City guides

Enlightenment: Carte Blanche à Christian Lacroix

1st February 2015 The Musée Cognacq-Jay in Paris is absolutely a little gem. Founded in 1928 by the founder of the La Samaritaine Department Store (sadly, now closed) Ernest Cognacq assembled an amazing collection of emblematic eighteenth-century art works. They are on display in a beautifully renovated sixteenth-century townhouse in the Marais. M. Cognacq chose items that would be representative of “the artistic décor of French life”… and include a stunning collection of portrait miniatures, superb paintings, busts, Meissen porcelains and furniture.

 

Lacroix fantasy at Musée Cognacq Jay Paris
Lacroix fantasy at Musée Cognacq Jay Paris Dessins Christian Lacroix Copyright: Monsieur Christian Lacroix

To celebrate the re-opening of the Musée Cognacq-Jay, Christian Lacroix, the peripatetic fashion and interior designer,  was offered a “carte blanche”  – a dual challenge of re-imagining the “guiding narrative” of the exhibition spaces, while exploring a concept which has shaped his own approach to his art – the fascination exerted by the eighteenth century. Lacroix has curated contributions from over forty contemporary artists, invited to reflect upon ten key themes identified in Ernest Cognacq’s collections. Some of the themes include: 18th century taste; Show, balls and sociability; Paris, capital of the Enlightenment; Fables, stories and novels; and Europe’s artistic economy. Lacroix’s selections have been assembled with a view to enhancing our understanding of the Age of Enlightenment, and its continued relevance in our own era.

 

Marie-Louise Elisabeth Vigée-Lebrun (1755-1842) Portrait de Marie-Louise Adelaide-Jacquette de Robien,Vicomtesse de Mirabeau 1774
Marie-Louise Elisabeth Vigée-Lebrun (1755-1842) Portrait de Marie-Louise Adelaide-Jacquette de Robien, Vicomtesse de Mirabeau 1774

Enlightenment: Carte Blanche à Christian Lacrox is an innovative exhibition, enhanced with Lacroix’s inimitable flair. The exhibition continues through 19th April 2015.

www.cognacq-jay.paris.fr JG

LAMARCA EYEWEAR
VAVA Eyewear
OGI Eyewear
Article One
Look
Res Rei
DIFFUSER Tokyo
100% Optical London 24 to 26 February 2024 at Excel London - register for free

Photo credits: Vigée Lebrun: Musée Cognacq-Jay /Roger-Viollet

All photos: Agence Roger Viollet “Press Photo”

 

 

 

Death Becomes Her: A Century of Mourning Attire

Victorian & Edwardian Mourning Attire at Anna Wintour Costume Center New York City

1st January 2015 “She was beginning to find that everyone had an air of remoteness; she seemed to see people and life through the confusing blur of the long crape veil in which it was a widow’s duty to shroud her affliction.”  Edith Wharton, “New Year’s Day,” in Old New York (New York; D. Appleton, 1924

Mourning after the death of a loved one was an intricate part of social mores in the 19th Century. Throughout this period, the duty of wearing mourning fell primarily on women, whose sartorial choices were seen as a reflection of the family’s collective grief, as well as their social status, economic standing, and level of respectability. A woman in full mourning dress became the emblematic icon of bereavement in Europe and America. Mourning dress served as a visual symbol of grief and respect for the deceased.

 

Children were often put into mourning as well, participating in their family’s memorialization of the deceased.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York traces the mores and fashions of this period in Death Becomes Her: A Century of Mourning Attire. The mourning period could be up to a year; however, after being widowed in 1861, Queen Victoria limited her public appearances, and dressed in shades of mourning for the remaining forty years of her life, presenting an image of chast widowhood, in her “widow’s weeds.” The thematic exhibition is organised chronologically and features mourning dress from 1815 to 1915, primarily from The Costume Institute’s collection.

 

Mourning and Fashion coexist - Elegant Harmonization -
Mourning and Fashion coexist – Elegant Harmonization –

Formal rituals of bereavement aided in memorializing the dead, and mourning attire was subject to increasingly complex codes of etiquette and fashion. For Queen Victoria, in her forty years of widowhood, her mourning never lightened. When King Edward, Victoria’s son died in 1910, The Palace issued messages that wedding celebrations should take place as scheduled. The weddings did take place, but most guests still wore black. Even in sadness and grief, fashion played an influential role. Death Becomes Her: A Century of Mourning Attire continues at the Metropolitan Museum of Art through 1st February 2015. www.metmuseum.org JG

All images: Gallery View Anna Wintour Costume Center, Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch Gallery Copyright: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

 

Lace, Silk and Ermine

Highlights from the Wardrobe of Elisabeth of Austria

1st December 2014 She was a European style legend in nineteenth-century Europe, with her imperial wardrobe, and cascades of long flowing hair, often studded with diamonds. Elisabeth of Austria was one of the most beautiful women of the day, and a mysterious, complex personality, who found the rigors of court life in Vienna restricting and suffocating. She was a woman ahead of her time – she believed in rigorous self-control and exercise.

Blue Dress worn by Elisabeth Empress of Austria
Blue Dress worn by Elisabeth Empress of Austria

 

To celebrate the tenth anniversary of The Sisi Museum in Vienna (The Empress was known as Sisi) – Soie, Dentelle et Hermine (Silk,Lace and Ermine) showcases personal items from the Empresses’ wardrobe, as she set the fashion trends of her era. The items shown are very rarely displayed for conservation purposes.

 

Sisi enjoyed wearing gowns that silhouetted her ultra-slim figure
Sisi enjoyed wearing gowns that silhouetted her ultra-slim figure

 

NYC LOFT 2025
LEINZ
TVR True Vintage Revival
DIFFUSER Tokyo
JISCO

When visiting The Sisi Museum, it is also possible to see parasols, fans, gloves,The Empresses’ travelling medicine chest, and jewellery. On the ground floor of the museum, visitors can view in awe the elegant, luxurious Imperial Silver Collection, plus a magnificent golden dinner service that belonged to Napoleon.

 

Monogrammed Silk Stockings worn by Elisabeth Empress of Austria
Monogrammed Silk Stockings worn by Elisabeth Empress of Austria

Silk, Lace and Ermine is a fascinating glimpse into the private wardrobe of one of the most legendary figures of that time. To this day, Elisabeth of Austria continues to fascinate and charm with her individualism and refusal to conform. Exhibition continues until 1st February 2015. www.hofburg-wien.at JG

Photos: Top: Portrait of Elisabeth Empress of Austria by Franz Xaver Winterhalter Dresses: Alexander E. Koller Stockings: Edgar Knaak Copyright: Schloss Schöenbrunn Kultur-und Betriebs. Ges.m.b.H.

Women Fashion Power

High-Profile Women Celebrated at Design Museum

1st November 2014 Clothes have always been a powerful form of self-expression for women – from Elizabeth 1, to Margaret Thatcher, and Coco Chanel to Lady Gaga –  and an essential part of a sophisticated visual language. An exceptional new exhibition at London’s Design Museum brings together a fabulous showcase of clothing, photography, archive footage and interviews with twenty-five influential women who have used fashion to define and enhance their position in the world.

 

Margaret Thatcher Suit Courtesy of Christie's
Margaret Thatcher Suit Courtesy of Christie’s

Donna Loveday, Head of Curatorial at the Design Museum and co-curator of the exhibition said: “All of the women we invited to contribute to the exhibition were chosen because they are leaders in their field, and they understand that the clothes they wear are a part of the way that they communicate with the world.”

Joan Burstein Founder of Browns London photographed by Billie Sheepers
Joan Burstein Founder of Browns London photographed by Billie Sheepers

WOMEN FASHION POWER examines the last 150 years of women’s fashion from the restrictive boned corsets of the nineteenth century to the statement Louboutin heels of today. Included among the women profiled are: Joan Burstein, founder of Browns in London; Livia Firth, Creative Director of Eco Age; Princess Charlène of Monaco; Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris; Charlotte Olympia, Designer; Dame Zandra Rhodes and Dame Vivienne Westwood, both designers. Archive clothes include a suit worn by Margaret Thatcher when she was elected leader of the Conservative party in 1975; and a dress worn by Diana, Princess of Wales on the occasion of  her 36th birthday, plus items from Elsa Schiaparelli, and Yves Saint Laurent.

 

Anne Hidalgo Mayor of Paris photographed by Jean-Baptiste Gurliat
Anne Hidalgo Mayor of Paris photographed by Jean-Baptiste Gurliat

Fashion commentator Collin McDowell observed: “This exhibition shows how women have used different approaches to dress in order to make statements which are unique to them and their personalities. They create their own wardrobes, not to be fashion plates but to demonstrate who and what they are.” WOMEN FASHION POWER at the Design Museum Shad Thames, London SE1 Through 26 April 2015 www.designmuseum.org JG

Top photo: Dame Zandra Rhodes photographed by John Swannell

Horst: Photographer of Style

Master Photographer Horst P. Horst at V&A

1st October 2014 Fashion icons, Presidents, Hollywood stars, and avant-garde artists were all captured on film by Horst (1906-1999) – one of the leading photographers of the 20th century. A fascinating retrospective of his work – that spanned six decades – is celebrated at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Horst’s stylish photos, plus haute couture garments by Parisian couturiers Chanel, Lavin, Molyneux and Vionnet, magazines, film footage, previously unpublished vintage prints, and ninety-four Vogue covers are all on display.

 

Horst directing fashion shoot with Lisa Fonssagrives 1949
Horst directing fashion shoot with Lisa Fonssagrives 1949

Horst’s illustrious career straddled the opulence of pre-war Parisian haute couture and the rise of ready-to-wear in New York. He photographed – among many others – Coco Chanel, Elsa Schiaparelli, President Harry Truman, Marlene Dietrich, Noël Coward, Merle Oberon, and his photos of Lisa Fonssagrives helped to launch her glittering modelling career.

 

Summer Fashions American Vogue Cover 15 May 1941
Summer Fashions American Vogue Cover 15 May 1941

Born in Weissenfels, Germany, Horst fled Europe just prior to the outbreak of the Second World War. In 1943, he enlisted into the American Army and became a U.S. citizen. He also explored new photography dimensions with nude studies, travel photographs from the Middle East, and patterns created from natural forms, plus work for House and Garden magazine. The scope of his work is imaginatively diverse, and he creatively traversed the worlds of art, fashion, design, theatre and high society – all with superb style. Horst: Photographer of Style continues through 4 January 2015. www.vam.ac.uk JG

Look
MOREL
GIGI STUDIOS
LEINZ
ERKERS
BLACKFIN
SALT.
LAMARCA EYEWEAR

Photos: Top image: Muriel Maxwell, American Vogue 1939 Condé Nast/Horst Estate Middle image: Roy Stevens/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images Bottom photo: Condé Nast/Horst Estate