PARIS, Sep 25, 2001/ --- In Antoine Saint-Exupery's classic 1943 fable, a little prince says to a stranded pilot, "Draw me a sheep." Inspired by the young golden-haired hero, the new international magazine Dealer De Luxe asked renowned fashion designers to draw them a T-shirt.

Responses to the challenge went on display last Friday at Jean-Charles de Castelbajac's Galerie Du Concept Store (the avant-garde designer himself turned out a tee inspired by Formula 1 logos).

The fruit of each designer's labor was hung on the walls and admired by les Parisiens as they daintily sipped "Pop" champagne through straws.

Dealer de Luxe's co-editor-in-chief and artistic director Katia Coelho was thrilled with the creations and eagerly explained how they came about: "We sent out a white T-shirt with the first edition of our magazine [last February] and we asked the designers to use it as inspiration. We thought we would have only a few replies, but we had such a overwhelming response, and the T-shirts were so beautiful and different, we knew we had to exhibit them."

They approached Castelbajac about using the exhibition space connected to his Concept Store, and he was all for it.

Opinion was mixed as to which designer tee was the best. "Cacharel and Dice Kayek are my favorites," said Coelho.

Kayek's one-shoulder version was adorned with an elaborate scarlet feather and flower, while Cacharel went for a trompe l'oeil button-down sleeveless number.

Dolce & Gabanna offered a graffiti tee held together with safety pins and Moschino did a message tee with "Niente" written in black caps across the chest.

The ones that everyone could agree on, though, were the khaki Dealer De Luxe tees modeled effortlessly by the dashing barmen.

The support of Dealer De Luxe by the likes of Chanel, Christian Lacroix, Vivienne Westwood, Sonia Rykiel and John Galliano, all of whom have T-shirts on display, illustrates how well-received the bilingual (French/English) publication has been in the already saturated world of high-fashion magazines.

Coelho believes it's because the publication has an edge on the competition: "The image is the key, it's very visual. We want to showcase up-and-coming stylists and photographers, and we want people to smile when they read the magazine."

Once the exhibition closes on October 5, Dealer De Luxe plans to auction off the T-shirts to raise money to help the victims of the terrorist attacks in the United States.

The bi-annual magazine hits newsstands every September and February, just in time for the ready-to-wear collections. Its second-ever issue is available now in all major fashion-friendly cities: Tokyo, Paris, London and New York.

If you can't make it to Paris before the exhibition closes, pick up the September issue of the magazine and check out the tees in living color. As its title would imply, Dealer De Luxe doesn't come cheap - each issue costs 80 francs, or a little more than $11.

Draw Me a T-shirt
Galerie Du Concept Store Jean Charles De Castelbajac
31, Place du Marche Saint-Honore
75001 Paris

Cover of Dealer De Luxe

Jean Charles De Castelbajac

Dice Kayek T-Shirt

John Galliano

Vivienne Westwood

Moschino