This fall,\u00a0Azzedine Ala\u00efa \u2014 a \u201ctotally important designer,\u201d to quote the 1995 film comedy \u201cClueless\u201d \u2014 is getting his first major U.S. retrospective tracing the connections between his sculptural designs, visual arts, pop culture and the history of fashion.<\/p>\n
\u201cAzzedine Ala\u00efa: Sculpting Fashion,\u201d slated to open Nov. 21 at the Legion of Honor, will feature about 80 garments from across the Tunisian-born, Paris-based designer\u2019s career and his collection of historic fashion.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ala\u00efa (1940-2017) is considered a master of structural, body-conscious garments and was widely celebrated in his lifetime. In the 1980s and \u201890s, his technical innovations in construction and fabrication allowed the natural curves of a woman\u2019s form to be displayed in an era of exaggerated and heavily manipulated silhouettes. He is widely regarded as having combined strength and sexuality while empowering women through dress.<\/p>\n
The exhibition will also present Ala\u00efa\u2019s designs in conversation with works from the museum\u2019s permanent collection.<\/p>\n
Curated by Laura Camerlengo, the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco curator in charge of costume and textile arts, and Fondation Azzedine Ala\u00efa Director Olivier Saillard, the show will celebrate his enduring influence on contemporary style.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Camerlengo also told the Chronicle the goal is to emphasize the designer\u2019s \u201clegacy as a catalyst for feminist self-fashioning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAla\u00efa existed somewhat outside of the conventional fashion system,\u201d said Camerlengo, who noted that he challenged accepted cycles of production and presentation schedules in the industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that mentality has resonance in an area that often challenges the status quo,\u201d she continued, noting that the designer was honored by San Francisco\u2019s Academy of Art University and the Mayor\u2019s Office in 2005.<\/p>\n
Ala\u00efa was also a trained sculptor, as well as a collector and student of historical fashion and haute couture. Both informed the way he approached design, Camerlengo said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Incorporating Ala\u00efa\u2019s work into the European painting, sculpture, decorative arts and ancient arts collections \u201chad special appeal because that was how Ala\u00efa liked to show his own work,\u201d said Camerlengo.<\/p>\n
\u201cAzzedine Ala\u00efa: Sculpting Fashion\u201d will be divided into key themes including bandage dresses; sculpture and shape; silhouettes and suiting; black and white; and construction and craftsmanship. Looks worn by performers including Grace Jones, Rihanna and Tina Turner will be on display, with particular attention to Ala\u00efa\u2019s role in helping Turner reshape her image in the \u201980s.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe even have the beaded dress worn by her in the famous 1989 Peter Lindbergh photograph,\u201d Camerlengo said, referring to an image of singer clinging to the side of the Eiffel Tower. \u201cThat was the culmination of her reasserting herself as a solo performer and emerging out of a decades-long, abusive relationship.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAla\u00efa\u2019s design emphasizes her muscular legs, in particular. She looks so strong, sexy and empowered.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This fall,\u00a0Azzedine Ala\u00efa \u2014 a \u201ctotally important designer,\u201d to quote the 1995 film comedy \u201cClueless\u201d \u2014 is getting…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":668979,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[267],"tags":[365,362,7555,180787,363,364,366,18,117,19,17],"class_list":["post-668978","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-arts-and-entertainment","tag-arts-and-exhibits","tag-artsanddesign","tag-artsdesign","tag-design","tag-eire","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117202244315546563","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668978","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=668978"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668978\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/668979"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=668978"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=668978"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=668978"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}