabel Marant, bien sûr...

Take a peek at Ms. Alt’s wardrobe and on closer inspection one finds the designs of Isabel Marant being worn in heavy rotation. Isabel Marant is every cool girl’s secret fashion weapon. The designer has an uncanny gift for churning out exactly what the indie girls want, no, need every season. Marant's contemporary line of chic basics have rock and roll edge cleverly combined with flirty femininity. It is that perfect yin/yang balance that strikes a chord with not only Emmanuelle but also legions of fans. Isabel Marant fans are so devout, in fact, that when she opened a new store in New York in the Spring of 2010, she expressed just how hard it is to keep the store stocked, “As soon as a new shipment comes in, pfff, it’s gone.”

Isabel Marant started out with an accessories line in 1989. After a mere four years of success, she launched a full Ready-To-Wear collection. Her short casual dresses, loosely fitting knits, slouchy trousers, tailored jackets, and eye popping scarves took off — the best prescription for undone Parisian sex appeal. In 1999, Marant introduced a lower priced diffusion line, “Etoile,” and in 2004 she branched out by adding a line for children. Her Spring 2011 collection recalls surfing and the early days of skateboarding. The line features denim and courduroy cutoffs paired with a mix and match mish mosh of tops, including brightly checked button downs, shrunken fisherman sweaters, and lacy tops. The line looks like a Parisian exchange student’s take on California casual —totally cool, effortlessly sophisticated. No wonder she can’t keep the store stocked!

Note also that Emmanuelle Alt's husband, Franck Durand, consults creatively for Isabel Marant including campaigns such as this beauty featuring Kate Moss. When Russh asked about her working relationships, Marant responded: "It's funny because Emmanuelle and I kind of started out together a long time ago. I always admired her style and what she did for Vogue, but we lost contact for a while because she was overloaded with work. Four years ago her husband Franck Durand became my artistic director and I was always saying 'I love what your wife is doing, I would love to work together with her one day.' So it was little by little. Now we have done about five shows together. I love the vision she has for my clothes, she manages to put them together in a way that is a bit more sophisticated than what I did before.You see, I'm good at making clothes and dressing myself, but then dressing models, creating silhouettes, that's not my thing at all. I love it when she goes tac, tac, tac... puts the different pieces together, and I'm like 'oh yeah, that's exactly it!' I don't create the dressed girl like a lot of designers do. I'm interested in the separate pieces, but in the end I can't get the family back together again. Emmanuelle can take that step back. She has a very clear and precise vision and it's really great to work with her."

Emmanuelle Alt and Isabel Marant images courtesy of isabelmarant.tm.fr, PurseBlog, and fashioncoup.com