ZANDRA RHODES A COLORFUL LIFE
ZANDRA RHODES A COLORFUL LIFE
CONTENTS
1
INTRODUCTION
3
BIOGRAPHY
9
CAREER PHASES
11
DESIGN LABEL
13
TEXTILES
21
COSTUME DESIGN
31
EPILOGUE
33
EXHIBITION CHECKLIST
NTRODUCTIO
Z
andra Rhodes is an artist
whose medium is printed textiles. Working in a calligraphic style uniquely her own, she designs airy prints from which she produces floating, romantic garments whose cut evolves from the logic and placement of the print itself. Rhodes has no imitators so her work is instantly recognizable. In a field where novelty is prized, Rhodes’ work over the years is remarkable for its consistency. Because the shapes of her garments are fanciful and fantastical, using volume to display the textile to its best advantage, her clothes do not date. Her references are timeless: T-shaped gowns of printed chiffon belted in satin; the full-pleated skirts and long gathered sleeves of Ukrainian festival dress; off-the-shoulder tabards finished with a fringe of dagging; children’s smocking reinterpreted in silk jersey. Rhodes’ clothes are extravagantly feminine, delicate, and mysterious—created, as one writer observed, for “contemporary Titanias.”
Each collection of prints evolves as a thoughtful response to a personal vision. Drawing on traditional historic sources, on images from nature, from popular culture, and from her own past, Rhodes sketches an object over and over, entering into a become increasingly abstract and a personal statement emerges. Only at that point are a series of these personal images combined until the right composition presents itself to be translated into the final screen print. The print determines how the garment will be cut.
A young Zandra Rhodes
dialogue with it as the sketches
Rhodes was not trained as a draper or cutter, and she has not been bound by the concept of symmetry, conventional seam placement, or internal shaping. Many of her dresses are cut flat or with minimal shaping, sometimes incorporating floating panels that follow the undulations of the patterned textile. She favors large repeats on silk chiffon or silk net, and as the garment falls in on itself against the body, it creates mysterious
Zandra sketching
shapes and soft, misty layers not easily known. Rhodes is without doubt one of the most gifted and original designers of the late 20th and early 21st century.
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BIOGRAPHY
O
nce a fitter for the Paris
fashion House of Worth and a lecturer at Medway College of Art in Kent, Zandra’s mother encouraged her interest in fashion. Rhodes studied printing textile design at Medway College and then at the Royal College of Art in London. Her initial textile designs were considered too outrageous for traditional British manufacturers to produce, so Rhodes decided to make her own fabrics. She used specially printed textiles as an intrinsic part of the garments she designed. In 1967 Rhodes opened her first store, The Fulham Road Clothes Shop in London, with Sylvia Ayton. In 1969 Rhodes set up her own studio and then took a collection to New York where Diana Vreeland featured it in American Vogue. As her name became more recognized, she began supplying her work to major American department stores, l ike Neiman Marcus, Bendels, and Saks Fifth Avenue.
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ZANDRA RHODES: A COLORFUL LIFE
RHODES DISTINGUISHES HERSELF AS A DRAMATIC, GLAMOROUS EXTROVERT
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BIOGRAPHY
By the 1970’s, she was at the forefront of British fashion. Her bold, dynamic, and colorful prints were seen as anti-establishment but they none the less became hits in the fashion world. In following years she won several she was elected Designer of the Year and in 1974 she was selected to be the Royal designer for Industry. In the following year she set up her own store off Bond Street in London as well as a boutique in Marshall Fields, Chicago.
Zandra sketching at an early age
design awards in England. In 1972
R
hodes distinguishes
herself as a dramatic, glamorous extrovert and this public persona has always been apparent in her edgy designs. In 1977 she released her signature collection of torn pink and black jersey with holes and safety pins throughout earning
Sketch by Zandra Rhodes
her the title “Princess of Punk.” She has since become an internationally acclaimed designer whose iconic work has been seen on red carpets and runways throughout the world. 6
R
hodes has designed for a
diverse set of clients from Princess Diana and Elizabeth Taylor to Freddie Mercury of Queen. She designs for elite clientele all around the world and her vintage collected by celebrities such as Tom Ford, Anna Sui, Kate Moss, and Ashley Olsen. Her collection is sold in high end stores and boutiques around the world. Rhodes has also designed jewelry, wrapping paper, china for Royal Doulton, furs for Pologeorgis, and
Freddie Mercury wearing Zandra Rhodes, 1974
pieces continue to be worn and
she has collaborated with MAC to Rhodes is one of the founders of the Fashion and Textile Museum
begun to diversify her career
in London, which opened in 2003.
by working on costume and set
The museum is dedicated to
designs for the opera. She has
showing the work of fashion and
contributed designs for numerous
textile designers from the 1950’s
productions which have toured
onwards. The stunning pink and
around the USA and Canada.
orange building was designed
Zandra Rhodes with Princess Diana of Wales
collection. Since 2000 she has
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by Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta. The museum created a monographic exhibition exploring Rhode’s forty year career, “Zandra Rhodes: A Lifelong Love Affair with Textiles,” which has traveled to several museums and cities worldwide.
Fashion and Textile Museum founded in 2003
produce a limited edition make-up
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DESIGN LABEL TEXTILES COSTUME DESIGN
CAREER PHASES
6
CAREER PHASES
Z
andra Rhodes has explored
many unique ways of expressing herself through her work since her career began. Rhodes’ successful textile designs, which originated at the time of her design label have transformed over the years into clothing for the stars, costumes for
Zandra Rhodes and models at CAM Raleigh for the opening of “Zandra Rhodes: Textile, Print, and Form: A Lifetime of Magical Experimentations.”, 2010
the opera, and museum displays.
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S
ylvia Ayton and Zandra
Rhodes met when Zandra was designing prints for Foale & Tuffin. In 1966 they started their own business working out of their apartments. Rhodes and Ayton went to buyers in attempt to sell their designs, but they were so different that few were actually purchased. The pair decided then to open their own shop and so The Fulham Road Clothes Shop was born. There they began making clothing for celebrities. Zandra and Sylvia were unable to maintain their shop and later went their separate ways, but both continued to design.
Action-packed tweed trousers together with waitsed and flared matching coat by Sylvia Ayton and Zandra Rhodes.
ESIGN LABEL
ZANDRA RHODES: A COLORFUL LIFE
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Z
andra Rhodes’ early textile
designs were considered too outrageous by the traditional British manufacturers so she decided to make dresses from her own fabrics and pioneered the very special use of printed textiles as an intrinsic part of
Flared pants (right) designed by Sylvia Ayton and Zandra Rhodes.
the garments she created.
Textile design by Zandra Rhodes
TEXTILES
ZANDRA RHODES: A COLORFUL LIFE
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15
Designed by Zandra Rhodes (1987)
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19
Designed by Zandra Rhodes (1973)
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S
ince 2000 Zandra’s career has
diversified into designing sets and costumes for the opera. She first worked for San Diego Opera, who invited her to do costumes for “The Magic Flute.” After “The Magic Flute,” she was asked to design both sets and costumes for Bizet’s “The Pearl Fishers” in 2004. This has toured around
COSTUME DESIGN
the USA and Canada, including San Francisco, New York,
Washington National Opera and L’Opera de Montreal.
Most recently, Rhodes worked
with Houston Grand Opera on Egyptian-inspired designs for Verdi’s “Aida,” which then showed at the English National Opera 2007 and encored in 2008. This same Aida was the opening and closing opera for San Francisco Grand Opera in 2011 and was also performed in San Diego, April of 2013.
AIDA Verdi’s “Aida” premiered at Houston Grande Opera in 2007 and featured sets and costumes by Zandra Rhodes. Zandra’s colorful designer’s eye referred back to her own collection “Secrets of the Nile” from 1986. For this, she produced fantastic prints such as Queens Wings and Tutankhamun’s Leopard. She used these, plus reference from her own sketches and the etchings from Napoleon’s Egyptian Campaign to design the sets and costumes. This combination of influences gave her own original take and meaning on Ancient Egyptian Imagery. Working closely with the director, Jo Davis, she also created a spectacular fantasy blue puppet elephant. Bizet’s “The Pearl Fishers,” which premiered at the San Diego Opera on February 14, 2004, featured costumes and sets designed by Zandra Rhodes. The opera was such a success that it went onto the Michigan Opera in June 2004, then onto San Francisco and New York in 2005.
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23 “Aida” designed by Rhodes (2007)
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THE PEARL FISHERS
S
et in mid-1800 Ceylon
(modern day Sri Lanka), Zandra perfectly captured “The Pearl Fishers’” tropical setting and the passion of its characters with her signature vibrant colors and bold patterns. From the breathtaking opening scene to its fiery demise Zandra’s designs made for a truly unforgettable performance. Along with fellow adventurer, friend, and brilliant artist, Andrew Logan, Zandra travelled to Sri Lanka to study this faraway land and produced a multitude of sketches, which served as the
“The Pearl Fishers” designed by Rhodes
basis for her designs.
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29 11 The Queen of the Night costume designed by Rhodes (2001)
THE MAGIC FLUTE
M
ozart’s “The Magic Flute,”
which was the opening opera for the 2001 San Diego Opera season, featured costumes designed by Zandra Rhodes. The final opera written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, this was Zandra’s opera design debut. Filled with fantastic and mythical characters, “The Magic Flute” was the perfect setting for Zandra’s exotic and imaginative costumes. From her stunning Queen of the Night to her delightful Papageno and Papagena, Zandra’s costumes made the opera a feast for the eyes. Her fabulous creations were beautifully offset by the scintillating jewelry designed by her longtime friend and fellow brilliant artist Andrew Logan. San Diego Opera fans were lucky enough to have another chance to see Zandra’s costumes in “The Magic Flute,” which made an encore performance in May 2006.
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29 The Magic Flute designed by Rhodes (2001)
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EPILOGUE
Z
andra has additionally set up
the Fashion and Textile Museum in London which was officially opened May 2003 by HRH Princess Michael of Kent. Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta designed the museum, which is in stunning pink and orange, and already has a preservation plaque. The museum is dedicated to showing the work of fashion and textile designers from the 1950s onwards. This museum has created several notable exhibitions: “My Favorite Dress,” “The Little Black Dress,” and “Zandra Rhodes: A Lifelong Love Affair with Textiles,” which is a major monographic exhibition exploring the forty-year career Rhodes has had. Since the original opening of this exhibition, “Zandra Rhodes: A Lifelong Love Affair with Textiles” has been exhibited in several museums in cities across the world, including The Franz Meyer Museum in Mexico City, RMIT in Melbourne, Australia, Corso Como in Milan, the Mingei Museum in San Diego, and most recently the National Textile Museum of Kuala Lumpur.
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EXHIBITIO HECKLIST 33
1971, “Florida” print on silk chiffon
1972, “Beaded mask” from Roundhouse Show
1972, Butterfly No. 70
1973, “Lilies of the Field” Handpainted Caftan Dress
1974, One-Shoulder Dress
1975, “Sparkle” design on silk chiffon
“1976, “Mexican Banana Leaf” print on silk chiffon
1989, Felt skirt with “Painted Lady” and “Wiggle Stripe” motifs
1976, Quilted jacket in “Spiral Heads” print on satin
1971, Dress from “Lovely Lillies” collection
1976, One-shoulder dress in “Zebra Skin” print on silk chiffon
1989, Quilted jacket in “Spiral Heads” print on satin
1978, Kaftan Jacket in Chinese Water Circles” print on silk chiffon
1990, Dress made from four squares of “Painted Lady Figures” print
1972, “Shell Collection” Embellished Ivory Silk Dress
1991, Crinoline, in “Arab Broderie” print on silk organza
1981, Dress comining “Painted Lady” and “Broderie” prints on silk chiffon
1981, Jersey stole, with beaded asymetric holes held together with beaded safety pins 1988, Top, in “Scribble Turnaround” print on silk chiffon
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