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Art, Designers, Exhibitions, Fashion, London

Hello, My Name is Paul Smith – Design Museum

November 21, 2013 by cheriecity

Hello, My Name is Paul Smith at London’s Design Museum takes a personal look at the renowned British designer’s work, life and influences.

The exhibition begins with a recreation of the very first Paul Smith shop in 1970s Nottingham, measuring a tiny 3m x 3m. This leads on to the main hall, which features a vast collection of paintings, photographs, prints, magazine clippings and hand-writted fan letters from Paul Smith’s personal archives.

It shows Paul Smith as an avid collector, with a number of instantly recognisable images and original artworks.

Also recreated for the exhibition is Paul Smith’s personal office – a busy hub of inspiration and creativity. The designer himself held court in the office for a morning of interviews, while his narration throughout the exhibition gives an insight into his mind.

The next room is an artistic replica of the humble beginnings of the Paul Smith label in a Paris hotel room in 1976 (even then the trademark stripes were present). With a collection of just six shirts, two jumpers and two suits laid out on a black felt-covered bed, Paul Smith took his first client order. His first show at a friend’s flat on Paris’ Rue Vaugirard followed and the brand grew from there.

We are also treated to an inside look at the Paul Smith design studio in Covent Garden. This is where the ideas happen – where garments are designed, colours are paired and fabrics are chosen. Sketches and mood boards show the design process behind the collections.

Also on display are campaigns that Paul Smith has shot himself over the years, alongside those by David Bailey, Mario Testino and Sandro Sodano.

The exhibition also touches on Paul Smith’s successful collaborations with brands such as Evian, Thomas Goode, Mini Cooper, Roberts Radio and even HP Sauce. His love of cycling is also referenced with his collection of Rapha cycling jerseys.

Another room features behind-the-scenes footage of Paul Smith at work and his SS14 catwalk show in Paris, filmed by Sony and shown on Sony 4K TVs with impressive picture and sound quality.

Of course, the exhibition wouldn’t be complete without pieces from Paul Smith collections over the years, showing his signature exquisite tailoring, vivid colours and stunning digital prints.

Hello, My Name is Paul Smith is a dedicated, imaginative and personal view of the world of Paul Smith. The tributes to his wife Pauline Denyer Smith are touching and it’s easy to lose a few hours examining the wall of photographs and paintings.

Hello, My Name is Paul Smith runs until 9th March 2014 at Design Museum. For more information, visit: www.designmuseum.org

All photos by Chérie City

Designers, Events, Exhibitions, Fashion, London, Photography

Tim Walker Story Teller At Somerset House

October 18, 2012 by cheriecity

A highlight of the London exhibition calendar this season is Tim Walker Story Teller, a beautifully-curated vision of the fashion photographer’s otherworldly images at Somerset House.

Yesterday, I was treated to a special preview of the exhibition, led by Tim Walker himself. Supported by Mulberry, the exhibition takes place in the stunning new East Wing Galleries at Somerset House and focuses on Walker’s photography. The dazzling images are punctuated with over-sized installations, props and sketches, offering an insight into the painstaking production and mechanics behind the shoots.

The subjects of the photographs are mostly the cream of the fashion world – supermodels, designers, renowned critics, East End club kids and the more avant-garde actresses. In the exhibition we see Karen Elson as Little Red Riding Hood, Kristen McMenamy entrapped by a white spider, Alber Elbaz in bunny ears, Lindsay Wixson terrorised by a giant doll and Helena Bonham-Carter as a disgruntled queen wearing Vivienne Westwood and sipping on a can of Diet Coke.

There is also a rare chance to see the sheer size of the installations that feature in the photographs, including a melancholy crying skeleton, a creepy over-sized doll, insects playing double bass, a snail crawling down the wall and a full-size Spitfire plane.

The exquisite garments are a huge part of the visual narratives and Tim Walker’s images were just made for showcasing couture. Look out for masterful, extravagant dresses by Chanel Haute Couture, Oscar de la Renta, Jean Paul Gaultier Couture, Givenchy Haute Couture, Dior Haute Couture, Giorgio Armani Privé, Atelier Versace, Alexander McQueen and Valentino Couture.

One of my favourite images from the show is Stella Tennant wearing a Peter Jensen magenta gown and covered in vivid pink powder clouds, shot in the gardens of Eglingham Hall in Northumberland. Having grown up in Northumberland and spent countless summers visiting the county’s various stately homes, it was a delight to see Tim Walker’s dreamy scenes shot there, bringing the historic rooms to life.

To coincide with the exhibition, Thames & Hudson have published the most beautiful book entitled Story Teller by Tim Walker (£45), featuring over 175 images from Walker’s personal archives – some images can also be spotted in the exhibition. The book includes a foreword by Kate Bush, an introduction by Robin Muir and a poetic afterword by Tim Walker. I was lucky enough to receive a copy to add to my fashion book collection and it’s already one of my favourites.

Tim Walker Story Teller is like stepping into a dream world, and the exhibition perfectly presents the fashion photographer’s breathtaking, imaginatively styled, witty and often whimsical and ethereal images. Spend a few hours getting lost in Tim Walker’s wonderland – it’s a truly enchanting, enthralling experience.

Tim Walker Story Teller runs until 27 January 2013 in the East Wing Galleries at Somerset House and admission is free. Story Teller by Tim Walker is available to buy at Amazon.co.uk

For more information, visit: www.somersethouse.org.uk

Photos by Mulberry and Chérie City

Art, Designers, Events, Exhibitions, Fashion, Guest posts, London

Dior Illustrated: René Gruau and the Line of Beauty

November 14, 2010 by cheriecity

Coralie Aude Grassin explores the elegant world of Christian Dior through the illustration of René Gruau at the private view at Somerset House…

Any woman will gasp at the name. We are talking haute-couture, glamour and chic. Dresses so beautifully cut they seem unreal, as if they had been sewn on the body – the essence of femininity.

To learn a little more about this magic, rush to the Somerset House’s retrospective of René Gruau, Dior’s iconic illustrator.

The two artists met in 1936, when they were both working in the fashion department of le Figaro.

They shared the same thoughts, the same visions: a friendship that also led to a fruitful collaboration of 50 years…

When Dior launched the New Look in 1947, there was no hesitation: Gruau was the one to illustrate it and he would have carte blanche.

Together they defined an elegant woman – radiant, clothes likes flower petals around her, mysterious, the femme fatale.

The war had just ended, the public now focusing on a joie de vivre. Ideal timing for a new style! Inspired by Japanese calligraphy, Gruau designs have a sophisticated and feline air about them.

In just a few lines, he creates a whole story and you could spend hours imagining the life of his characters.

He succeeds in capturing details: the position of a curl, the eyebrow innocently raised in a silent question, the half smile, the languid pose.

For Diorama, he paints a veil and gloves on a chair – the movement is such you could swear the woman was there a second ago, her perfume still lingering in the room.

So intense you feel you could step in the picture and grab those accessories…

My favourite part definitely is the male image he created. Imagine the readers’ shock when they opened their Figaro, looked at the Eau Sauvage ad and saw…black slippers, a pair of hairy legs, and a white bathrobe cut at the waist!

What a revolution: sexy yet relaxed. Although it was controversial at the time, it did prove a real success and more humoristic versions followed.

When Dior died in 1957, Gruau continued to work on the perfumes ads until the late 1980s – an unequalled era which inspired so many other creators: daring, sophisticated and timeless.

Even 50 years down the line, each piece remains as powerful. Magnifique!

Dior Illustrated: René Gruau and the Line of Beauty runs until 9 January 2011 at Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 1LA

Photos by Coralie Aude Grassin

Exhibitions, Fashion, News, USA

Daphne Guinness opens her wardrobe to New York

February 26, 2010 by cheriecity

Haute couture collector Daphne Guinness has one of the most enviable wardrobes in the world and now we can take a peak at her sartorial treasures.

Daphne will be exhibition 80-100 pieces from her extensive collection at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology. Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Comme des Garçons, Dolce & Gabbana and Azzedine Alaïa.

F.I.T’s chief museum curator Valerie Steele will work with Daphne to highlight her signature styles through the garments, so expect plenty of neck ruffs, hats, jewel encrusted ribbons, pristine white shirts and House of Harlot patent leather Mary Jane platforms.

For those of us who can’t just hop on a plane to NYC, an accompanying coffee table book will be published by Yale University Press.

Daphne oftens describes herself as “a work in progress”, from her ‘Cruella De Vil’ striped hair to her various fashion and art projects. She certainly has a compulsive attitude towards fashion, making it her life’s work to create the perfect white shirt or find just the right height and shape for her trademark platform heels.

I adore Daphne Guiness mostly for her fearless embracing of the future. She’s had the kind of charmed, bohemian past that most people could only dream of – growing up in artist colony Cadaqués with the likes of Dali, Duchamp and Man Ray, hanging out with Andy Warhol in New York and sailing around the Med with millionaire ex-husband, Spyros Niarchos.

However, she started to make a name for herself assisting friend Isabella Blow on fashion shoots, becoming a muse to her designer friends and creating her first scent, Daphne, with Comme des Garçons.

The exhibition promises to include the most impressive selection from Daphne’s wardrobe, especially as she weeded out the ‘chaff’ two years ago, auctioning off over 260 lots in aid of Womankind, a charity to help women in developing countries.

The exhibition runs from September 2011 to January 2012 at the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York.