Creative Process Journal: If Marie Antoinette was a Blogger

If Marie Antoinette was a Blogger II by Ingrid Mida (Copyright 2011)

In this work, a dress once worn by Marie Antoinette from the collection of the Royal Ontario Museum is reimagined and recreated from a mash up of toile de jouey fabrics which depict an appropriated version of Fraggonard’s painting The Swing. This post-modern pastiche of the original dress is embellished with hot pink ribbons, a colour associated with third wave feminism. Instead of the panier and petticoat normally worn with a robe a la francaise, the dress is styled in a contemporary way with jeans and brogues to further emphasize the post-modern aspect of its creation.

In a nod to the construction of identity reflected in the phenomena of personal style blogs, the artist photographs herself wearing the dress while holding a mirror over her face. The mirror, a tool used by style bloggers to hide their identity, also symbolizes femininity. With further manipulation in Photoshop, multiple selves are depicted in the ballroom of the Palais Garnier in Paris as a play on the myth of photographic truth.

The title of the work, If Marie Antoinette was a Blogger, signifies the irony with which this project was conceived. In the post that would accompany the image, Marie Antoinette would quote theorist Michel Foucault on the aesthetics of existence from his 1984 work On the Genealogy of Ethics as follows:

“What strikes me is the fact that in our society, art has become something which is related only to objects and not to individuals, or to life. That art is something which is specialized or which is done by experts who are artists. But couldn’t everyone’s life become a work of art?...From the idea that the self is not given to us, I think that there is only one practical consequence: we have to create ourselves as a work of art” (350-1).

With a blog, everyone’s life can become a work of art today and therein lies the ultimate irony of Foucault's statement.  

For further reading:

"Personal Fashion Blog: Screens and Mirrors in Digital Self-portraits" by Agnes Rocamora in Fashion Theory, Volume 15, Issue 4, December 2011

On the Genealogy of Ethics: An overview of work in Progress. In P. Rabinow (ed.), The Foucault Reader. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1984.

Project Clock: +12 hours for final embellishments and finishing of dress, photographs, manipulation in photoshop and preparation of artist statement
Total to date: 65 hours

P.S. This is the final post of the Creative Process Journal for this project. I hope you enjoyed the journey!

Creative Process Journal: The Dress

It's been one of those weeks.... I sort of feel like I've been to hell and back and so spending some time in the studio was a dose of joy. This is the dress - a post-modern pastiche of Marie Antoinette's dress from the Royal Ontario Museum. 

Post-modern Marie Antoinette Dress by Ingrid Mida 2011

Post-modern Marie Antoinette Dress Back by Ingrid Mida 2011

It's a mash up of 18th century and contemporary style with heavy doses of pink in reference to third wave feminism. I made the skirt to accommodate paniers and without them it drags at the sides somewhat, but that's all I had time for. Besides if Marie Antoinette were here today, she would probably wear jeans or a miniskirt under this get-up.

Post-modern Marie Antoinette Shoes by Ingrid Mida 2011

Instead of the pink Converse shoes, I decided to go with these patent leather pink and cream brogues with a heel by Bass. I fancy I can wear them myself - perhaps with my upcoming interview with Jeanne Beker of Fashion Television!

Project clock: +10 hours
Total to-date: 53 hours

Convergence: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Fashion

Ruth Dukas Paper Dress (Photo from the Toronto Telegram November 16, 1967)

Remember this post back in February where I wrote about a display of paper dresses at the Costume and Textile Gallery at the Royal Ontario Museum? It just goes to show you that you never know where a blog post might lead....

Not long after I wrote about that paper dress (pictured in the photo above), I received an email from the designer's son asking for a copy of the photo for his mom. Well long story short, I ended up doing an oral history interview with the designer, Ruth Dukas, for the ROM archives. As it turns out, Ruth only made one paper dress in her career, but was in fact renowned for the exquisite embroidery and beading of her evening gowns and cocktail dresses.

During the course of my research into Ruth's career as a designer during the 1960s, I fell in love with research and 1960s fashion, plus ended up back in grad school for a second masters degree.... On Saturday, I will be speaking at Ryerson University about the career of Ruth Dukas and the issues related to oral history projects.

This event called Convergence: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Fashion reflects the interdisciplinary nature of scholarly fashion research today. Speakers from Ryerson, York and University of Toronto will present their research in three panels including - Narratives of Femininity in Fashion; Canadian Content? From Local to Global; and The Spaces in Fashion: Conditions & Contexts. The plenary talk will be given at 4:30 pm by Kate Strasdin of the University of Southampton and The Royal Ontario Museum’s 2011 Gervers Fellow.

The event takes place tomorrow - Saturday, November 5, 2011 at Ryerson University, 40 Gould Street, Kerr Hall South, Room 251, from 9 am to 5:30 pm. I will be speaking at 11 am and attendees are welcome to come anytime during the day. The event is free and open to the general public. More details are available at www.ryersonfashionsymposium.ca.

Check out the amusing interview with Dr. Alison Matthews David, the organizer of the symposium, on Worn Fashion Journal's blog called "Embrace Your Inner Fashion Nerd".

What's on the Fashion Calendar for November?

Queen Alexandra in Court Dress
Courtesy of the ROM and subject to copyright

November is another hectic month!!! Here is what's on the fashion calendar:

November 4 - Opening of the Grace Kelly exhibit at the TIFF Lightbox in Toronto. Last year, I went to London to see this exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Read my review here.

November 5 - I will be speaking about my research on Ruth Dukas, a Canadian designer of evening wear in the 1960s, at the Ryerson University Graduate Research Symposium called Convergence. Speakers will present their research in three panels including - Narratives of Femininity in Fashion; Canadian Content? From Local to Global; and The Spaces in Fashion: Conditions & Contexts. The plenary talk will be given at 4:30 pm by Kate Strasdin of the University of Southampton and The Royal Ontario Museum’s 2011 Gervers Fellow. This event is free and held on campus. More details are available at www.ryersonfashionsymposium.ca.

November 8 - Harold Koda, Chief Curator of the Metropolitan Museum of Art will be coming to Toronto as the Bata Shoe Museum Founder's Lecture Series to talk about Fashion and the Art Museum. The transcript of my interview with Harold Koda will be published on Fashion Projects next week. Tickets for the event are available through the Bata Shoe Museum.

November 11 - Kate Strasdin will be giving the 20th annual Veronika Gervers Memorial Lecture called "A Royal Wardrobe Unlocked: Queen Alexandra 1863-1910" at the Royal Ontario Museum from 530-630 pm. Kate has been studying the ROM's collection of  Queen Alexandra’s clothing. According to the press release, the Museum’s holdings "include significant evening garments from her earliest years as Princess of Wales to the more stately examples she wore as Queen. These objects offer a sparkling snapshot into the world and wardrobe of one of the most famous women of the nineteenth century." For more information on this free event, visit the ROM's website here.

November 13 - The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier opens in Dallas at the Museum of Art. This exhibition was developed by the Montreal Museum of Fine Art and this will be its first stop on its tour of the world. There will be some new exhibition additions including a motorcycle suit with headlights costume for Pedro Almodovar's 1993 film "Kika" and a menswear outfit from the recent Gaultier Haute Couture Fall Winter 2011/2012 collection. My review of the MMFA exhibition and my interviews with curators Thierry Maxime Loriot and Nathalie Bondil are on Fashion Projects.

Creative Process Journal: The Nature of Obsession

Marie Antoinette Obsession (Digital Collage by Ingrid Mida 2011)

Obsession is defined in the Webster's dictionary as "the domination of one's thoughts or feelings by a persistent idea, image or desire." Under that definition, it is clear that I am obsessed -  with the dress that is believed to have been worn by Marie Antoinette and that is now part of the Royal Ontario Museum's collection. What it is about that particular dress that haunts me I cannot articulate clearly... It might be because that dress was the reason I discovered that the world of fashion had a scholarship beyond what I knew from fashion magazines. But it is clear that I am not alone in my obsession with this dress or Marie Antoinette.

It was not long after the doomed Queen of France lost her head that others became obsessed with her. In the middle of the 19th century, Empress Eugenie became obsessed with Marie Antoinette. In an article called The Empress's New Clothes, Fashion and Politics in Second Empire France, the author, Therese Dolan,  writes Eugenie "wished to connect her personal image with what she perceived to be the political astuteness and personal courage of the beheaded queen." Eugenie's imitation of Marie Antoinette influenced the revival of 18th century styled fashions including the exaggerated silhouette of enormous skirts and other accessories like the fichu and mantillas. (Dolan: 26-27)

In an article called Marie Antoinette Obsession published in the University of California Press by Terry Castle (Volume No. 39, Spring 1992, p 1-38), he refers to several case histories of women becoming obsessed with Marie Antoinette:

In the case of "Helene Smith", she claimed in a state of hypnotic trance to have had three previous lives, one of which included Marie Antoinette. At such times, she would "pantomime with a handkerchief or an imaginary fan, pretend to take snuff, mimic the action of throwing back a train, and address those present as though speaking to members of a court." (Castle: 2) Observers of her trance-like behaviours as Marie Antoinette believed that Smith's "embodiment as queen was often convincing, if not moving." (Castle: 2)

Castle also refers to an article from 1907,  in the British Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, in which an anonymous author described having seeing an apparition that she believed "to be the ghost of the French Queen" which had appeared to her repeatedly since childhood.  The writer of this article called "Dream Romances" admitted that she could not think of any "plausible explanations" for her visions. (Castle: 2-4)

In 1911, a book called "An Adventure" was published by Macmillan in which the authors "Miss Morison" and "Miss Lamont" described seeing an apparition of the queen and several members of her court in the gardens of Versailles near the Petit Trianon. It was later revealed that the authors of this book were in fact two academics, Charlotte Anne Moberly and Eleanor Jourdain, the principal and vice-principal of a college in Oxford. These two respectable women faced a great deal of ridicule after their identities were revealed and yet even in the "face of exquisite public ridicule" they maintained their beliefs and spent many years trying to validate their claims. (Castle 5-6)

The point of Castle's article is not to point out the oddity of this obsession but instead to ask the question "What was it about Marie Antoinette - and Marie Antoinette alone - that she should become so extraordinarily present, more than one hundred years after her death, to four presumably intelligent, well-educated and otherwise conventional women?" (Castle: 8)

And while I disagree with the balance of Castle's argument (which delves into Freudian analysis and homoerotic attachment), I think he poses an interesting question. Why have so many succumbed to an obsession with Marie Antoinette?

Works Cited:
Marie Antoinette Obsession
Author: Terry Castle
Source: Representations, No. 38 (Spring 1992) pg. 1-38
Published by: University of California Press

The Empress's New Clothes: Fashion and Politics in Second Empire France
Author: Therese Dolan
Source: Woman's Art Journal, Vol. 15, No. 1 (Spring - Summer, 1994) pp. 22-28
Published by: Woman's Art, Inc.

Project Clock: + 4 hours (research, article analysis, digital collage and blog write-up)
Total to date: 10 hours

Creative Process Journal: Marie Antoinette Slept Here

Marie Antoinette: Victim or Villain  (Digital Collage) by Ingrid Mida October 2011

This is the launch of my creative process journal for a new project called ..... Marie Antoinette Slept Here.

The concept is a riff on celebrity culture. As a society, we seem so entranced by celebrities - what they wear, where they go, what they do. The tabloid newspapers and media sites that are fueled by the activities of celebrities are proof of that. And I have to admit I'm guilty of that too - with my ongoing fascination with Marie Antoinette. As I mentioned in a post earlier this week, it was those initial posts I wrote about the dress at the Royal Ontario Museum which initially sparked the popularity of my blog. I continue to get hits and emails about Marie Antoinette to this day.

My idea is to  make a robe a la francasie that is inspired by the dress belonging to the ROM, but constructed in a post-modern way.  I will imagine the dress as it was before alteration to recreate the exaggerated silhouette of the time using a mash up of fabrics that I purchased in Paris several years ago. This choice of fabric will be a form of textual poaching in that the meaning will be renegotiated to reflect a critique of culture.

While I am making the dress, I will use process work to consider how to strengthen the metaphor and develop it into a conceptual art piece. I will alter the dress in some way - perhaps through embroidery, paint or in some other intervention - to make more than just a dress. It will be a statement about celebrity culture and our fascination with this woman. I will post regular updates as I create this dress for a December 5 deadline.

Project Clock: 5 hours for initial concept development + 1 hour digital collage = 6 hours

It all started with Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette's Dress (Property of the Royal Ontario Museum)

Life is funny. If someone had told me that one day I'd be interviewing curators and that people in New York would be talking about a speech I'd given on the topic of Fashion and Art, I would have laughed at the improbability of it all. And yet, that is now my reality and it is all because of a dress.....

Back in 2008, I was new to blogging. All I knew at that point was that I wanted to write about fashion, art and books. It was a slow beginning. And then one day, I saw a dress at the Royal Ontario Museum that may have been worn by Marie Antoinette. It is probably the only such dress in existence and is believed to have survived because it was customary for royalty to give away their clothing after the season. The dress had been altered in the 19th century and was purchased by the ROM in 1925 by the ROM's first director, Charles Trick Currelly, from an antiques dealer in London, England.  I became obsessed with this dress and wanted to understand what it might have looked like before it was altered (actually I'm stilll obsessed with this dress and will soon begin to post about a creative project inspired by that dress).  I started reading everything I could about Marie Antoinette and 18th century dress and discovered a whole world of fashion scholarship that I had not even known existed. By immersing myself in the topic, I taught myself costume history. (The one thing I learned from my first master's degree was how to teach myself anything although I have since taken courses in costume history). And although fashion had been my muse in my art practice for several years before this juncture, I also began to make replicas of period dress in paper, in fabric and in mesh. I attended lectures and exhibitions about costumes and textiles. As I gained knowledge, I began to write about what I saw - at first for my blog, then for newsletters and then for journals and now for my masters of fashion thesis.

There was a time when I worked in finance that I had an unshakable confidence in what I was doing. They called me the Blonde Barracuda - probably because I was fearless in speaking my mind. But when I left that career to care for my sick little boy and tend to my dying father, my self confidence evaporated. It seemed that people no longer were interested in what I had to say because I was a stay at home mother.... And even after I forged a new career as a photographer and then as an artist, something still didn't fit. As much as I enjoyed the process of creation, I did not feel intellectually engaged or challenged as an artist and my days in the studio were too solitary. But what this immersion in art has done is helped me to understand the common visual vocabulary and processes shared by both art and fashion.

After attending the Costume Society of America mid-west conference last weekend, I feel like I have found my people... I speak the language of fashion academia and I'll be reshaping my speech into an article to submit for publication. Who knows maybe one day I'll actually be brave enough to actually talk to Hamish Bowles and Anna Wintour ....

P.S. I received permission from Valerie Steele and Harold Koda to publish the transcripts of our conversations on fashion and art on Fashion Projects.

Why?

Another one of my retail therapy purchases from Anthropolgie (Pansy trench)

Why? This question has been asked of me so many times in the past few weeks, and especially so yesterday. Why would you go back to school to get a second masters degree if you already have a masters degree? And given that you have already established yourself as an artist and writer, what more could you want? Why indeed? This very question ran through my mind in the wee hours of the morning as my brain struggled to process what I will have to juggle over the next two years.

Why not? That's how I generally approach most interesting opportunities that come my way. Certainly that has led to some missteps along the way, but generally I've found my life to be richer for all the experiences I've had and all the people I've met.

But in this case, there was another factor involved. As my mother approaches the final stages of her life, I've watched her suffer as her world has shrunk. Robbed of her health and independence, she still sparkles with intelligence, but sadly she is haunted by regrets at opportunities not taken. Listening to her voice those regrets has deepened my resolve that life should be lived without regret.

The joy of doing scholarly research, with the painstaking attention to detail that it requires, is something that I rediscovered in working behind the scenes in the Costume and Textile department at the Royal Ontario Museum this past year. It challenged my brain in a way that I've missed in the last decade of my life. And it was a chance comment that I made to a professor about this research that led to this new opportunity to do the Master of Arts, Fashion at Ryerson University. I have so many unique research ideas that I'm certain I could write several theses.

As I walked into the classroom yesterday with my stomach in knots, I was relieved to discover that there are others who are changing their life's direction. With backgrounds in marketing, psychology, sociology, design, law, fine arts, English and finance, we are a wonderful jumble of talented folk. It seems that I'm not the only one who is choosing to live life without regrets.

What about you? What would you chose to do or be if you could do anything?

There is no looking back (Back view of Pansy Trench from Anthropologie)

Is Fashion an Art Form?

Garments from Zandra Rhodes Collection of 1986-87 Spanish Impressions Collection,
Photo by Anthony Scoggins 2010

Is fashion an art form? According to acclaimed fashion designer Zandra Rhodes, the answer is yes!

In a conversation with Alice Rawsthorn, a columnist for the NY Times, Zandra said "I think fashion is an art form - you might call it decorative or applied art as opposed to fine art, but what is the distinction? Because the same amount of artistic expression goes into clothes, a piece of pottery or a painting." (pg. 103, Fashion Theory: A Reader, Routledge, London, 2007). Rawsthorn argued otherwise - citing the practical purpose of clothing as the reason fashion is not a true art form.

It's probably no surprise that I agree with Zandra. Her work speaks for itself. Fashion and art are one.

Zandra Rhodes was born in 1940 and her mother was a fitter for the Paris fashion House of Worth. Zandra studied printed textile design at The Royal College of Art in London and was a pioneer in the use of printed textiles as an intrinsic part of the garments she created. She opened her first shop in London in 1967 and was nicknamed the "Princess of Punk" after her 1977 collection which incorporated holes and beaded safety pins.  Zandra is renowned for her use of bold prints, feminine patterns and theatrical use of colour, not to mention her signature pink hairdo. She has created garments for many celebrities including Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Isabella Blow, Helen Mirren and Sarah Jessica Parker. In the last few years, she has designed sets and costumes for the opera. Her work is included in many museum collections, including the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Royal Ontario Museum.

Installation shot of Punk garments by Zandra Rhodes, 1977-78.
Photo by Anthony Scoggins 2010

The Mingei Museum in San Diego is currently showing a retrospective of Zandra Rhodes work called A Lifelong Affair with Textiles which features garments from the 1960s through the 1980s.  The pieces reveal her process, approach to shape, color, technique and worldwide influences, and are complemented by textiles and objects from the Museum’s collection to emphasize the varied cultural sources of her creations.  The exhibition, which continues through April 3, 2011, has previously been seen in London, Italy, Australia, and Mexico City.

Zandra Rhodes Title Wall, Photo by Anthony Scoggins 2010

Zandra Rhodes will be speaking at the Mingei Museum on Saturday, March 19, 2011 at 7-8 pm in conversation with Nicolas Reveles, The Geisei Director of Education and Outreach for the San Diego Opera.

Mingei Museum
1439 El Prado - on the Plaza de Panama
San Diego CA 92101
P: 619-239-0003
F: 619-239-0605
E: mingei@mingei.org

Photo credits: The photos for this post were provided courtesy of the Mingei Museum and subject to copyright.

19th Century Day Dresses

Woman's day dress, USA c.1826-1834
ROM 975.241.18 A-B (Gift of Mrs. Henry P. Kendall)
Photo by ROM Staff under copyright

In "Striking and Innovative Printed Fashions in the 19th Century" at the Royal Ontario Museum's Patricia Harris Gallery of Textiles & Costume, a selection of beautiful 19th century day dresses are currently on display. In the photo above, a woman's cotton day dress and belt (c.1826-34) illustrates the 19th century technical innovations achieved in printing fashionable textiles. According to Dr. Alexandra Palmer, senior curator, the "inventive manufacturers enticed consumers by combining hand and mechanical printing techniques, thereby creating new colours and patterns. The resultant fashions using the latest scientific inventions in textile production clearly signified modernity."





19th Century Dresses on display at the ROM
Photo by Ingrid Mida 2011



The display at the ROM includes these printed cotton gowns from the 19th century as well as charming examples of children's wear of the time.

According to the chapter Of the Choice of Clothing in the book The Lady's Stratagem, there were very defined rules for what was considered fashionable and appropriate attire in the 19th century.

"When at home, you should always be dressed neatly and respectably enough to go out or visit your friends without having to put on any thing except your gloves, shawl and hat; but dress without any affectation. If you clothing is over-trimmed or appears to hamper daily occupations, it might perhaps be even more ridiculous than if it were too common. Wear pretty prunella shoes; very white cotton stockings; a gown of gingham, a beautiful calico, or merino according to the season, suitably trimmed; a belt without ribaund loops; a collerette or fichu de lingere; a very neat coiffure en cheveux; and finally, if you have a great deal to do, a black silk apron. Such is the costume which is proper for a woman in her home. Gowns of silk, muslin, and other such materials, unless you have a very considerable fortune, bespeak vanity and indolence. In my opinion, a young woman's attire should be a constant testiomy of modesty, order and industry." (page 186)

From  "The Lady's Stratagem. A Repository of 1820s Directions for the Toilet, Mantua-Making, Stay-Making, Millinery and Etiquette" Edited by Frances Grimble, Lavolta Press, 2009.

Clothing as Canvas by Jean Paul Gaultier

Virgin with Child and Angels by Jean Fouquet 1450
 (Painting in collection of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp)

In 1450, artist Jean Fouquet painted an eroticized version of the Madonna with her breast exposed in his painting "Virgin with Child and Angels".  Believed to be based on Agnès Sorel, a favoured and beautiful mistress of King Charles VII, this painting must have raised some controversy in its time.


In 1994, fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier, no stranger to controversy himself, used Fouquet's image to create the fabric for this transparent and form fitting man's t-shirt and woman's dress. 

Man's T-shirt 2001.128.9 and Woman's Dress 999.113.3.1
by Jean Paul Gaultier 1994 (Photo by ROM staff)

Art and fashion become one in these garments with the clothing acting as canvas. According to Dr. Alexandra Palmer, Senior Curator of Fashion and Textiles at the ROM, these garments question "our historic and current understanding of fashion, gender and the body, as well as the role of religious painting."  Look at the positioning of the Madonna on the man's t-shirt compared to the positioning of the image on the woman's dress (back and front have similar placement). 

Installation shot Patricia Harris Gallery of Costume and Textiles at the ROM
Photo by ROM staff 2011

These two garments are currently on display in the Patricia Harris Gallery of Costumes and Textiles at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

Photo credits: All photos provided by the Royal Ontario Museum and are subject to copyright. 

Clothing as Canvas

The phenomena of the paper dress is something that has long intrigued and inspired me. First introduced to the market in 1966 as a novelty item by the Scott Paper Company, paper dresses were an instant hit.  Released from the narrow constricts of what was considered acceptable attire in an era of sexual and workplace revolution, women quickly adopted the freedom of these cheap and sexy paper dresses. I've written many posts about the paper dress in the past, and was delighted to discover that The Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto has several on display in their Jennifer Ivey Bannock Exhibit on the fourth floor.

Time Magazine dress, Printed paper designed by Walter Lefmann and Ron de Vito
USA 1967 Gift of Time International of Canada Ltd.
ROM 967.77 (Photo by ROM staff)

According to Dr. Alexandra Palmer, Senior Curator Senior Curator Textiles & Costume at the ROM "the newest display entitled Clothing as Canvas presents paper fashions that emulate textiles and fashion and textiles that copy printed paper from the 1940s to the present." 

Besides the striking Time Magazine dress, I was drawn to a paper gown created by Toronto designer Ruth Dukas in 1967 for a gala event in support of the National Ballet of Canada. The volunteer committee asked several fashion designers including Yves Saint Laurent, Pierre Cardin, Courreges, Pucci and Geoffrey Beene to create paper dresses for the evening's event and auction. The Ruth Dukas dress (shown below) is made of painted paper, glued on cloth flowers and sequins. If I hadn't been told that it was paper, I would have guessed that it was cotton.

Evening gown by Ruth Dukas 1967
Printed paper, glued on cloth flowers and sequins
ROM 968.200A, Gift of the National Ballet of Canada

Also on display are textiles that look like paper including a silk knit dress designed by John Galliano for Christian Dior ready to wear 2000-2001. The fabric of this dress is printed to look like a fictional Dior newspaper with reviews and commentary on his collection and was worn and donated to the ROM by Torontonian Kara Alloway. The printed textile of the Dior dress echoes a scarf created by Elsa Schiaparelli from the 1940s (which is also on display). Given my background in newspaper publishing, I lingered for a long time in front of these items - so long in fact, that the security guard nervously hovered close by until I left the gallery.

John Galliano for Dior, 2000-2001 Ready to Wear ROM2002.39.1 Photo by ROM staff

Royal Ontario Museum
100 Queen's Park, Toronto, Ontario
416-586-8000
www.rom.on.ca

Photo credits: All photos were provided by the ROM and are subject to copyright.

El Anatsui at the ROM

A partial view of El Anatsui's sculpture at the ROM

Another must-see exhibit in Toronto is the work of El Anatsui now on at the Royal Ontario Museum. This talented artist creates the most extraordinary wall hangings out of found objects like tin cans and bottle caps. Spanning an entire wall, these hangings shimmer like glistening fabric, creating beauty out of what would otherwise be discarded.

This is the first retrospective of El Anatsui's career which spans four decades. The exhibition includes wood and metal sculptures, ceramics, paintings, prints and drawings. Ghanian-born El Anatsui is internationally renowned and considered one of the most original artists of his generation.

It was a few years back when I first saw a single sculpture of El Anatsui's in a group sculpture show in New York and was astounded by its originality.  I'll never look at a bottle cap in quite the same way again.

Arts reviewer Leah Sandals interviewed El Anatsui for the National Post and posted her interview here.  When I read the interview, I could not stop thinking about one part in which El Anatsui suggested that if an artist works in more than one medium, he/she is flitting around. "If you pick a medium or a process, you (must) stay with it for a long time." But as soon as I walked into the exhibition itself, I saw that he contradicted himself by not only working in bottle-cap sculptures, but also wood sculpture, ceramics, painting, prints and drawings.

The ROM is the first stop for this exhibition before it begins a tour of the USA.


El Anatsui, When I Last Wrote to You about Africa
On until February 27, 2011
Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

What I learned about Costumes on Stage

On Saturday, the Friends of the Textile and Costume at the Royal Ontario Museum hosted an event called Costumes on Stage which featured co-director of Opera Atelier Marshall Pynkoski, freelance costume designer Martha Mann,  and costumer/cutter Rita Brown.  As the event photographer, I had only half an ear open to the presentation but I managed to scribble down a few notes nonetheless.

Detail from Costume designed by Martha Mann

Marshall Pynkoski, co-director of Opera Atelier, spoke with great enthusiasm about his love of the 18th century as inspiration for his productions. One of the challenges he expressed was how to bring forward the depths of emotion from the actors so that the production did not become "just a parade of gorgeous costumes". To show costumes in motion, four Opera Atelier dancers took to the stage.

Dancers from Opera Atelier

Martha Mann, who is designed Opera Atelier's costumes for the Marriage of Figaro including those shown above, talked about her process as a designer which encompassed:

1. Analysis: an initial analysis of the music and words to understand the period and setting of the production, the time of day, season of the year, social status of the characters
2. Concept Meeting with the Director: an effort to understand what the director is trying to say with this production and to clarify questions from her initial analysis
3. Research: a process which includes looking through picture files, paintings, books to identify motifs for the period, silhouettes and shapes of clothing, colour and styles of fabrics.
4. Rough drawings: development of initial pencil and watercolour sketches for costumes to establish shape, colour pallete for presentation and review with director, set designer and other parties
5. Final drawings: finalization of sketches as a communication tool for director. cutter, sewer, wig person, jewellery accessories, director and actor

Costume by Martha Mann for Opera Atelier, Marriage of Figaro

Although the sketches are "final", there still is much work to be done and that is when someone like Rita Brown steps in.  Before cutting can begin, the concept for the costume may have to be modified depending on the size of an actor. As well, the availability of fabrics can affect the desired result and must be considered. A cutter must work closely with the designer and the actor through the various fittings to help define the character in visual form.  According to Rita Brown, a "successful costume as one that is a blend of illusion and reality, clearly delineates the character, costs little, and wears forever".

Costumes from the Shaw Festival by Rita Brown

For both designer and cutter, two key challenges were identified. One was that the modern body is not corseted from a young age and that affects the creation of costumes with a defined period silhouette. Actors must be able to breathe and move freely and tight corsets are not comfortable on modern bodies. Another issue was the availability of fabrics for period productions. Since the stage never deals in reality, finding and choosing a fabric that meets budgetary constraints and which creates the illusion of belonging to a certain period is necessary.  In Martha Mann's words, "a costume will always reflect the aesthetic of now." 

Dr. Alexandra Palmer, Rita Brown, Marshall Pynkoski, Martha Mann

Culture Days

Culture is on this weekend's agenda. There are so many fun and fabulous cultural activities to chose from that it is hard to pick just one!

Martha Mann, Marshall Pynkoski, Rita Brown
Costumes on Stage
Photo by Ingrid Mida 2010

Costumes on Stage at the ROM:
Saturday, September 25, 2010 from 10 am to 1 pm
This event, presented by the Friends of Textiles and Costume at the Royal Ontario Museum, focuses on the process of costume creation - from the director's original concept to the garment worn on stage. The speakers will be Marshall Pynkoski of Opera Atelier co-artistic director; Martha Mann, costume designer for Opera Atelier's recent production of Marriage of Figaro; and Rita Brown, costumer for the Shaw Festival.  (Note: This event is not a free Culture Day event and advance registration is required at the ROM.)

Bata Shoe Museum

Saturday, September 25, 2010 at 1 p.m.

See a demonstration of traditional Tibetan boot making and a special one day exhibition of Tibetan footwear. There will also be two scheduled guided tours of the museum.

Canadian Art Hop Tour
Saturday, September 25, 2010 at 1 to 5 p.m.
Take a gallery tour around Toronto. Stops include galleries in these areas: Richmond Street West, King Street West/Tecumseth, Queen West, Distillery District, Yorkville, Ossington and Dundas Street West (loop Gallery, of which I am a member will be a stop at 320 pm). To learn more about what's on at loop Gallery, check out the loop Gallery blog, of which I am blogmaster!

Rehearsal of the Canadian Opera Company's Aida at the Four Season's Centre

Saturday, September 25, 2010 from 7:30 to 9 p.m.

The public is invited to an orchestra rehearsal of the COC’s new production of Verdi’s Aida. A pre-rehearsal chat in the Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre gives audience members insight into the opera and the rehearsal process at 6:45 pm. Tickets to Rings 3 and 4 of R. Fraser Elliott Hall will be handed out on a first-come, first-served basis on Saturday. 

Culture Days is a cross Canada happening over September 24-26, 2010. It is designed to raise the awareness, accessibility, participation and engagement of all Canadians in the arts and cultural life of their communities. For more information on Culture Days please visit this link.

Costumes on Stage continued

Having had the privilege of photographing the costumes designed by Martha Mann for Opera Atelier's production of The Marriage of Figaro, I can attest to their exquisite beauty. The details of the gown for the Countess are simply breathtaking. I offer you my proof below in these photos. 

If you'd like to hear Martha Mann speak about the process of translating the director's vision into a design sketch, come to the ROM's panel discussion called Costumes on Stage on September 25, 2010. Tickets are available now.

Costumes on Stage

Opera Atelier Costume for the Countess, Marriage of Figaro
Design by Martha Mann
Photo by Ingrid Mida, copyright 2010

Have you ever wondered how a costume comes into being? How does a director express his vision, how does the designer interpret that into a sketch and how does the cutter translate the sketch into a garment? These are the questions that a panel of three distinguished speakers will address at the ROM's Costumes on Stage event on Saturday, September 25, 2010. 

Opera Atelier's co-founder and co-director Marshall Pynkowski will lead off the event in a discussion with Textiles and Costume curator Dr. Alexandra Palmer about the process of conceiving a vision for a production. Then dancers from the Opera Atelier will demonstrate costumes in motion with a performance on stage.

Martha Mann, Marshall Pynkowski and Rita Brown
Photo by Ingrid Mida, copyright 2010

Following a break, award winning costume designer Martha Mann will talk about the process of interpreting the the director's vision to create a costume sketch. And then Rita Brown, costumer/cutter for the Shaw Festival, will talk about the process of creating a garment from a sketch.  

This event, hosted by the Friends of the Textile and Costume at the Royal Ontario Museum,    is an absolute must for afficiandos of the opera, ballet or theatre, as well as students of fashion design, art history or theatre programs. Tickets are available now. 

Clothing for the Warrior and the Courtier: Patterns of Sixteenth Century European Court Dress

Elaborate ruffs, doublets, brigandines and cloaks are the hallmarks of the sixteenth century,  the time of Elizabeth I and Shakespeare. A renowned expert and costumer specializing in this period, Jennifer Tiramani, recently spoke at the Royal Ontario Museum as part of their Veronika Gervers Fellowship Program.

 Cloak circa 1580-1600, V&A Museum No. 793-1901

Jenny was one of the authors who completed the book "Patterns of Fashion 4, The cut and construction of linen shirts, smocks, neckwear, headwear and accessories for men and women c.1540-1660)" after Janet Arnold died. The Patterns of Fashion series of books are important reference sources in historical fashion and are well used books in my library.

Jenny Tiramani has worked as a Costume and Stage Designer since 1977. Based in the UK, she was Associate Designer at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East 1979-1997; Director of Theatre Design at Shakespeare’s Globe 1997-2005; and is presently Resident Designer of Mark Rylance’s Phoebus Cart Theatre Company. Among her numerous current projects as a freelance costumer, Tiramani is currently designing costumes for the Metropolitan Opera in New York

Jenny recently spent several weeks in Toronto examining European sixteenth century dress and several objects of the ROM’s Textiles and Costume collection, including a rare 1500 - 1530 brigandine, a garment worn by royalty or courtiers. A form of body armour, the brigandine has been compared to the modern day bullet proof vest. In the sixteenth century, it was considered a “hidden doublet of defense.” The brigandine in the ROM’s collection is made of crimson velvet with decorative brass headed rivets that hold in place the inner protective metal plates. Jenny examined the garments and also created patterns mapping the cut and construction in order to understand decorative techniques and the play between armour and clothing.

Her charm and passion for her subject were infectious. Truthfully, I never  considered men's garments to be remotely interesting before this lecture but clearly I've overlooked the fact that clothing for men at that time, particularly their cloaks, was rich with symbolism.

After the lecture, she invited the audience to come up and look at her patterns, which were drawn onto large sheets of graph paper with meticulous notes. I chatted with her briefly and found her utterly enchanting, as apparently everyone else did too!

Beading Workshop with Samuel Thomas

Hand-beaded Strawberry by Ingrid Mida (under direction of Samuel Thomas) 2009


To the Iroquois people, the strawberry is one of the most important fruits because it has powerful healing properties. As well, the ripening of the strawberry is symbolic of spring's defeat of winter. As I listened to artist Samuel Thomas talk about the symbolism behind his work, I felt in awe of this talented man who for the last 26 years has presented lectures, demonstrations and workshops to revive Iroquois embossed (three-dimensional) beadwork.

During a one-hour workshop (part of the Embellishment Canadian Style symposium at the Royal Ontario Museum) last Saturday, I created this beaded strawberry under Samuel Thomas's patient direction. The materials were left-overs from Samuel's latest project which involved visits to such sacred places as Stonehenge, the Egyptian pyramids, and Niagara Falls. The red wool of the strawberry came from his Stonehenge project, while the gold beads, sand (used for filler) and the thread came from his Egypt project. This is one powerful amulet!

The work from Samuel Thomas' journey to sacred places will be on display at the Grimsby Museum in Ontario from December 10, 2009 to March 2010. And even though Samuel doesn't have a website and didn't seem very interested in publicity, I plan to write up a profile of this accomplished and important artist.

Author Profile: Alexandra Palmer

Alexandra Palmer, the author of Dior: A New Look, A New Enterprise 1947-1957, is the Senior Curator of Costumes and Textiles at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto. Her research as a costume and textile historian focuses on the history of western textiles and fashionable dress with an emphasis on the 20th and 21st centuries.

Alexandra has a BA in Art History from the University of Toronto (1979), a MA in History of Costume and Textiles from NY University (1981) and a Phd in Design History from the University of Brighton, England (1995).

Dr. Palmer is the Clio award winning author of Couture and Commerce: The Transatlantic Fashion Trade in the 1950s (2001). As well, she authored Fashion: A Canadian Perspective (2004), Old Clothes, New Looks: Second Hand Fashion (2005) and contributed to numerous exhibition catalogues and books including:The Golden Age: Haute Couture 1947-1957, The Victoria & Albert Museum, London (2007), PaperClothes, Benaki Museum Athens (2007), Un Secolo di Moda (2004), Villa Medici, Rome.

This busy mother of two boys also is a professor of Fine Art History of University of Toronto, an adjunct professor for the Graduate Programme in Art History at York University and the exhibition editor for Fashion Theory: The Journal of Dress, Body and Culture.

Dr. Palmer is currently working on curating an exhibition at the Royal Ontario Museum planned for 2011 on Christian Dior.

I came to know Alexandra through my interest in the Patricia Harris Costume and Textiles Gallery at the Royal Ontario Museum. I was honoured that she asked me to read through the final drafts of the Dior book and called upon my previous experiences in finance, publishing and fashion to provide comments on the book. Alex agreed to be interviewed for this post and her responses are shown below in italics.


1. How does this book differ from the other books on Dior?
My book looks at the company from a global perspective and relies heavily on the Dior archives in Paris.

2. What was the biggest surprise or revelation that you uncovered during your research?
I was surprised at how smart Monsieur Dior was in terms of design and business.

3. During the book launch party, you mentioned that other fashion houses do not have archives like Dior. Why do you think Dior kept such meticulous records compared to other designers?
The records are not meticulous but are extensive. The house of Dior has never moved its location and it has always had large statistics and business offices and staffing.

4. How many years did you spend researching and writing the book?
It took four years to write the book, because of the research and my many other duties.

5. Where and when will the book be available?
It is for presently for sale in the ROM bookshop and can also be ordered from Amazon, Indigo and the Victoria and Albert Museum website.

6. What is your favourite Dior ensemble or dress?
I cannot say that I have a favourite. All of Dior's creations are interesting for different reasons.

7. You mentioned coveting a Dior record case during the book launch. If you could have one Dior item for the ROM collection, what would it be?
I would love to have a wool late day or cocktail piece with brilliant cutting.

8. Will the book be translated into any other languages?
It may be translated into Spanish. I'm not really sure at this point.


Leave a comment if you wish to be entered in the draw for a copy of Alexandra Palmer's book on Dior. The winner will be announced on Tuesday, November 10, 2009.