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First up we have a pair of Manolo Blahnik shoes, as used in Sofia Coppola’s 2006 film Marie Antoinette vs a pair of genuine 18th C. Shoes (both courtesy of @metmuseum - do you think Blahnik’s design could pass as 18th Century? #CSFashionHour
On the left we see a dress thought to have been from Marie Antoinette’s own collection, made by Marie-Jeanne ‘Rose’ Bertin (from @metmuseum) and the bottom dress is from the film (museodeltessuto) #CSFashionHour
Marie Antoinette’s own dress is kept at the Royal Ontario Museum, you can watch an in-depth video on this dress here: https://www.rom.on.ca/en/collections-research/rom-channel/marie-antoinettes-dress #CSFashionHour
The costumes were created under the vision of Milena Canonero, who was presented a box of Ladurée Macarons by Sofia Coppola as inspiration. Ladurée even supplied the cakes used in the film. See the pastel hues in these gowns from the Prato Textile Museum #CSFashionHour
Sacque gowns, or Robes à la Française gowns would often feature Watteau pleats, or box pleats in the centre back - so called after the painter Jean Antoine Watteau (photos @metmuseum ) #CSFashionHour
We particularly see evidence of these pleats in the painting ‘L’enseigne de Gersaint’ from the Charlottenberg Palace in Berlin #CSFashionHour
In Coppola’s film, many of the costumes feature such pleats, but they are particularly evident in the Wedding scene. Photos courtesy of ‘This is Versailles’ webpage. #CSFashionHour
Milena Canonero has even commented on the films costumes inaccuracies, saying that they dressed Kirsten Dunst in a pastel colour palette to accentuate her youth, the colours of a lot of the gowns wouldn’t have been available a time the time #CSFashionHour
Next we will move onto the 2012 adaptation of Anna Karenina. The costumes were designed by Jacqueline Durran who is known for her work on Pride Andrew Prejudice (2005) and more recently Little Women #CSFashionHour
Although set in 1873 the costumes more accurately reflect a 1950s silhouette. Durran told the New York Times “I wanted the audiences to realise we weren’t necessarily doing an authentic period piece”. Photo from @voguemagazine
Durran took inspiration from Dior’s New Look 1950s silhouette as well as Balenciaga collections. Dress on the right front Christian Dior: designers of dreams. Photo on the left from British Vogue #CSFashionHour
This Cape was taken from an extant garment in the V&A, the peacock feathers even being replicated as a symbol of Anna’s bad luck. Photo from FIDM museum, illustration courtesy of Focus Features #CSFashionHour
Owing to Kiera Knightley being the Face of Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle perfume, Durran was able to use £1.25 million worth of Chanel Jewellery to accessorise Anna’s character. Photos from @voguemagazine #CSFashionHour
Here is another’s photo emphasising the grandeur of Anna’s jewels. Photo from Vanity Fair ‘From Sketch to Still’ #CSFashionHour
Overall do you feel that the costumes of Anna Karenina captured the essence of the late 19th century? For contrast, see these photos from Tirelli Costumi who created the costumes for the 1997 version of the film #CSFashionHour
Now we will examine the 2013 film The Great Gatsby, directed by Baz lurhman with costumes by Catherine Martin. Photo from FIDM
#CSFashionHour - Martin worked with Miuccia Prada and the Brooks Brothers’ to create the costumes. Similarly the jewellery was made by Tiffany and Co. where F. Scott Fitzgerald had been a customer himself. Photos courtesy of Tiffany & Co
The collaboration with Prada emphasises the liminal nature of the film - like Nick Carraway who is both within and without, the Prada costumes are both period and modern. Photos courtesy of @voguemagazine
#CSFashionHour - Lurhmans’ film has been criticised as portraying an inaccurate version of 1920s fashion - but Daisy’s bejewelled party dress ( @voguemagazine) doesn’t look a world away from this Molyneaux dress ( @metmuseum )
#CSFashionHour - the Brooks Brothers’ created many of the looks for the male characters’ in the film as the brand was actually mentioned by Fitzgerald in a number of his novels as a point of recognition. Photos from @voguemagazine
#CSFashionHour - finally we will look at another film whose costumes were designed by Jacqueline Durran: Atonement. Green dress as exhibited at the V&A exhibition: Hollywood Costume
Durran took inspiration from Jacques Henri Lartigue’s photographs from the 1920’s ( Photos from ‘Donation Jacques Henri Lartigue’) for Kiera’s swimwear ensemble (Wall street Journal) #CSFashionHour
#CSFashionHour The silhouette and fabric choices for the infamous green dress heavily reference extant garments from the time. See this peach silk Chanel dress, or this 1935 House of Schiaparelli dress. (both courtesy of @metmuseum )
In a 2017 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Durran explains that “everything within the dress is from the period; it’s just recombined in a modern way”. #CSFashionHour
And that concludes this evening’s #CSFashionHour on accuracy within film costumes. I hope that you enjoyed and learnt something new – do let me know if you have any other costume film favourites by using the hashtag
