Dior Illustrated

I know I've been slacking off on blogging, but I have been extremely busy with school, entertaining my parents, and attending some fabulous fashion exhibitions!  This weekend I went to see Albert Watson's exhibition at Hamiltons Gallery and the Rene Gruau exhibition at Somerset House.  You should already know about Albert Watson from my last post, and if you don't, then you should read it.  Hamiltons Gallery is a small gallery in the May Fair district of London; there were two rooms filled with Watson's vintage prints.  From the photo of a nude Kate Moss to one of a seemingly severed Jon Bon Jovi's head, every photograph was amazing.  I had seen his photos on the slide show at his lecture, but seeing the original print in person was a completely different experience.

The next day I went to an exhibition at Somerset House called Dior Illustrated: Rene Gruau and the Line of Beauty.  Gruau was the fashion illustrator for the House of Dior after World War II, and he produced some of the most iconic and enduring fashion images of the 20th century.   He met Christian Dior in 1936 on the fashion desk of the French newspaper Le Figaro, where both men worked as illustrators.  When Dior launched his New Look in 1947, he turned to his friend to illustrate his Haute Couture designs. In the same year, Dior launched his perfume line, and asked Gruau to produce a series of illustrations.  Gruau's bold lines, simple flat planes of color, and use of negative space are recognizable all over the world.  He loved to shock people with his suggestive illustrations of men's bare legs and women's clothing strewn over a chair.

The exhibit took up two floors, beginning with a collage of Gruau's famous illustrations.  Walk up the stairs and you will find a long room filled with many more of his illustrations, this time separated and accompanied by descriptions.  His illustrations have such a sense of fun in them; it's easy to see why the House of Dior printed his illustrations even long after photography became popular. 

"To be inspired by Dior is to be inspired by Rene Gruau. His sketches capture the silhouette and spirit of fashion and femininity. His illustrations are timeless, ever youthful, ever faithful to the moment he saw; they capture the energy, the sophistication and daring of Dior, and equally are a token of an enduring friendship." -John Galliano, designer for Dior

Unified Fashion Objectives

This evening I attended a lecture by Albert Watson at the Victoria and Albert Museum.  He was promoting his new book, Unified Fashion Objectives, and his exhibition at Hamiltons Gallery that will be opening this Friday.  Watson is a well-known and successful photographer who has shot over 250 covers for Vogue and over 40 covers for Rolling Stone; so it's very likely that you have seen his work.  Born and raised in Scotland, he became obsessed with the camera after his wife gave him one for his 21st birthday.  His passion for photography was noticed by the right people and he began his career as a professional photographer in the early 1970s.  He said his career began with a photo he took of a man holding a dead and skinned goose by the neck.  The man was Alfred Hitchcock. 

 Before the lecture, Watson showed us a video, a "hodgepodge" of his work.  Photos faded in and out to classical music, showing the faces of Uma Thurman, John Travolta, Mick Jagger, Prince, Kate Moss, Tupac, and many other celebrities.  There were photos of dance, of children, of animals, and of couture.  He has a huge range, photographing celebrity portraits, couture, advertising, and documentary projects.  He said that he used to have days where he would wake up in Paris to shoot a fashion project, fly to New York for an advertising campaign, and fly to Los Angeles to take photos of a celebrity, all within 24 hours.

The man is an amazing photographer.  I have never seen anything like his photos; the colors were so rich, even the black and white photos would pop out at you.  There was a photo of Mick Jagger where his face was combined with the face of a leopard.  His advice: "If you're going to work with a leopard, use a cheetah, they are less aggressive."  Apparently the leopard almost got a taste of Mick!

On the subject of fashion, he says, "I love fashion."  His couture photographs "are not fashion pictures, they are photographs of fashion."  He discussed how through working as a fashion photographer, he came to appreciate the art.  There was a photograph of Naomi Campbell's profile when she was about 17 years old; it was one of my favorites.  He said that when he took this shot, he knew it would be the one.

His documentary is beautiful.  I would have purchased one of his books to have signed after the lecture, but they were a little pricey (And by a little pricey, I mean a lot!).  "The picture is simple," he says.  "It's the concept that is more important."

Florist

This weekend, I went to the Florist exhibition at SHOWstudio. Some of you may have read my "Flowers in Winter" post, so you might know what the exhibition was about. For those of you don't, it is an exhibition dedicated to floral still life.  SHOWstudio is a little shop located on a little street in the Mayfair district of London. Most of the pieces were up for sale, and if I was ridiculously wealthy, I may have been tempted to buy some of these beautiful artworks.  Some of my favorites included a sculpture by Andy Hillman, an installation by Michael Howells,  and a piece by Nick Knight.

Andy Hillman's sculpture, Hello Flowerhead, was made this year.  It features a woman from the chest up with roses all around her head.  It is going for $7,000.

Michael Howell's installation was a giant flower that was designed for the Christian Dior haute couture catwalk.  I don't know that I would want a giant flower in my house, but it was nice to look at. It is going for $5,000.

 Another one of my favorites was an item not for sale, Bloomin' Hell by Julie Verhoeven.  It featured a skull, which had been painted and covered with paper flowers.  The picture from which the flowers were cut out of had then been laid over the skull.

This last one, Rose by Nick Knight, is something I would definitely want to put on display in my house.  It featured a rose that had been cut into 4 pieces, the bottom half of the stem, the top half of the stem, the rose, and a petal.  He put each piece in a cube filled with some sort of liquid, I'm not sure what it was, but it was beautiful. It is for sale for $25,000.

It was the perfect thing to do on a Saturday afternoon!

Where Art and Fashion Collaborate

I was looking around Elle.com's "Need to Know Designers" section again and came upon this marvel: Elsa Schiaparelli.  A designer with no formal training, she transformed the way designers look at fashion between the two World Wars.  She was born and raised in Italy, but it wasn't until she moved to Paris with her daughter that her fashion career began.

She began her career with a determination to bring American-style sportswear to Europe's attention.  She designed simple, practical separates that suited the working woman, and soon she became famous for her sweaters that featured trompe l'oeil patterns.  Her designs attracted women like Greta Garbo, Katherine Hepburn, and Joan Crawford.

Although her earlier work is beautiful, I really enjoy her later, more avant-garde designs.  Schiaparelli designed in the age of Surrealism, and was inspired by artist friends, Man Ray, Salvator Dali, and Picasso to name a few.  Her elegant gowns and accessories were shocking at the time, much like Surrealist Art was.  One of her most famous pieces was the Lobster Dress, which featured a Dali lobster painted on the skirt.  I would assume that it was inspired by Dali's Lobster Phone. She was truly an artist at heart!

Lobster Dress

Dali's Lobster Phone

 

It's All About the Dress

It will be a warm, sunny day by the water.  Just a light breeze.  Some classy music will be playing in the background, something like Frank Sinatra or Harry Connick, Jr.  The tables will be white, the flowers yellow, and the ribbons a dark red.  The people will be drinking champagne and talking about how beautiful, and happy, she looks. 

Every girl dreams about her wedding day; not because of the special moment where you vow your love for one another, but because it is the one day in her entire life that is all about her!  At least, that's how I see it.... I get to pick out the location, the food, the tablecloths, the music, and, the best part, the dress.  It really is all about the dress.

After hearing about the engagement of Prince William and Kate Middleton, Elle.com decided to put up the pictures of its favorite brides, although it seems more likely that they were pictures of its favorite wedding dresses rather than brides, which is fine with me!  Personally, I love a classy, simple white dress, featured on the likes of Renee Zellweger, Mia Farrow, Jackie Kennedy, and Audrey Hepburn.

Renee Zellweger

Audrey Hepburn

Jackie Kennedy

Mia Farrow

 Not too much lace, never too many bows; simple hair and makeup; a small bouquet and a smile. Perfect.

Flowers in Winter

I found out recently that SHOWstudio, a shop in London featuring rare fashion artifacts from iconic fashion shows and catwalks, is currently presenting an exhibition called "Florist," dedicated to still life florals in the dead of winter and reinventing our view of flowers as art, fashion, and artifact.  It opened on November 10th and closes on January 13th, and I will be attending this weekend! 

Artists, fashion designers, models,  and musicians alike, including Dame Vivienne Westwood and Yohji Yamamoto, have created their own floral creations to contribute to the exhibition to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of SHOWstudio.com.  Floral artifacts, including garments, headpieces, and objets d'arts, will be featured in the exhibition.  I'm so excited to go check this out! 

I really love florals, who doesn't?  So it will be fun to see what these artists have come up with for the exhibition, as well as the vintage artifacts that will be presented.  If you're interested in vintage fashion and you are in London, go check out the Fashion Gallery at the Victoria and Albert Museum.  It is amazing, and it's so fun to wander through looking at all the styles of the past.  They have vintage Chanel, Ferragamo, Versace, and many more!  It's such a great gallery that I wish it was bigger!

There is also a fun market on Piccadilly Street called St. James' Market, just a five-minute walk from Piccadilly Circus!  I found some vintage watches, telescopes, and even African Masks!  Just some fun vintage things that may be fun to have on display in your apartment! It's definitely what I was thinking about when I was meandering through the courtyard browsing around the different vendors. 

Vintage

Vintage by ESP3726 featuring army shoes

Some of my favorite vintage items