Showing posts with label Film. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Film. Show all posts
A group of fashionable jet setters pose elegantly at the French Casino Le Touquet as they contemplate their next move in a serious game of what looks like blackjack. The moment is captured for eternity by famed photographer Richard Avedon in August 1954. It was taken around the same time as his now iconic shot of Sunny Harnett at the same location wearing an evening dress by Madame Grès. The group photograph, however, is less dreamy and hazy. Both images feature model Sunny Harnett, yet here she is focused on the game. As she stands behind fellow fashion model Renee Breton the two form an intriguing team. Both otherworldly and aloof the slinky women are grounded through their undeniable involvement in this popular game. Talk about girl power!
A seemingly simple hairstyle, the high ponytail, combed tightly towards the back of the head was all the rage among teenagers during the late 1950s. Setting new trends in order to break away from uncomfortable starched petticoats and arduous time-consuming hairdos, contemporary youth used their new fashions to turn their backs on conservative ideals and set themselves apart from the pre-war-born generation of their parents. The high ponytail is arguably the most "modern" of vintage hairstyles and one that has to this day retained its cool-factor and universal appeal.
If there has ever been one actress who made sure she protected her eyes from potentially harmful UV rays then it has to be Bette Davis. Fortunately for her sunglasses were not only worn to remain safe in the presence of the bright Californian sun, they became an expression of her unique style and quirky personality too. For who else, if not Bette Davis, could be seen as a more original and frank character in Hollywood during the Golden Age of film.
Above: Davis sipping a drink on the set of Now, Voyager, 1942.
https://therake.com/stories/icons/bette-davis-stars-eyes/
From the quintessentially 1930s perfectly round shades to a pair of super slim cat eyes, that bear an uncanny resemblance to the styles visible all over Instagram today, Bette Davis undoubtedly had an affinity for this small fashion accessory. And rightly so, because it seems as though sunglasses are all she needed to complete her laid back but never careless stylish ensembles every day. Honestly, it is difficult to be surprised -- sunglasses are a great invention, it's just a matter of remembering to take them before leaving one's house in the morning!
Davis eating an ice cream, c. 1933.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/214484000974647444/
Davis strolling in the summer, 1930s.
https://hiveminer.com/Tags/academyaward%2Cvintage
Davis knitting most likely on the set of The Old Maid, 1939.
http://historyknits.blogspot.co.uk/2010/04/knitting-before-and-behind-camera.html
Davis enjoying a cup of tea, 1940s.
https://www.pinterest.fr/pin/16677461103953777/
Davis on the set of Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte, 1964.
https://twitter.com/theoldhollywood/status/838550798397292545
Davis with a falcon, c. 1970.
https://mattsko.wordpress.com/2012/12/31/bette-davis-with-an-awesome-pair-of-sunglasses-and-a-falcon/
Davis attending the Cannes Film Festival with her oldest daughter, B.D., in 1963.
https://edition.cnn.com/2017/03/03/entertainment/bette-davis-joan-crawford-feud/index.html
Davis with her personal assistant Kathryn Sermak, 1980s.
https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/bette-davis-with-her-personal-assistant-kathryn-sermak-news-photo/110462069?#bette-davis-with-her-personal-assistant-kathryn-sermak-picture-id110462069
Some of my favourite Bete Davis films, all of which I highly recommend, include:
Ex-Lady (1933)
Front Page Woman (1935)
Now, Voyager (1942)
All About Eve (1950)
While fashion models in the 1960s may not
have had the same following as those immediately recognized today, they
nonetheless represented a similarly desirable lifestyle. Photographed at events, wearing clothing from the most in-demand designers, their often recognizable
physique led them to be scouted not only as models but as actresses too. It was
their budding popularity that cemented the potential influence of models today
– celebrities who do much more than just walk runways.
A number of recognizable names come to one’s
mind when thinking of iconic fashion models of the sixties. Undeniable are
Twiggy, Jean Shrimpton or Veruschka. The later even appearing as herself in the
1966 Michelangelo Antonioni film, Blowup.
The 1960s is arguably the first decade that is seen as cool in contemporary society
and the poster girls of that time were, as they are also today, beautiful,
original and provoking. Teresa Tuszyńska fit this description perfectly and, in
a short haircut calling to mind Twiggy, was to become the British models equal in
a country where fashion seemed more limited than it actually was.
When I saw Ingrid Bergman's outfits in the film Journey to Italy (1954) I could not help noticing, firstly, their timeless nature, and secondly, their modern accessories. One item that particularly caught my attention was the dark coloured leather-looking bucket bag, which Katherine Joyce (Bergman's character) carries, as she is she and her husband are being given a tour of their newly inherited Italian villa. It immediately called to mind the popular Mansur Gabriel buckets bags, which everyone was coveting not that long ago.
I find it peculiarly fascinating when items of the past resemble pieces currently sought after. One would think that what becomes desirable would be something new and fresh. Surprisingly (or maybe not) these are usually items which, if one digs back far enough, have been carried and used by men and women long ago. Just take a look at my earlier post about mesh bags!
Above: Film stills from the Roberto Rossellini film, Journey to Italy (1954).
Below: Similar styles of bags sold today (September 2017).
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