Glamour Fashion & Design Architecture

 

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S T Y L E

International Herald Tribune

Tuesday,, December 21, 2004 Tuesday

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Glamour from A to Z, and then some

Margaret, Rita and Baby Jane

 Paco Raba Rabanne’s nne’s 1965 1965 gold bubble gown, built in part   from plastic plastic balls balls sliced sliced in half, guards the entrance to the ‘‘Glamour’’ exhibition in San Francisco.

J&L Lobmeyr (chandelier); Xefirotarch (U2); Gianni Versace Collection; Margaret, Rita and Baby Jane

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art’s definition s of glamour — in architecture, design and fashion — include, at left,  Hans Harald Rath’s Rath’s ‘‘Metropolitan ‘‘Metropolitan Chandelier Chandelier,’’ ,’’ created created in 1966, and, above, above, Hernan Diaz Alonso’s ‘‘U2 Tower,’’’’ from 2003.  Inset are a Donatella Versace dress dress from her 1999-2000 1999-2000 collection, left, and a JJames ames Galanos outfit from 1975. By Jessica Michault he guardian guardian of thegate, a1965 Paco Rabanne evening gown,

lush, extravagant fashion exterior over a sturdy sturdy industrial industrial metalmetal-mesh mesh core gives credence to the notion of cross pollination pollina tion between between the three discipdisciplines and their inherent glamour.

ter in New York and furniture by Will iam Haines are juxtaposed against dre dresse ssess fro from m the sameperiod sameperiod by Ad Adririan, Christian Dior and James Galanos. ‘‘I w wanted anted to have have the mother mother sauce sauce

architecture and industrial design. ‘‘Fashion is the most friendly art a museum has to offer. It is proactive and inviting,’’ inviting,’’ said Rita Watnic Watnick k of Lil Lily y et Cie, whose company company supplied supplied most of 

respl resplenden endent t indesig itsign, melding me of  fashi fa shion on and des n,lding st stand ands s alo alone ne at th the e entran entrance ce to the San San FranFrancisc cisco o Museumof ModernArt’s ModernArt’s exhibiexhibition ‘‘Glamour: Fashion, Industrial Design, Architecture.’’ The outfit is a perfect perfect choice. choice. The Rabanne Rabann e dress immediatel immediately y grounds a showthat couldeasily have have beenoverwhelmed by the vast theme of the exh ibition. The dress’s combination of a

Passing the Rabanne Rabanne sentry, the first roo room m of theshow, theshow , whichrunshere until Jan. 17, is dedicated to the glamour of  1950s and’60s America. This isthe era th thaa t l ea ea p pss to m in in d f o orr m o oss t p e eo o pl pl e wh when en th they ey thi think nk about about glamo glamour: ur: the the golden years of Hollywood, the couture set, the customized furniture. In the show, blackand white white photos photos of architecturall architecturally y imaginativ imaginative e buildingslike PhilipJohnson’s PhilipJohnson’s LincolnCen-

of fashion in close proximity to the other disciplines,’’ said Joseph Rosa, curator of archi archite tect cture ure and de desi sign gn for for the museum, who conceived the show. The bespoke gowns, the most familiar association to glamour, are used to great effect throughout the exhibition. The dresses dresses become comfortable reference points points after having the definition of glamour stretched by the sections tions of the exhibitio exhibition n dedi dedicat cated ed to

theMov iconic on display. Moving ingdresses fro from m the comfort comfort of midcentury designs, designs, the show goes on to examine architecture. Using largely 3D models and digitized architectural drawings, most of the elements in this section still only exist on paper and in the minds minds of the the architects. It is difficult therefore therefore to grasp how how these millennium lennium wonder wonderss will eff effect ect the definition of glamour. But it is clear that the modernist ru le of ‘‘ ‘‘fo form rm fo foll llow owss fun functi ction on’’ ’’ is being being broken broken by a new gen genera eratio tion n of arc archihitects. The computer generated image of  the Hernan Diaz Alonso competition entry for the Landmark Tow Tower/U2 er/U2 Studio Project in Dublin is a good example of how the relationshi relationship p betw between een form and func functio tion n is be being ing que questi stione oned d and re-evaluated. Once through the arc architect hitecture ure section of of the show, show, the the glam glamour our of the fashion world is reintroduced. In a mirrored gallery gallery that takes up the large largest st space space in the exhibition, exhibition, the gown gownss are divided divided into two secti sections, ons, one dedicated to the designers who came to prominence in the 1970s and ’80s — Christian Christian Lacroix, Lacroix, Karl LagerLagerfeld for Chanel, Giorgio di Saint’Angelo gelo,, Thiery Mugler. The other is a showcase for designers who are making headlines today — Jo John hn Galliano for Dior, Dior, Donat Donatella ella Ve Versac rsace, e, Alex Alexander ander McQueen, Zac Posen. What makes this section of the exhibitionso bitionso appealin appealing g isthe proximi proximity ty of  the dresses to the public. No glass wall wall,, no redvelvet redvelvet rope rope to keep keep vis visititors at b bay ay,, and a platfo platform rm desi design gn that allows an up close and person personal al view of each dress. How else would it be possible to spot the plastic sequins used to line the undersid derside e of a fuch fuchsia sia gown gown by Vers ersace ace with a thigh-high thigh-high slit? Or the dice buttons on on the bac back k of an ink black evenevening gown designed by Karl Lagerfeld in 1983for his first collectionfor collectionfor Chanel? Chanel? The gown gown is a clin d’œil from from the designer about the gamble the house took when they hired him. The incorpor incorporation ation of material materialss like polyester, raffia and polyurethane in-

SAN FRANCISCO

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 A showstopper  in the industrial design section of the exhibition is Vincent Van  Duyen’s 2003  creation ‘‘Cascade Chandelier,’’  a waterfall of Swarovski crystal and light that  overflows onto a mirrortopped table.

Swarovski Crystal Palace

to these one-of-a-kind gowns hints at the viab viability ility of a newglamour that is not restricted restricted to the use of luxurious fabrics. It also alludes to what awaits in the final room of the show, which is dedicated to industrial design. The idea that that utility and extravaextravagance in industrial design are not mutually exclusive, exclusive, and that glamour has also found its way way to the masses, is be ess t p la la ye ye d o ut ut i n th is is r oo oo m b y the the contrast of two light installations. One is Vincent Van Duyen’s Duyen’s 2003 creation ‘‘Cascade Chandelier,’’ a shimmer mering ing torren torrentt of Sw Swaro arovski vski crys crystal tal and light that radia radiates tes glamo glamour ur and abundance abund ance as it spills onto a mirrormirrortopped table. The other is Tord Boontje’s paper-

doll-inspired ‘‘Midsummer Lamp,’’ produced the same year. These two objects show the two extremes of glamour in in nd d us us ttrr iiaa l d es es iig g n. n. T h he e fo orr me me r i s a unique piece, the latter is available for sale in the museum gift shop to anyone willing to spend $65.00. Wi Withou thoutt a doubt doubt,, the defini definitio tion n of  glamour is in flux. The advent of handicrafts mixing with mass production has crea createda teda newworldof mass customizcustomization. And in the world of fashion a new breed of clothing has started to emerge in the form of ‘‘customized ready-towear.’’ wear.’’ This democratiz democratization ation of glamour has made itpossible fo forr anyone to to aspire to a more glamorous life, no pedigree required. International Herald Tribune

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