Fashion as Art: Less is More – Minimalism in Fashion by Harriet Walker
In celebration of the Academy Awards, TCM has been presenting past winners. The other night It Happened One Night (1934) was featured—a precedent-setting film in many ways. What impressed me the most was the gorgeous gown Claudette Colbert wore towards the end of the film. Simply cut, it draped beautifully, the fabric shimmered, the neckline (front and back) was adorned with flowers, and it had a fabulous train. If ever there was a red carpet look…but in It Happened One Night, it was a wedding gown.
A gown Penelope Ann Miller wore in an early scene in The Shadow (1994) provoked a similar reaction. That was the first time I fell in love with a dress, and you never forget your first time. Like Colbert’s gown, Miller’s was a simple cut in a shimmery soft fabric that draped beautifully.
I never considered myself a fashion maven or fashionista because I like things that are very simply cut. I don’t like a lot of frou-frou—ruffles, frills, swagging, lace, bows, feathers, fringe—actually I’d prefer none. What I consider elegant is neither trendy nor fussy (the second dress I fell in love with was a pink Ralph Lauren gown worn by Gwyneth Paltrow to the Academy Awards presentation in 1998 when she won for Shakespeare in Love). With the publication of Harriet Walker’s Less is More: Minimalism in Fashion, I’ve learned that my distaste for embellishment actually represents a style.
Less is More: Minimalism in Fashion is a coffee table book for those who appreciate the art of fashion—the construction, the lines, the drape, the statement. It includes a stunning collection of designers, with fashions that you will never see anywhere but a museum or catwalk and fashions that are beautiful and timeless. Gowns by Balenciaga and Dior, created with ultimate artistry, defined elegance and good taste. Calvin Klein and Donna Karan gave women clothing they could live in, and Stella McCartney brings minimalism to a new, chic level. These are merely a few of the dozens of designers represented in Less Is More.
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