whilst working on the cover for an upcoming publication i’m focussing my mind on things like the above. beads, fairisle cardigans, tulle and gilt eyeliner all play a very vital role in a certain work in progress.
June 23 2010
beautiful things: the art of romaine brooks
romaine brooks, self-portrait, 1923.
so i hope you’ll forgive me the flying post – i plan to come back and write about brooks properly (once i have more time and, more importantly, more research) but i discovered her work on one of my usual internet jaunts, and couldn’t resist the lure of an immediate post.
romaine brooks, peter, a young english girl, 1923-4.
there is more information here, for anybody in a hurry (i plan to scope out the archives myself, at a later date, and report back), but for the moment, let me just say that ‘the epitome of elegance’ really does seem an appropriate tagline, from what i’ve seen thus far of brook’s work.
romaine brooks, una troubridge, 1924.
i came across this painting first, quite by accident, at sublimefemme unbound (the topic was monocles – and really, why wouldn’t it be? also, i must now look up this troubridge character. she looks fascinating). i rarely find painters i love quite this much at first glance.
turn of the century women artists are hard to track down (i should know, i’ve tried often enough). any suggestions on other female painters of the era worth looking up?
March 31 2010
wearable art: for the love of libertines
oh (my) dior…how i love your new collection…
the hair. the tule. the skirts and capes – and hats! – and those slightly blackened lips that just fade out at the edges…
and all by galliano, which makes a lot of sense, when you think about it.
some of them get a bit too cheap-boudoire for my tastes, but much of this collection is divine. i particularly like the influence of a certain schoolboy aesthetic – the long shorts, the tough boots, hats and caps. i do have a very devout passion for the intermingling of boy and girl in their extremities…
galliano’s own runway appearance sadly resembled a rather greasy pirate, rather than his usual gentlemanly deviant, but that’s forgivable. the rest of the show more than makes up for it.
plus…well, anybody who’s spoken to me on the subject knows that i have what i consider to be an entirely healthy predeliction for red boots; and (though i couldn’t find a detail picture of them in the right colour) if they go over the knee (which certain of these do)…that is oh-so-much better…
(all images taken from vogue.com.au)
