Considering our modern day hectic lifestyle and wide variety of hi-tech entertainment, it's quite impressive that some people still love the simple pleasure of drawing, allowing space and time in their lives to interpret the world of fashion through lines and dots. This is indeed an art form and now we can admire the most amazing artists with the first ever standalone exhibition from the Fashion Illustration Gallery.
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René Gruau Text by Frieda Grafe, Interview with Gruau by Joelle Chariau, Foreword by Hubert de Givenchy Rizzoli 1984 |
This brief exhibition features the world's most talented fashion illustrators from different time periods to the present day. René Gruau is a reference to David Downton, who has also a clean and elegant style. Downton is one of the most successful artists working today having drawn many celebrities, models in couture and contributed to prestigious fashion magazines.
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David Downton Red Lips, Blue Eyes, 2013 |
It has been a long way since FIG's first inaugural exhibition in 2007 - 100 years of Fashion Illustration - which launched the book of the same name published by Laurence King. It's important to nurture talent and to cultivate an awareness of what has been done in the past and of what is being done today, this has been its relentless mission.
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Antonio Lopez For Fashions of the Times, 1966 |
Each fashion illustrator has a unique signature style that can be incredibly inspiring. It can be as mesmerising as a good photograph and yet remains relatively limited to a niche of fashion aficionados. This is definitely an opportunity to reach more people, perhaps leading others to start drawing instead of just taking snap shots.
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Gladys Perint Palmer Ungaro S/S 02, 2002 |
13 to 19 December
Christie's
85 Old Brompton Road
London SW7
Other related blog posts:
Masters of Fashion Illustration
Manolo Blahnik: a Fairy Tale
New Editorial Voice
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Vogue Paris featuring work by René Gruau and Andy Warhol, Dec 1983 |