Model as Muse @ The Met

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder"

Marc Jacobs and Kate Moss in Marc Jacobs

LOVE the back!  Drapey back!!!

Photo credit: JustJared

First Paris and now NYC... Anyone want to pack me up in their carry-on and trot around the globe to peruse fashion exhibits?! Takers???

Tonight was the MET's Annual Costume Institute Gala.  This year the exhibit is entitled "Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion" and focuses on how social changes have defined our culture's view of feminine beauty which have been personified by the figures and faces of iconic models.  "Model to Muse" specifically captures the progression of these changes over a span of five decades from 1947-1997.  Magazine covers, various photographs and garments made famous by the models who strutted down the catwalk will be on display to characterize these diverse time periods and the constant evolution of beauty.  The exhibit opened today and runs till August 9, 2009.

Ashley Olsen in her own line, The Row

Again, drapey back (I'm a fan if you haven't noticed)!!!

Love that black, embellished chain going down her back... 

Photo credit: NewsDay

With over 13 pages of photos on WireImage, you know the event huge.  And who wasn't there?!  Let's try to put things into perspective with a little bullet-point list (though this does not do justice!):

• The Planners:  Co-chairs Anna Wintour, Justin Timberlake and Kate Moss arrived with daughter Bee Schaffer, paramour, Jessica Biel and primary sponsor Marc Jacobs, respectively
  
• The Models: Tyra Banks, Bar Refaeli, Heidi Klum, Elizabeth Hurley, Cindy Crawford, Iman, Claudia Schiffer, Brooke Shields
• The Fashion Doyennes:  Stella McCartney, Carolina Herrera, Donna Karan, Donatella Versace, Tory Burch, Diane Von Furstenberg... And then there was John Galliano ;) 
  
• The Musicians: Rihanna, Madonna, Kanye West, Bono, Ciara
• The Actresses: Renee Zellweger, Eva Mendes, Anne Hathaway, Liv Tyler, Marisa Tomei
• The Starlettes:  Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Emma Roberts,  Katy Perry
• The Trump Card:  Donald and Melania Trump, Ivanka Trump and Ivanna Trump
• The Power Couples:  Tony & Eva Longoria Parker, Tom Brady & Gisele Bündchen
• The Attack of the Kates - Kate Beckinsale, Kate Bosworth and Kate Beckinsale 

Some of the fashion highlights/lows:

Our girl! Always the fashionista...Rachel Bilson in Bally

Photo credit: Just Jared

Anne Hathaway in Marc Jacobs... What's up with her hair?

Photo credit: NewsDay

Kate Beckinsale in Marchesa...Can't decide if I love/hate the train

Photo credit: FabSugar

Rihanna in a Dolce and Gabbana tuxedo jacket and capris... Mixed feelings?

Photo credit: NewsDay

Madonna in Louis Vuitton... Uhh... What was she thinking?!

Photo credit: NewsDay

Again, I love Kate Hudson in her gold Stella McCartney gown

Photo Credit: FabSugar

Eva Mendes in Calvin Klein... Classy and sophisticated

Photo credit: FabSugar

Kate Bosworth in Stella McCartney... So 50's chic in the red lipstick and black lace

(Bruce Willis likes it, I guess)
Photo credit: FabSugar

Vionnet Exhibition

"When a woman smiles, then her dress should smile too."

-Madeleine Vionnet

Photo credit: WWD

TIMELESS, BEAUTIFUL, BREATHTAKING, et cetera. Where can I get it? NEWSFLASH! It's couture! And it's 72 years old! Designed by legendary couturier, Madeleine Vionnet, this exquisite tulle, silk, halter dress will be part of the Parisian exhibit scheduled to debut in her name on June 18 at the Les Arts Décoratifs. Umm...Take me to Paris? S'il vous plaît??? Merci, beaucoup!

The private non-profit decorative art museum are currently preserving Vionnet pieces from 1912 through 1939! However, before the couture items can be shown, there is much work to be done. Many of her gowns were made with delicate materials such as tulle, silk crepe and muslin which creates a challenge for curators in terms of displaying the designs over a lengthy exhibition period. "These dresses, that were worn for one evening 70 to 90 years ago will be exhibited on mannequins for [eight] months. The [new linings] are attached in such a way that, if a piece cracks, it's the new bit that gives and not the original fabric." says Pamela Golbin, head curator of the exhibit. Eeeek! Don't crack!

For the complete story go to: Vogue UK

Now these are REALLY vintage pieces yet still so avant garde! Just goes to show that true fashion isn't just trendy... It's timeless. More of Vienna's designs below:





Photo credit: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Madeleine Vionnet (June 22, 1876 - March 2,1975) is a French couturier hailed for being the "Queen of bias cut" when she introduced the charming shape to the world in the 1930s. Inspired by Grecian art, she used corsets and padding to accentuate the female form. The structure of Vionnet's pieces were delicate and sweeping, often characterized by a cowl neck or halter style. Vionnet modernized women's fashion and many stars such as Katherine Hepburn and Marlene Dietrich were fans of the couture maven. Today, her presence in the fashion world is ubiquitous and top designers, John Galliano and Marchesa, have created contemporary collections reminiscent of Vionnet's elegant styles. Her couture label, The House of Vionnet, has since been acquired by the Marzotto Apparel, a Milan textile powerhouse. It's designs are currently spearheaded by Rodolfo Paglialung, who was previously a 13-year veteran womenswear designer at Prada.