Tag Archives: eye on design

Design and Innovation

Eye On Design: Lobster Hat By Bes Ben

Leave a comment

Lobster Hat Bes Ben By Gail Worley
Photo By Gail

Endearingly known as Chicago’s Mad Hatter, Benjamin Green-Field established the Bes-Ben label with with his sister, Bessie Friedlander in 1919. Green-Field’s designs were equal parts fantasy and practicality; their chic, relativity compact forms were designed to work in concert with the costly coiffures of the period. The year 1941 is regarded as a turning point in his career; the material restrictions that were imposed during World War II roused new levels of creativity in his work and introduced what would become a lasting devotion to crafting whimsical conversational pieces like this Lobster Hat circa 1946.

Lobster Hat Close Up By Gail Worley
Detail

Photographed as part of the exhibit In Pursuit of Fashion: The Sandy Schreier Collection, on view through May 17th, 2020 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.

Design and Innovation

Eye On Design: Pink and Black Sequined Mini Dress By Stephen Sprouse

Leave a comment

Sequined Mini Dress By Stephen Sprouse Photo By Gail Worley
Photos By Gail

This Pink and Black Sequined Mini Dress (autumn / winter 1983 – 84) is characteristic of paradoxical charm of the work of Stephen Sprouse (1953 – 2004). He often sited the cutout, mini-skirted styles that designers like Andre Courreges and Rudi Gernreich introduced in the 1960s, yet he reartciluated these silhouettes within the distinct cultural context of 1980s New York. From his debut collection, he established a unique look, artfully integrating pop culture and street style into youthful fashions executed in luxurious materials. Continue reading Eye On Design: Pink and Black Sequined Mini Dress By Stephen Sprouse →

Design and Innovation

Eye On Design: Breakfast Suit By Christian Francis Roth

Leave a comment

Breakfast Suit By Christian Francis Roth Photo By Gail Worley
All Photos By Gail

Following the lineage of witty designs by creators that include Elsa Schiaparelli and Franco Moschino, this playful Breakfast Suit (Spring / Summer 1990) by Christian Francis Roth employs the Surrealist strategy of displacing everyday objects from their normal environment.

Continue reading Eye On Design: Breakfast Suit By Christian Francis Roth →

Design and Innovation

Eye On Design: Butterfly Headpiece By Philip Treacy

Leave a comment

Butterfly Headpiece By Philip Treacy Photo By Gail Worley
Photos By Gail

This Butterfly Headpiece (2003) by Philip Treacy epitomizes the milliner’s untethered and imaginative approach to design. A swarm of butterflies is assembled from exquisitely worked turkey feathers that were cut, painted and hand-fashioned into delicate, fluttering forms. Butterflies are one of the most potent symbols of collecting. Rooted in taxidermic systems yet resplendent with poetry, the insect occupies a prominent spot in most European Wunderkammern, or cabinets of curiosities. Continue reading Eye On Design: Butterfly Headpiece By Philip Treacy →

Design and Innovation

Eye On Design: Glass Flower Necklace By House of Chanel

Leave a comment

Chanel Glass Flower Necklace By Gail Worley
Photo By Gail

One of the enduring legacies of Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel was her elevation of costume jewelry to high fashion. Maison Gripoix, a house that has serviced the couture industry since its founding in 1869, was among her earliest and most frequent collaborators. The company’s specialized pate de verre (glass paste) technique was developed by the founder, Augustine Gripoix, and passed down generationally. Instead of the kiln method employed by other manufacturers, the house pours molten glass directly into the sophisticated metal settings that frame its designs. This meticulous an costly process allows for greater freedom of coloration and form, and lends a subtle effervescence to the floating glass components. This wreath of graduated translucent flower heads (circa 1938) was produced by Gripoix for Chanel and reflects the late 1930s vogue for romantic nature-based motifs.

Photographed as part of the exhibit In Pursuit of Fashion: The Sandy Schreier Collection, on view through May 17th, 2020 at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.