Charles James: Beyond Fashion

Remembering an Iconic Designer

1st May 2014 The glamorous, elegant, sculptural designs by Charles James are the subject of a beautiful exhibition held in the newly renovated Tisch Gallery in the Anna Wintour Costume Center, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Complex cuts, extravagant draping, and luxurious materials were transposed into fabulous designs – magic that James performed with his imagination and scissors. James was born in Britain, and worked in Paris before arriving in New York in 1940, where he established permanent residence. His early clients included Diana Vreeland, iconic fashion editor, and society beauties Babe Paley and Millicent Rogers. In 1954, James married Nancy Lee Gregory, who frequently modeled his designs.

Babe Paley in Charles James Gown 1950
Babe Paley in Charles James Gown 1950

Charles James was the ultimate perfectionist, regarding each design as a work of art. Women responded to his dramatic seaming that enhanced the female form. James loved luxury, and his fabric choices were always sumptuous – silk velvets and chiffon, cotton organdy, creamy crepe, and fine wools. Charles James: Beyond Fashion is a fitting tribute to a designer who paved the way for many of America’s future couturiers. The exhibition runs from 8 May through 10 August 2014. www.metmusuem.org JG

Nancy James in Charles James Swan Gown 1955
Nancy James in Charles James Swan Gown 1955

Photos: Top: Charles James Ball Gowns 1948 Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Photograph by Cecil Beaton, Beaton/Vogue/Condé Nast Archive. Copyright Condé Nast

SALT.
Article One
ROLF Spectacles
100% Optical London 24 to 26 February 2024 at Excel London - register for free
VAVA Eyewear
MOREL
DIFFUSER Tokyo
NYC LOFT 2025

Babe Paley: Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Photograph by John Rawlings, Rawlings/Vogue/Condé Nast Archive. Copyright Condé Nast

Nancy James: Courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Photograph by Cecil Beaton, The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive at Sotheby’s.