Advance Details of “Charles James” Exhibition and new Anna Wintour Costume Center from the Metropolitan of Art

The Metropolitan Museum of Art hosted a press presentation on Monday, February 10, 2014, at the Museum to reveal early details about The Costume Institute’s upcoming exhibition, Charles James: Beyond Fashion, and the new Anna Wintour Costume Center, both opening on May 8.  Aerin Lauder, Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch, and Anna Wintour joined Museum Director Thomas P. Campbell, Museum President Emily Rafferty, and Curator in Charge of The Costume Institute Harold Koda in the Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch Gallery for a glimpse of some of the James gowns to be featured in the exhibition, on view May 8–August 10, 2014, at the Met in New York City.  Elettra Wiedemann wore a facsimile of Charles James’s Clover Leaf Gown; the facsimile was created to study the dress in motion, since the original, like all accessioned objects at the Museum, cannot be worn.

Top Photo Caption: (from left) Thomas P. Campbell, Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch, Anna Wintour, Aerin Lauder, Emily K. Rafferty, and Harold Koda at the Met’s Charles James: Beyond Fashion advance press event.
Bottom Photo Caption: Elettra Wiedemann (right) in a facsimile of Charles James’s Clover Leaf Gown opposite the original gown (left). Photos: Joe Schildhorn, BFAnyc.com

The Costume Institute’s new Anna Wintour Costume Center will open on May 8 with the inaugural exhibition Charles James: Beyond Fashion, on view from May 8 through August 10, 2014, which will examine the career of legendary 20th-century Anglo-American couturier Charles James (1906–1978).  The exhibition will be presented in two locations–the new Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch Gallery in the Anna Wintour Costume Center as well as special exhibition galleries on the Museum’s first floor.  The exhibition will explore James’s design process and his use of sculptural, scientific, and mathematical approaches to construct revolutionary ball gowns and innovative tailoring that continue to influence designers today.

The retrospective exhibition, Charles James: Beyond Fashion, will feature approximately 75 of the most notable designs produced by James over the course of his career, from the 1920s until his death in 1978.  The first-floor special exhibition galleries will spotlight the resplendent glamour and breathtaking architecture of James’s ball gowns from the 1940s through 1950s, worn by such renowned clients as Austine Hearst, Millicent Rogers, and Dominique de Menil.

Charles James (American, born Great Britain, 1906–1978)
“Butterfly” Ball Gown, ca. 1955
Brown silk chiffon, cream silk satin, brown silk satin, dark brown nylon tulle
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, Friends of The Costume Institute Fund, 2013 (2013.591)

Charles James (American, born Great Britain, 1906–1978)
Ball Gown, 1949–50
Red silk velvet, red silk satin, white cotton organdy
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Arturo and Paul Peralta-Ramos, 1954 (2009.300.2786)

The new Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch Gallery will provide the technology and flexibility to dramatize James’s biography via archival pieces including sketches, pattern pieces, swatches, ephemera, and partially completed works from his last studio in New York City’s Chelsea Hotel.  The evolution and metamorphosis by James of specific designs over decades will also be shown. Video animations in both exhibition locations will illustrate how he created anatomically considered dresses that sculpted and reconfigured the female form. 

FASHION PALETTE RETURNS TO NEW YORK FOR THIRD CONSECUTIVE SEASON

Australia’s premier fashion platform showcases independent designers seeking exposure at New York Fashion Week

 Renowned labels Steven Khalil, Philippa Galasso and Tightology will showcase their Fall 2014 collections at Fashion Palette’s February 11 runway show at New York City’s Pier 59

 Fashion Palette, a full-service events company promoting Australian fashion across the globe, announces its third-consecutive season presenting Australia’s leading designers at New York Fashion Week. The Fall 2014 runway show — which will take place on Tuesday, February 11 at Pier 59, beginning at 7 PM — will highlight couture eveningwear by designers Steven Khalil and Philippa Galasso and contemporary legwear by Tightology.

Steven Khalil, is an Australian based evening wear designer most well known for his red carpet creations and bridal gowns. Philippa Galasso returns to New York Fashion Week for her sophomore collection and has been featured in Elle Paris. Tightology a must have accessories label that takes tights to another level is a staple in every Australian woman’s wardrobe, they are debuting at NYFW in hopes to expand their brand globally.

Founded by Mefaddi, Fashion Palette has become the leading organization bringing Australia’s fashion to a global audience. “We strive to give local designers a platform that they may otherwise not have access to,” Mefaddi says of the company’s comprehensive approach to introducing brands to a wider fashion market. The Sydney-based company’s previous runway shows at New York Fashion Week have featured a broad array of notable Australian designers, including Tony Maticevski, Aurelio Costarella, Bowie Wong, Nicola Finetti, Samantha Wills and Akira, all of whom have achieved long-term success in the US & European markets. After showing with Fashion Palette, contemporary designer Bettina Liano opened her first NY outpost on Mott Street.

 “We are excited to once again highlight the creativity and innovation of Australia’s most promising designers at New York Fashion Week, which brings together the very best in our business from around the world,” says Sonya Mefaddi, founder of Fashion Palette. “Fashion Palette is focused on continuing to raise the international visibility of Australian talent  – and our thriving fashion industry – with worldwide buyers, media and stylists.”

 In its third appearance at New York Fashion Week, Fashion Palette is proud to introduce another series of Avant Garde Australian designers and their collections to the New York fashion audience. Fashion Palette’s model has proven so successful that next year they will expand beyond Australian talent and will move forward with independent designers from around the globe. “Fashion Palette provides a one-stop shop experience for introducing independent labels into new markets”, says Mefaddi “By offering fashion show production, media relations and showroom sales, we supply designers with the right tools to launch their brand successfully.

Models will be styled by Cutler Salon and Priti NYC.  Make-up provided by AJ Crimson.  For more information on Fashion Palette New York, please visit http://www.fashionpalette.com.au/fashionpalette/about/

Monuments Men Who Saved Works of Art during World War II—Including Former Metropolitan Museum Director James J. Rorimer—Celebrated in New Gallery Itinerary, Display, and March 9 Event

A new gallery itinerary, display, blog post, and Sunday at the Met lecture event at The Metropolitan Museum of Art focus on the heroic work of the Monuments Men during World War II and their lasting impact on the Museum and its collection. The role of James J. Rorimer, a Monuments Man who became the Met’s director after the war, is highlighted. These activities have been created to coincide with the February 7, 2014 release of the feature film The Monuments Men.

First Lieutenant James J. Rorimer, at left, and Sergeant Antonio T. Valin examine recovered objects. Neuschwanstein, Germany, May 1945. Photograph by U.S. Signal Corps

The group popularly known as the “Monuments Men” was established in 1943 under the Civil Affairs and Military Government Sections of the Allied Armies, as part of a concerted effort to protect artworks, archives, and monuments of historical and cultural significance as the Allies advanced across Europe. These 345 men and women, representing 13 nations, volunteered for service in the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives program (MFAA). Among their ranks were museum curators, art historians, and others with specialized training or professional expertise that enabled them to identify and care for works of art subject to forced relocation or harm under the difficult wartime conditions. With limited resources and authority, they were ultimately able to track, locate, and return more than five million looted cultural items.

James J. Rorimer receives military decoration, 1945. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Archives

Several individuals on the staff of the Metropolitan Museum—some of whom joined the Museum after the war—served as Monuments Men.

James J. Rorimer (1905-1966), a Harvard-educated medieval art specialist who joined the Met in 1927 and was appointed curator of medieval art in 1934, played a central role in the development of the Met’s Cloisters branch museum in upper Manhattan before enlisting in the United States Army in 1943. He was eventually promoted to lead the MFAA, with responsibility for discovering and preserving art treasures confiscated and hidden by the Nazis. He pursued this mission until 1946, covering a broad territory across Normandy, France, and Germany, and received several military decorations including the Bronze Star and Croix de Guerre. After returning to the Metropolitan Museum in 1946, he served as director of the Cloisters (1949-1955) and then director of the Museum (1955-1966). During his tenure as director, he was responsible for such major acquisitions as Rembrandt’s Aristotle Contemplating the Bust of Homer and Robert Campin’s Merode Altarpiece. Mr. Rorimer’s memoir, Survival: The Salvage and Protection of Art in War (Abelard Press, Inc., 1950), provides a vivid account of his war years.

James J. Rorimer to his family, August 31, 1944. Courtesy of Anne Rorimer

Other Monuments Men at the Metropolitan Museum included: Harry D. M. Grier (1914-1972), who served as lecturer and assistant to the Museum’s dean of education from 1938 to 1946, and later as director of the Frick Collection; Theodore Heinrich (1910-1981), who was Associate Curator of Paintings and Curator in Charge of drawings from 1953 to 1955 before leaving to become director of the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto; Theodore Rousseau (1912-1973), who began working at the Met in 1946 and eventually became Vice Director and chief curator of European art; and Edith Standen (1905-1998), a distinguished curator, lecturer, and author on textiles, who rose through the curatorial ranks from her arrival in 1949 until her retirement in 1970, after which she devoted herself to full-time scholarship, working daily in the Museum’s Thomas J. Watson Library until her death in 1998 at the age of 93. 

Radiant Light: Stained Glass from Canterbury Cathedral at The Metropolitan Museum of Art

February 25–May 18, 2014

This exhibition of stained glass from England’s historic Canterbury Cathedral features six Romanesque-period windows that have never left the cathedral precincts since their creation in 1178–80.

Founded in 597, Canterbury Cathedral is one of the oldest Christian structures in England. It was an important pilgrimage site in the Middle Ages—as witnessed by Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, a literary masterpiece from the fourteenth century—and is also the cathedral of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the leader of the Church of England and the Anglican Communion worldwide. Recent repairs to the stonework of the magnificent historic structure necessitated the removal of several delicate stained-glass windows of unparalleled beauty. While the restoration of the walls has been undertaken, the stained glass has also been conserved.

Jared, from the Ancestors of Christ Windows, Canterbury Cathedral (detail). Attributed to the Methuselah Master, 1178–80. Image: © Robert Greshoff Photography, courtesy Dean and Chapter of Canterbury

The windows that will be shown at The Cloisters are from the clerestory of the cathedral’s choir, east transepts, and Trinity Chapel. The six figures—Jared, Lamech, Thara, Abraham, Noah, and Phalec—were part of an original cycle of eighty-six ancestors of Christ, the most comprehensive stained-glass cycle known in art history. One complete window (Thara and Abraham), rising nearly twelve feet high, will be shown with its associated rich foliate border.

Masterpieces of Romanesque art, these imposing figures exude an aura of dignified power. The angular limbs, the form-defining drapery, and the encompassing folds of the mantles all add a sculptural quality to the majestic figures. The glass painting, which is attributed to the Methuselah Master, is striking for its fluid lines, clear forms, and brilliant use of color.

Crayola Launches My Virtual Fashion Show

The Brand Kicks Off Fashion Week with New Virtual Product That Bridges Offline and Online Experience

Crayola, a colorfully innovative brand for over 100 years, today announced the launch of My Virtual Fashion Show, a new product that lets kids design their own fashions and bring them to life on a virtual runway, just like professional designers.

Crayola Launches My Virtual Fashion Show. (PRNewsFoto/Crayola)

My Virtual Fashion Show sparks the creative vision of the next generation of fashion designers and style icons by inspiring kids to create unique, colorful fashion designs in their Crayola sketchbook. When the designs are ready, kids can showcase their creations in a virtual fashion show on their device and share designs via email, directly from the app. The new Crayola’s My Virtual Fashion Show Fashion Kit contains: a fashion portfolio, 20-page fashion sketchbook, 12 short colored pencils, and My Virtual Fashion Show app (compatible with iOS and Android devices).

“At Crayola, we are all about giving kids innovative and relevant products that spark creative experiences. We know kids love fashion and design so giving them a way to express their unique style both offline and online seemed like a perfect fit,” said Kip Olmstead, Executive Vice President of Global Product Development and Chief Marketing Officer at Crayola. “My Virtual Fashion Show is the first and only product of its kind that allows a seamless transition between their real life fashion creations and the virtual experience and we are so excited for it to help kids everywhere unleash their original vision.”

It is available in store and online at select retailers nationwide.

This February, Baltimore is Absolutely Febulous!

Super-Sized Promotion Combines Restaurant Week, Hotel Week and Museum Week with Special Offers Available for Valentine’s Day and Presidents Day Weekend

It may be cold outside but Baltimore is heating up February 14-23. Baltimore has unveiled a first-of-its-kind promotion, Absolutely Febulous, a super-sized version of Restaurant Week, Hotel Week and Museum Week combined into one. Febulous money-saving offers are available from February 14-23 on lodging, restaurants, museums and attractions for the perfect Valentine’s Day, Presidents Day weekend or mid-winter getaway.

During Absolutely Febulous, the most delicious week of winter – Restaurant Week – returns February 16-23 with fixed-price dinner, lunch and brunch menus at participating restaurants around town. Find the cure for cabin fever with a money-saving package at your choice of accommodations and receive a bonus gift card in return. Enjoy ticket offers and special programs at museums and attractions, catch a show or concert or take advantage of President’s Day sales. Details on Absolutely Febulous promotion can be found at www.AbsolutelyFebulous.com with highlights including:

Savor the Savings
The most delicious week of winter returns with prix fixe dinner, lunch and new brunch menus at restaurants February 16-23. More than 100 restaurants are offering three-course dinner menus for $30 or $20. Select restaurants are also offering two-course lunch or brunch menus for $15. Prices are per person and do not include alcohol, tax or gratuity unless otherwise noted. Reservations are highly suggested.

Get a Room
Take advantage of great hotel and bed-and-breakfast offers for a romantic Valentine’s Day retreat, the long Presidents Day weekend or mid-winter escape to explore the sites in Baltimore. From February 14-23, more than 20 hotels and B&Bs are offering sweet savings with packages starting at $109. Book your package or winter getaway through Visit Baltimore and receive a $25 Visa® gift card with a one-night stay or a $50 Visa® gift card with a two-night stay or more. Hotels participating include Baltimore Marriott Waterfront Hotel; Monaco Baltimore, a Kimpton Hotel; Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel; Hyatt Regency Baltimore; Hilton Baltimore; Sheraton Inner Harbor; and the Pier 5 Hotel, to name a few. Pier 5 will be offering a special added bonus of the free aerial performance “Le Cirque de L’Amour.” Guests and members of the public can watch the fearless aerialists and circus artists perform on February 14 and 21 with shows starting promptly at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. and on February 15 and 22 with shows starting at 4 p.m. and continuing on the hour until 7 p.m.

Attraction BOGOS
While in town, don’t miss Baltimore’s best attractions, museums and performing arts venues. More than 25 of Baltimore attractions and museums are offering buy one, get one free admission including the B&O Railroad Museum, Maryland Science Center and Port Discovery Children’s Museum throughout the promotional period. Look for additional savings with the buy one, get one free offers on the Harbor Pass and Legends & Legacies Heritage Pass with an overnight stay.

Getting Here
Traveling to Baltimore by train? A special 30 percent off companion fare discount from Amtrak can further add to your savings; and visitors from the Washington, D.C., area can now take the weekend MARC service to Baltimore’s Penn Station.

Baltimore logo. (PRNewsFoto/Visit Baltimore)

Absolutely Febulous is presented by Visit Baltimore, Downtown Partnership of Baltimore and the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore. Visitwww.AbsolutelyFebulous.com today to book your trip and learn more about other special offers. Visit Baltimore – the official sales and marketing organization for Baltimore that generates economic benefits for stakeholders through the attraction of convention, group and leisure visitors. For more information, visit www.baltimore.org.

MEGAN FOX AND AVON GET READY FOR VALENTINE’S DAY

On this special holiday, take a cue from one of the world’s most desirable women and entice someone special with a scent that brings passion to life.

Actress Megan Fox, the face of Avon Instinct, a duo of fragrances for him and her

This Valentine’s Day, Avon launches the new sensual fragrances Avon Instinct for Her and Him with actress Megan Fox as the face of the scents. When asked about her perfect Valentine’s Day, Miss Fox reveals she’s not much for flowers or candy. Instead, she says she melts when her husband gives her sentimental gifts like a handmade card, personalized jewelry or a sexy fragrance that reflects her confident, sensual nature.

Fox has been in the spotlight since she was a teenager. She first became a household name when she starred as Mikaela Banes in the first two Transformers movies. She has since had roles in films including Jennifer’s Body, Friends With Kids, Jonah Hex, Passion Play and This Is 40. Most recently, she wrapped production on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for Paramount which will be released in 2014. Fox regularly graces the covers of fashion and beauty magazines internationally and is renowned for her distinctively individualistic iconic looks.

Instinct for Her

Instinct for Him

On the most romantic holiday of the year, Fox will celebrate with Avon Instinct, the brands most wildly seductive fragrances yet. “Avon Instinct fragrances are a must-have Valentine’s Day gift. The for Her scent is perfect for women who want to feel confident, beautiful, and sexy,” says Fox. “If you need a gift for the special man in your life, I would recommend Instinct for him. When I met my husband, the chemistry between us was magnetic. I love Instinct for Him because it captures that powerful moment of seduction—electric and intuitive—that sparks overwhelming passion without even saying a word.”