Oskar Schlemmer

1888 - 1943

Most people probably have never heard of this man, unless you're a German theater enthusiast or have an extensive knowledge about costume design. It is the latter which brought me to my discovery of him (although the extent of my costume design knowledge isn't as broad as I'd like it to one day be!) by way of research for a scenography assessment. Oskar Schlemmer was a German theater designer and key player in the Bauhas movement in the 1920's. The Bauhaus School (literally translating to "building house") is famous for it's influence in modern design - particularly architecture and interior design - as it focused on combining art and industry; it especially concentrated on the machine aesthetic, industrialization, and the simplification of visuals in design. It was quite experimental and futuristic, which the images below will illustrate. Schlemmer's work with the Bauhaus embodies and represents their ideas perfectly, especially with his creation called The Triadic Ballet which he is best known for. In this ballet, the costumes wear the dancers, the line of the clothes dictate the movement as they reconstruct the silhouette and form of a human body, and the design of each environment dictates the pattern of the dance. It is bizarre and interesting and brilliant to watch, and it wholly evokes the Bauhaus and Schlemmer's theories of design. He is a great and inspiring figure for me as he proves just how important the presence of a costume can be and how much it can fill a space. Hopefully by exploring the images below, you'll be able to understand the weight and the essence of his ideas and be inspired by their abstract nature.
*all photos from this post were found on the websites below or Google images

Bauhaus:

Schlemmer:

If you'd like to do some more digging...

http://www.thinkingform.com/2011/09/04/thinking-oskar-schlemmer-09-04-1888/
http://designhistory.org/Bauhaus3.html
http://www.moma.org/collection/artist.php?artist_id=5219

Beauty of the Self

Long time no see blogging world... I took off in a zeppelin and the rest is history (if only). No, to be perfectly frank I've been exploring myself in the wondrous city that is New York. To slip back into the blogging coterie, I thought I'd honor this process by presenting some of my absolute favorite self portraits and some of my favorite people. I've chosen them mostly off of personal relevance or conceptual brilliance... bonsoir!
*all photos from this post were found on Google images

Chuck Close (1967)

Frida Kahlo (1943)

Andy Warhol (1967)

Stephen Colbert - this one is not a self portrait, but I thought 

I'd include it as it just recently was hung in the Smithsonian Museum.

M.C. Escher 

Rene Magritte 

Helmut Newton - I chose this for multiple reasons... one, the woman in this

 picture is absolutely stunning, and she just so happens to be his wife. Secondly, 

it is considered a "self portrait" although he clearly is not the main focus of the shot. 

And lastly, it completely reflects the raw beauty of the rest of his works.

John Lennon 

Pablo Picasso 

Van Gogh

Irving Penn (in my opinion, whose self portrait evokes 

but doesn't justify the beauty of his photography)

Portrait of Giselle Bundchen by Irving Penn

Harlequin Dress by Irving Penn

 (as with Newton, the model is Penn's wife!)

Nostalgia

Oh, the elegance of the 1950's. I've been doing research for a designer for an upcoming play taking place in 1953 and have stumbled upon so many great images*! This seems especially relevant since so many fashion trends right now are revolving around the '50s (vintage, round, tortoise-shell sunglasses, red lips & nails, and just the all around simple sophistication of a beautiful silhouette). I don't know where my nostalgia for times past comes from, but I do know that I find so much inspiration in it. Hoping you will you too :) xo
*these were all found on the Internet... some I have cited, some not. Just an FYI - go anti-plagiarism! 

(please note the creepy man standing behind the girls... just noticed that)

(taken from www.gettyimages.com)

(taken from www.gettyimages.com)

a coat like this is on my holiday wish list! so glamorous 

yet looks so warm (we all know how hard that is to find!)

(taken from www.gettyimages.com)

(taken from www.gettyimages.com)

(taken by famous photographer Irving Penn)

(taken by fashion photographer Henry Clarke)

Marlene Dietrich 

Marilyn... of course. This is one of my favorite pictures of her.

This last one I found adorable - time to get into the holiday spirit!

(taken by photographer Nat Fein - www.vintagephotos.com)

The Fabulous Bette Davis

I had never known much about Bette Davis (1908-1989) until I began researching 1940's starlets for the costumes in my show. I stumbled upon so many fantastic pictures of her that I finally realized what all of the commotion was about. She was an unconventional beauty, one who took risks in all aspects of her life, especially when it came to fashion. That is what I like most about her of course - that she was ahead of her time, a trendsetter, but mainly was such an individual and so diverse. She was the first actress to win an Oscar for Warner Brothers, and by 1942 was the highest paid woman in America. In 1977 Davis was also the first woman to ever win the American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award. Another aspect of her person that I find admirable is that she also suffered from breast cancer, an illness that so many women fight with daily. (http://www.bettedavis.com/about/bio.htm) She is a role model not only for actors but for women everywhere, so I would like to dedicate this post to her memory and to spread a little bit of her fabulous-ness around!
*all photos from this post were found on Google images

I love how informal this photo is, and yet she is still so glamorous.

The fur sleeves... who else could pull those off! 

And the enormous standing collar, love!

I've already posted this picture before, but it says so much.

After winning her 1939 Academy Award for "Best Actress in a Leading Role" 

for the film Jezebel. Now those feathers... incredible. See what I'm talking about!

A screen shot of the 1941 film The Bride Came C.O.D. with co-star James Cagney.

Some of her best known films to add to your Netflix list are:

Dangerous (1935) directed by Alfred E. Green - this film brought Davis her first Academy Award

Jezebel (1938) directed by William Wyler, also starring Henry Fonda and George Brent - second Academy Award!

The Little Foxes (1941) directed by William Wyler - Academy Award nomination

All About Eve (1950) directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz - Academy Award nomination

Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) directed by Robert Aldrich, also starring Joan Crawford and Victor Buono - Academy Award nomination