This lady's suit was designed in 1963 by Viennese fashion designer Gertrud Höchsmann. She studied at the University of Applied Arts from 1920 to 1925 and was head of the fashion department from 1959 to 1972. She also owned a fashion house for forty years where my mother worked for a short period.
The exhibition "AESTHETICS OF CHANGE: 150 Years of the University of Applied Arts" at the MAK - Austrian Museum of Applied Arts/Contemporary Art casts a glance back onto 150 years of the University's history and dares also a look into the future. In 1867 the School of Arts and Crafts was established at the Royal Austrian Museum of Art and Industry (today's MAK) to enable Austrian arts and crafts to compete internationally. This school is the antecedent institution of today's University of Applied Arts Vienna.
I was especially interested in the (small) part of the exhibition dedicated to the University's fashion department. The black and white skirt in this photo was a part of a dance costume and designed by Oskar Kokoschka in 1907/08. Kokoschka studied at the University of Applied Arts from 1904 to1909 and then teached there in 1912/13.
While winter sale is still going on, the new collections are already arriving. One of the new trend colors is "arcadia". According to the Pantone Color Institute it's a "cooler, cleaner take on green. Its tinge of blue undertone takes us into a new direction for the spring 2018 season". If you want to know the other top colors of the coming season please click here.
The window display of the department store Steffl looks already a lot like autumn...
To conclude our visit of the exhibition "The Vulgar. Fashion Redefined" here are three dresses created by Dutch fashion designer Iris van Herpen for her autumn/winter 2016/2017 collection, exhibited in the magnificent Gold Cabinet of Prince Eugene of Savoy's Winter Palace.
This insteresting ensemble was created by Belgian fashion designer Walter Van Beirendonck for his autumn/winter collection 2010/2011, the hat is a design by British milliner Stephen Jones.
Last week I went to see the exhibiton "The Vulgar. Fashion Redefined" at the Belvedere's Winter Palace for the second time. The show deals with the controversial theme of taste in fashion. Creations by renowned designers inspire a discourse on the definition of "vulgar". The historical spectrum of exhibits spans from the Renaissance to the present. In this photo you can see two ensembles designed by John Galliano for Christian Dior in 2004 (left) and 2005 (right).
Yesterday was the first day that felt like spring. I was in the office the whole day, but I guess a lot of people ate their first ice cream cone of the season and put on clothes in bright colours.
A red coat and pink hair - what an eye-catching combination!
This past weekend we had a drop of temperature, yesterday I had to dig out one of my old winter jackets and still was cold. Maybe a French winter jacket would be a better idea? The department store "Steffl" in the city center currently presents 40 French brands in the "Salon français" event.
The current window display of the department store Steffl was developed in cooperation with the 21er Haus – Museum of Contemporary Art. Austrian artist Hans Weigand presents highlights of his installation “Surfing” which is currently shown in an exhibition at the 21er Haus. As you can see from the stickers on the surfboards, sale has already started...
After an exciting week the 60th Eurovision Song Contest ended on Saturday with the spectacular grand final. Sweden won the music competition (click here for the video of the performance), Austria got disappointing 0 points... Although this event is over, Vienna is still a city of music, even the mannequins in the windows of the department store Steffl play instruments...
"Süsses Mädel" (Sweet Girl) is the name of this children's fashion store in the city center. The business was founded in 1900 and has been run since then as a family business. I love the old-fashioned storefront characters.
Emilie Flöge was not only Gustav Klimt's life companion (notwithstanding the artist's relationships with other women), but also one of Vienna's most successful fashion stylists and designers. She designed the "reform dress" - a powerful new statement of revolutionary modern values. Loose, flowing and bold, it was a fashion that rejected the tight-laced bolstered style of historicist Vienna. In the Klimt Villa you can see this reproduction of a reform dress. For a photo of Emilie Flöge in the original dress please click here.
Last Saturday I was at "Fesch'markt", a fair for young designers, artists and gastronomers. The fair took place at Ottakringer Brauerei, the last large brewery remaining in Vienna. The parts of the brewery that aren't used any more for manufacturing are rented for events like clubbings, fashion shows, concerts etc. I love the atmosphere of such run-down places.
The department store "Steffl" consistently engages young artists to create the window displays. The Viennese illustrator and graphic designer Nora Groth chose the graphics of the Art Nouveau style as her source of inspiration for the current display. Click here for a short video of the unveiling.
It´s the time of the summer sales! I have already picked up some bargains. How about you?
The department store "Steffl" in the city center recently started the series "Art meets Fashion" and presented these balloon heads, created by the young creative duo "Luftfabrik", in its windows.
