Blummin ‘eck you lot, we’ve got a treat for you here! This beautiful series by Mina Bach are Solar plate prints to illustrate her limited edition book ‘Tattoo‘ loosely based on the 1941 traditional spanish song made famous by the one and only Concha Piquer. It tells the story of a girl that falls in love with a sailor with a tattoo of his ex’s name… That’s never going to go well…
The collages combine found photos and images of the period with traditional Tattoo inspired drawings, some of the collages are made out of well over a hundred images. What a talent, and what a beautiful concept.
It was a foreign ship that brought him to me
I found him that dark and cold summers eve
As the lighthouse sent the vessels its gentle kiss
All Charms and hair as light as Ale
Proud he stood with his chest tattooed
His voice an aching nightingale
Soon after one bottle he started to reveal
The story of the name written on his skin
For the deep inked wound would never ever heal
“We once had love but she soon forgot
and forever I shall try to win her back
the only one I truly loved now long gone”
One grey morn in that same ship he disappeared
Having stolen something from between my lips
The one thing I asked him for, a lovers kiss
From then on I have been looking from port to port
Is he dead or alive is all I need to know
The only one I truly loved now long gone
Since that kiss I can’t eat, breathe or sleep
Look at his name now inked deep in my skin
If you find him let him know I am dying for him
x
Fashion illustration at the moment is revelling in the swelling crowds of excitement and attention with the Drawing Fashion exhibition at the Design Museum, the René Gruau (1909 – 2004) exhibition at The Mayor Gallery and the fabulous Dior Illustrated: René Gruau and the Line of Beauty exhibition at Somerset House. Fashion illustration really is enjoying the surge of interest that is flocking to gaze at this incredibly beautiful art form.
Somerset House specifically focuses on the fantastic relationship between Christian Dior and René Gruau, which began when both men worked as illustrators in the fashion department of the French newspaper, Le Figaro, in 1936. It was February 1947, when Dior required skilful hands to illustrate his New Look Haute Couture collection, and he eagerly requested for Gruau to be the very man to do this. In December 1947, Dior’s first perfume, Miss Dior, was launched, and once again Dior knew that Gruau would be the perfect person to produce exquisite illustrations for this new beauty product. This was only just the start of Gruau and Dior’s long history of working together in creative, fashion and beauty related projects.
One of the most prominent themes of the exhibition is both Dior and Gruau’s interest in flowers. Gruau’s illustration for the 1976 fragrance, Dior-Dior, is a superb image of floral beauty. The sleeves of the cotton dress is caught up in the wind and fans out into the shape of a cluster of delicate, lilac-pink petals. The drama of the outfit spreading out like a blossoming flower is both magnificent and breathtaking.
It is clear that Gruau loved taking snippets of small, everyday life gestures, such as, a woman gathering up her hair after a bath or a woman resting her head in her hand, and creating artistic masterpieces from these little instances. His Vernis Dior picture from 1963 is a simplistic picture of a woman’s hand holding up a bottle of vibrant, red nail polish as if she is holding a cigarette. Her hand is curved back with a regal air and her white beaded ring and bracelets have a wonderful pink lustre. A tiny moment in time is expanded and magnified into a focused study of glamorous sophistication. Also included in the exhibition are 5 contemporary illustrators, who have been commissioned by the gallery to produce works inspired by Gruau’s illustration style and ideas. Erin Petson’s Mademoiselle ‘Shush’ was similarly lured by the idea of taking a quick, small gesture and transforming it into a piece of artistic merit. The woman in Petson’s image brings a single finger to her lips. This gesture of shushing is a symbol of secrecy, but it is unclear whether she is guarding her own secret or eavesdropping into someone else’s secret. Thus, the little gesture is inflated into image full of mystery, intrigue and power. The bleariness of parts of the image, the melting of the mascara into her skin tone, the merging of her pink garment into her hand, all contribute to the idea of mysteriousness and obscurity. A teasing and tantalising image.
However, there are not just illustrations in this exhibition; there are also a range of vintage perfume bottles and mannequins dressed in a paint splattered dress, paint palette hat and red silk taffeta dress to name but a few. The Diorissimo 1956 perfume bottle was inspired by fragrance vessels from the 18th century. It is the epitome of opulence with its stopper in the form of a golden bouquet of roses and jasmine. All of the perfume bottles are in the classical shape of a Greek or Roman two-handled jar giving it an aura of elegance and splendour.
Gruau depicts women and men tightly clutching Dior perfume bottles as one would firmly grip hold of precious treasure, and this exhibition, Dior Illustrated: René Gruau and the Line of Beauty, is an iridescent, dazzling treasure for sure.
Dior Illustrated: René Gruau and the Line of Beauty
Somerset House, Embankment Galleries
Until 9 January 2011
Review by Kimberley Chen
These two beauties are Heidi and Hattie sent in by Kirstie Penman.
‘The first two are of Heidi, my Cocker Spaniel. She likes ducks, animal noises and long walks in the park. Her pet hates (bad pun intended) include the telephone and her ears being touched.
The last is of Hattie, my first dog. That is me at three years old groping her face in the photo.’
