Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Wang's Wedding Dress Fit for a Vampire's Bride



[Image downloaded from Bridalwave.tv]

This dress resembles the one I'm describing.
You can view the actual dress at Vera Wang's site,
where it is the first of a stream of images to flash at 
her main page.

Vera Wang is at it again. I recently saw Wang's black wedding dress monstrosity in Elle USA (August 2010 issue), but fortunately it can be viewed (with caution) at her site.

I had recently written about her "mounds of chiffon, " and the same mound she designed for Chelsea Clinton's wedding. Well, I can really only blame those pomo brides, whose aesthetic is: "no aesthetic." Wang is their wedding dress designer from heaven. Or more precisely, she fits the current mood for a vampiric netherworld perfectly. But none of these pseudo-goth brides would know what to do if a real vampire bit them.

Wang used to be a fashion critic and only turned to fashion design later in life. But, besides her dearth of actual design background and training, I still think it is the abhorrence of beauty (what a state of mind!) that is her guiding principle, and the guiding principle of many contemporary artists and designers. But, of course, people who hate beauty hate standards, hard work, and intricate study to get things perfect. "Let's just pile it on, with satin and chiffon," could be Wang's mantra. And the public (some with millions to spare) buys it all, words and chiffon.

Here is one more incriminating (yes, I will be that harsh) information about Wang. From Wikipedia:
Wang was a senior fashion editor for Vogue for sixteen years. In 1985, she left Vogue after being turned down for the editor-in-chief position currently filled by Anna Wintour and joined Ralph Lauren as a design director for two years. In 1990, she opened her own design salon in the Carlyle Hotel in New York that features her trademark bridal gowns.
I think Anna Wintour brings quality and style to Vogue, as much as she can in this pomo world. Wintour recently turned away another lackadaisical character - actress Sienna Miller - who had been slotted to model for Vogue.

Well, the Chelseas and other young brides will only look at their dresses twenty years down the road and wonder. If they don't, their children and grandchildren will. One can at least hope.