For those who are based in Sydney (or likely to go in the next few months) a great new exhibition is opening next week on the history of swimwear.

Exposed! the story of swimwear highlights the designs and designers, past and present, at the forefront of Australian swimwear fashion.

What: Exposed! The Story of Swimwear.
Where: Australian National Maritime Museum, South Gallery, Darling Harbour
When: July 2nd to October 25th, 2009.
Cost: free!

More information at the ANMM website. Image courtesy ANMM.

It looks like this is a travelling exhibition so those who live in Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Wagga Wagga and Newcastle will see it later. Sadly, it’s not coming to Melbourne - perhaps a trip is in order?

UPDATE: nice article about the exhibition from The Australian.

Speaking of swimwear, if you’d like something gorgeous for this summer you might like to check out the website of Glamoursurf a vintage site that specialises in bathing suits. Here’s one of my favourites:

1940s jersey Hawaiian print swimsuit. Image courtesy Glamoursurf.

For this year’s Festival Fringe, Circa will be hosting an exhibition by Omnific Assembly entitled “Echo’s Lost”, focusing on memory and the space that is left behind once memory fades.

Echo’s Lost will present 12 to 15 small three-dimensional works. Due to the space requirements, each will be no larger than 200mm wide and be able to fit into the dimensions of the art deco china cabinet (seen below) in the front shop window. Applications are currently being received and close July 4th.

The exhibition will run for the three weeks of the festival - mid September to early October.

More information can be found at the Echo’s Lost website and the Echo’s Lost Facebook page.

This week the National Gallery of Victory unveil a new costume exhibition -
Persuasion, Fashion in the Age of Jane Austen.

The two earliest garments in my collection are from the 1820s - a white cotton chemise and a crimson silk gown with puffed sleeves and petal collar. I’ll see if I can dig up photos of them for you. In the meantime, go and see the beauties on display at the NGV.

Where: National Gallery of Victoria, International (St Kilda Road)
When: May 22nd to November 8th.
Cost: free entry.

From the NGV’s website:
Persuasion: Fashion in the Age of Jane Austen looks at the changes in fashion that occurred over Austen’s lifetime, with a focus on English women’s fashion during the first two decades of the nineteenth century. Drawing on work from the National Gallery of Victoria’s holdings of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century fashion, prints and drawings, decorative arts and paintings, and complemented by key works from other Australian institutions and private collections, Persuasion broadly surveys the years from the 1770s to around 1830, one of the most dynamic periods in fashion.

Photo courtesy NGV.

The last couple of days I’ve been busy at the ESMOD stand at the Craft Show - the brief was to drape Circa’s vintage mannequins in tulle and ribbon, as well as setting up the Darnell Collection mannequins, which are displaying garments from 1840 to 1990s.

It’s a great show: lots of things to do and see, free workshops on everything from fabric dyeing to knitting and scrap-booking. Today was pretty quiet, so there was lots of room and opportunity to talk with people. I bought some long strands of glass pearl beads for the shop, and met a lovely lady who can make hand mirrors for Circa, using some of the vintage fabrics I have.

I’ll be there tomorrow: if you’re in the neighbourhood, drop in and say “hi”. You’ll find the ESMOD stand in the middle of the main pavilion.

Apologies to subscribers who received an early version of this post, as a password protected file. I was trying out the security settings and found out what not to do!

This Wednesday the Stitches and Craft Show opens at the Showgrounds. There’s an impressive line-up of events (you can see a pdf show guide here), and amongst them will be the first Melbourne showing of the Darnell Collection, hosted by Sydney’s ESMOD school of fashion.

Circa has been invited to make a small contribution - we’re lending them five of our best vintage mannequins for a display on the history of mannequins. Look out for Emily (Edwardian), Fay (late ’20s-early ’30s), Lola (early ’40s), Marlene (late ’40s) and Betty (’50s).

So this week - for the first and probably last time - we’ll be without our girls and so you’ll see dressmaker’s dummies with Clark (our male mannequin) in the window and on the floor. The girls will be back next week.

Finally I got a chance to see the long awaited exhibition The Golden Age of Couture: Paris and London 1947-1957 at the Bendigo Art Gallery. I can’t begin to tell you how much I’ve looked forward to this - and expect to go at least once or twice more before it finishes on March 22nd.

Firstly: some shoes to whet your appetite and then a mix of vintage photos and garments from the exhibition.

All images borrowed from the fabulous Victoria and Albert’s site on the exhibition. Don’t be fooled by the monochromes: there are lots of lovely colours and prints too.

My dates for the day were the very glamourous (and much more suitably frocked) Vintage Verve and Lisa. That will teach me to dress down on a Sunday. Anyway: onto the exhibition.

In brief - the exhibition exceeded my expectations; five or six rooms full of what can only be considered the best vintage clothing on the planet, displayed to great effect under subtle lighting. The first room has several wonderful pieces, and explains the back story of how the masterful Christian Dior (my favourite designer) released his “flower” designs for women in 1947 and gave the fashion world a bit of a well mannered shake.

Over the past 29 years I have read and written a great deal about this period and these gowns, as well as viewing, repairing, cleaning and reconstructing many thousands of the little darlings and their poorer cousins. So what I was looking for were the things that I didn’t know or hadn’t noticed - and here’s what they were:

- The heady Victorian influence - I’ve seen couture gowns with built in corsetry but hadn’t seen how much the haute couture shared with the previous century.

- The softening of the work of Balenciaga - I haven’t seen many of his garments in the flesh so hadn’t realised how much his style changed as the 1950s progressed, from high style to something much softer.

- The scale of the French fashion houses - the large contribution they played in the economy and the numbers of skilled workers required to produce such creations.

- How effectively these garments would have created the desire in the younger generation for something free and easy - high fashion without taking out a second mortgage and so setting the stage for the clothing revolution of the 1960s.

- It was surprising to see that in modern day terms, the couture garments were relatively affordable and good value for money - certainly more so that certain mass-produced made in China designer items are now. I think it was $2,000 for a Balenciaga haute couture suit, and remember that Balenciaga was perhaps the most exclusive of all the fashion houses.

Wonderful! Do go and see it if you get the chance - there are all sorts of associated events too, including a talk by Lynn Savery on March 18, about her collection of wearable vintage.

It may be a little while before I get to go back to the harbour city, but if you’re already there (or going there soon) you might like to check out these events - if only to make me envious!

Rockabilly: Living the ’50s.

The 1950s was an exuberant decade that saw the birth of rock and roll, new fashions and social mores, and a breakaway generation who became known as teenagers. At the turn of the 21st century there are some for whom the ’50s never died. Photographer Steven Siewert has spent years documenting Sydney’s rockabillies, a vibrant subculture who live and breathe an era that predates their earliest birthdays. The boys dress for cool with stovepipe jeans and slick quiffs, while the women wear dazzling cocktail frocks by night and colourful vintage dresses by day.

Museum of Sydney: on now until Sunday 17 August, 2008

Fifties Fair

Now in its 14th year the Fifties Fair has grown to become the ultimate 50s celebration, set perfectly against the striking modernism of Rose Seidler House.

This year’s program will include swing band Ben Jones Jazz and rockabilly band Pat Capocci Combo, a 50s DJ, dance demos, vehicle displays, street theatre and the famous Fifties Fair fashion awards. Make sure you dress up in your favorite 50s threads and visit the 50s stylist for that authentic look. Collectors will be in retro paradise with the cream of 50s specialist stalls, while kids are entertained by crafts, hula hoop and dance workshops.

Rose Seidler House - Sunday 24 August - 10.00am — 5.00pm - General $15 Conc/Members $8 Family $38

Words and photos naughtily stolen from the respective websites.

UPDATE: Received a comment from Oliver of Risky Lunar Love:

Hey Guys,

Oliver.

Last Thursday we tizzied up and sashayed down to the National Gallery of Victoria for the opening night party of the Art Deco exhibition.

I’m wearing a 1930s silk satin gown with a *very* plunging neckline demurely held together with a diamante clasp, along with a velvet jacket of the era and two deco dress clips. Tim’s wearing an Anton’s jacket and waistcoat, vintage shirt and trousers (you’ll have to visualise the two toned brogues).

Circa was fortunate to have the opportunity to dress the fabulous Candice - aka Super Kawaii Mama - and dress we did! Candice spent the day luxuriating in glamourous style: hair, make up, manicure - all was perfect for the perfect frock. A 1930s silk velvet evening gown which could have been made for her, the fit was so good. The glamour ante was upped by the addition of the lushest 1930s pure white arctic fox fur stole and long white gloves. All eyes were on the most beautiful lady, she looked as if she’d stepped out of a Golden Era of Hollywood film. I meekly followed in her wake, beaming proudly…and took a few photos…

Peter Jago and Candice.

Greg and Heather Walters, with Candice.

And it was nice to see that I’m not the only one who considers Candice worthy of photographing - see The Vine and also Candice’s own blog Super Kawaii Mama Deco Dreams. I’m sure more will turn up in the social pages around the place - it almost seemed as if the photographers were queueing up to photograph her. Such is the need for glamour these days.

More photos from the evening can be seen here.

Opening this Friday night at Dante’s - and continuing all week. The first Gertrude Street Digital Media Festival!

When: Friday June 20th to Friday June 27th, from 6pm to 11pm every night.

Where: eight venues on Gertrude street.

What: digital images will be displayed in shop windows and projected onto the pavement.

Thanks to the Gertrude Association for organising this: it’s great to see community arts projects getting off the ground, especially ones that promise to be as interesting as this one.

Come and see Gertrude Street After Dark!

You may recall that late last year I visited Charlotte Smith and the Darnell Collection of antique and vintage clothing (you can see my previous post and a few snapshots here).

Quite a few people expressed interest in seeing the Collection, so I’m pleased to report that the Bendigo Art Gallery is about to open an exhibition of Victorian garments from the Collection, called “Fashion in the Age of Queen Victoria”.

Image shamelessly stolen from the Bendigo Art Gallery’s website - Trousseau dress 1881.

Details:
Where: Bendigo Art Gallery
When: 17th May to 20th July 2008
Admission fees apply.

This exhibition features a selection of Victoria era fashion showing the development of women’s clothing from crinolines to bustles towards the more liberated body shapes of the twentieth century. Curated by Tansy Curtin, this exhibition is exclusive to Bendigo Art Gallery.

The exhibition is accompanied by some special events including a talk by Charlotte, another by Tansy and also a screening of “Gone With the Wind”. Definitely worth a trip to Bendigo - further information can be found here at the Gallery’s site.