Photograph by Erwin Blumenfeld New York, 1955
© The Estate of Erwin Blumenfeld 2009
Grace Kelly was the epitome of glamour, elegance with a capital ‘E’ and had impeccable style. She continues even after thirty years after her death to be a true icon to many worldwide. It was with a hop and a skip that I excitedly rushed to visit the blockbuster exhibition ‘Grace Kelly: Style Icon’ at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. This sold-out show did not disappoint, displaying just some of the wonderful accessories and outfits that she donned whilst growing from a starlet Hollywood actress to the Princess of Monaco.
Installation Shot © V&A Images 2010
Being a huge fan of 1950s fashion, it was truly amazing to see the gowns that Grace Kelly wore in classic films such as High Society and Rear Window as well as to accept her Oscar in 1955. I loved the case full of horn-rimmed specs, beautiful gloves and the Hermès bag that the designers nicknamed the “the Kelly bag,” setting my imagination alive with what she would have kept in there.
I have to say I didn’t really like the vulgar jewelled outfits she wore to charity balls as Princess Grace in the ‘60s and ‘70s but there was no doubt that Grace Kelly could have worn a bin bag and still looked amazing. It was evident that it was her physical presence on screen that gave Grace Kelly her icon status; so viewing the exhibition did require a large amount of imagination to connect this individual’s allure with the rather lifeless mannequins that stood before you. A wonderful collection of possessions of this true legend that certainly made me want to run home and see them in action on DVD.
If you want to see this exhibition, it closes on the 26th September 2010 and I definitely advise pre-booking your tickets to avoid long queues or worse, miss out.
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