Fashionistas who are into cinema rarely resist to the charm of particular icons such as Grace Kelly.
The chic elegance of the American actress and Princess consort of Monaco is indeed legendary and it’s not rare to find references to her style in different designers’ collections.
One of the strongest (and most iconic) link between Grace Kelly and fashion is represented by a Hermès handbag, the Haut à Courroie, renamed "the Kelly" after the Princess used it in 1956 to hide her pregnancy bump from photographers.
Throughout the decades different fashion houses tried to revamp the Grace Kelly style.
In 2005 Gucci re-launched its “Flora” line inspired by the scarf designed by the Italian house in 1966 for Grace Kelly; Francisco Costa’s Autumn/Winter 2007-08 collection for Calvin Klein included designs inspired by Helen Rose’s costumes for High Society; Vera Wang created in 2009 wedding gowns based on Kelly's, while a sort of muted elegance inspired by the 60s - Prada docet - is definitely one of the main trends for the next Autumnal season (think also about the looks in TV series Mad Men).
The Grace Kelly legend lives again not only on the runway or in our wardrobes, but also in an exhibition that recently opened at London’s Victoria & Albert Museum, that can be considered as an edited version of an event that took place three years ago at Monaco’s Grimaldi Forum, entitled “Les Années Grace Kelly”.
The latter was a sort of journey through Grace Kelly’s life, from her childhood spent in Philadelphia to her studies at the drama school in New York, her first films and her wedding to Rainier III, Prince of Monaco.
“Les Années Grace Kelly” also offered the visitor the chance to see her dresses and costumes from different films, accompanied by personal objects, film and audio clips and letters.
The event at the V&A - entitled "Grace Kelly: Style Icon" - focuses instead more on her glamorous image and appeal and has therefore got a stronger connection with fashion and cinema costumes.
Fans of designer clothes and accessories will be able to admire designs - worn for official occasions such as Monaco’s Rose Balls or Red Cross Balls - by Chanel, Christian Dior, Balenciaga, Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy and Lanvin, plus accessories including hats and turbans created by Jean Barthet and Alice Delimel.
Unfortunately, Grace Kelly’s wedding gown, made using 25 yards of silk taffeta, rose-point lace and pearls and created by costume designer Helen Rose (mentioned in a previous post), it’s not included in the exhibition since it’s back in the collection of the Museum of Philadelphia (it was donated to the museum by Grace Kelly).
Yet if you are a fashion and cinema fan don’t despair: the V&A event will allow you to see a few interesting (and iconic) looks.
In fact the section of the exhibition dedicated to films is probably more interesting because it shows how vital the connection with cinema was in shaping Grace Kelly’s image.
The influence costume and fashion designer Oleg Cassini had on Kelly’s style is analysed, and while there is also the chance to admire the beautiful ball gown by Helen Rose that Kelly wore in Charles Walters' High Society (1956), more space in the exhibition is given to Alfred Hitchcock’s input.
Like all the best directors (think about Luchino Visconti for example), Hitchcock loved to take care also of the costumes in his films and the black chiffon evening gown Kelly wore in Rear Window (1954) - created by the legendary Paramount Pictures costume designer Edith Head - actually embodied the image the director had of his character, Lisa Carol Fremont.
Hitchcock was indirectly also responsible for Kelly's passion for Hermès' creations: in 1954 he sent Edith Head and Grace Kelly to the fashion house’s Paris shop in 24 rue du Faubourg Saint Honoré to pick the accessories to transform the actress into Frances Stevens, the female protagonist in To Catch a Thief (1955).
They say that in that occasion Kelly fell in love with the accessories designed by the French house and bought quite a few pairs of gloves.
Though the exhibition also focuses on Grace Kelly after her wedding and her role as Princess, the section dedicated to cinema actually made me ponder about a couple of things.
First and foremost I've considered the relationship between costume designer and director, and costume designer and actress.
Quite a few directors from the past seemed to be interested in collaborating more with costume designers to create looks that would influence the way a character moved and acted on the screen.
Besides, talented costume designers were also enlisted to come up with exclusive creations that actresses wore off screen.
These relationships do not seem to exist anymore, mainly because we do not seem to give so much importance to costume designers, too often replaced by trendier stylists.
For commercial reasons, actresses also favour clothes and accessories created by famous fashion designers and houses, rather than costume designers.
The other thing I've been pondering on is the fact that Grace Kelly didn't have the habit of wearing a garment or an accessory and then throwing it away like modern celebrities do, but often wore her outfits more than just one time.
One example is the icy blue satin gown inspired by the colour of her eyes and created by Edith Head (who bought the expensive fabric in France for $4.000) for a 1954 premiere that Kelly also wore to collect her Academy Award for George Seaton's The Country Girl (1955).
Maybe it's time for modern celebrities to start copying Grace Kelly's habits rather than her style, in the meantime, if you've never gone for the Grace Kelly look, well, don’t worry, there is plenty of time for you to get into it, after all the style of real icons never goes out of fashion.
To give you some ideas have a look at the clips that follow.
You will find further information about the V&A exhibition in the last video that features V&A fashion curator Jenny Lister talking about the event. Member of the Boxxet Network of Blogs, Videos and Photos
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