Black Bubble
First thing this morning I engaged in a certain Monday ritual: cruising fashion blogs. I tell thee, seeing the title ‘Blackest of The Blacks’ – a recent entry from Style Bubble – is like being whopped across the face. Yes, my interest was piqued.
You see, black (the ‘colour’, not us) gets a mixed press. If you were to open up any Vogue Catwalk Report, no matter what season, among the florals, the metallics, the urban guerrilla, the military urchin etc, there is invariably a black page – positioning its status in the world of fashion as nothing other than mandatory. This is often to the chagrin of many fashion editors. Despite being ubiquitous and incredibly popular its use is criticised for being the resort of the unimaginative. Two words to the contrary. Rick Owens.
Style Bubble’s blogger, Susie Bubble, was writing about an exhibition called ‘Black: Masters of Black in Fashion and Costume” at the Fashion Museum in Antwerp. While the exhibition explored the history of black in fashion and historic costume, paid homage to the fashion houses whose use of black resulted in creating masterpieces (Chanel, Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent) and delved into ‘the potential of black in diverse materials’ (fur, lace, leather), its very presence led Bubble to feel a certain ambivalence about the role of black in fashion.
“I have an estranged relationship with the supposed cornerstones of fashion where black reigns and is apparently meant to be THE colour that dictates the foundation of our wardrobes. Just to pull "xxx is the new black" as an example already gives the colour weight and superiority above all else”
She has a point. It’s not fair that an un-colour should hold such unrivalled hegemony in the fashion food chain. Yet I can’t foresee the colours ‘blush’, ‘taupe’ or ‘cerulean’ getting their own exhibitions. (Neither does Bubble). The more I think about it, the more the room at Harrods that houses Givency, Balmain and Lanvin et al could quite easily be regarded as a gallery of black artistry. I’d even skip Antwerp altogether and head straight to Rods for an education in the majesty of black fashion. Far from being the resort of the unimaginative, designers handling black have to work even harder than those with a rainbow of colours or prints to hand to bring the darkness to life. Look at the work that goes into creating this:
Givenchy SS10
Or this:
Balmain SS10
Or this:
Lanvin SS10
Hmmm. I wonder whether we should start selling single gloves a la Lanvin ...
