Celebrities Honor Two Great Designers at Event
Schiaparelli and
Prada,
many guests at this year’s ultimate fashion gala on Monday night
observed some surprising similarities between two women whose work is
separated by half a century. Walking through the displays of ugly-chic
dresses and slightly surreal designs in a new
Metropolitan Museum of Art exhibition that compares the designers
Elsa Schiaparelli and
Miuccia Prada. “I loved the play of the two of them together,” said Tom Ford, arriving at the
Costume Institute gala
with the model Chanel Iman, who wore a dress made of pheasant feathers
molded to her body. “It was amazing how hard it was to differentiate
some of the pieces.” Best not mention that to Mrs. Prada, one of the
most influential female designers in recent history, who initially
rebuffed the museum’s plans to mount
an exhibition that compared her to Schiaparelli, who died in 1973.
Mrs. Prada said in many interviews about the show that she had never
been inspired by the work of her predecessor. “Well,” Mr. Ford said,
“Coco Chanel said that creativity is the art of concealing your
sources.”
©NYtimes story by ERIC WILSON Continue reading →
