N.B. Click pe imagini.

Mrs. Charles Russell (1900)

Asocierea celor doua nume nu este deloc intamplatoare. In primul rand pentru ca suntem atat de aproape de centenarul sfarsitului a ceea ce numim perioada eduardiana. In 2010 se vor implini nu doar 100 de ani de la moartea Regelui Eduard al VII-lea, ci si 85 de ani de la moartea lui John Singer Sargent.

In al doilea rand deoarece Sargent, la fel ca si perioada mai sus amintita, a inspirat furie sau adoratie. Fara sentimentalisme de mijloc. Esential romantic, impersonal, Sargent are un stil propriu in a sugera ceea ce as putea numi emotiile neutre ale personajelor sale.

Judecata de multi ca fiind extrem de rigida d.p.d.v. social - asistam asadar la nasterea multor miscari de coloratura trandafiriu-rosiatice - domnia lui Eduard al VII-lea nu a fost mai putin creativa pe teren artistic. Iar una dintre cele mai “afectate” ramuri ale creativitatii a fost industria modei. Cunoscut portretist, americanul Sargent a surprins in multe din panzele sale piese superbe din bogata garderoba eduardiana. Cateva exemple puteti admira in cadrul acestui post.

Daughters of Edward Darley Boit (1882)

Portrait of Mrs. Robert Harrison (1886)

Mrs. Carl Meyer and Her Children (1896)

Earl of Dalhousie (1900)

Ena and Betty, Daughters of Asher and Mrs Wertheimer (1901)

Winifred, Duchess of Portland (1902)

Baroness de Meyer (1907)

Perioada tarzie a epocii victoriene si intreaga epoca eduardiana - incluse aici si corespondentele frantuzesti  haute-couture - au fost, probabil, ultimile scantei ale unui segment de timp care, odata apus, nu va mai renaste niciodata.

Am descoperit prin arhive un articol* interesant dedicat modei in perioada mai sus amintita. Iata cateva extrase:

The I914-I8 war really ended the tradition, established in the eighteenth century, of a rigid social timetable in which correct clothing played a vital part; late Victorian and Edwardian England saw this tradition reach fulfillment, with style and elegance. Attendance at Court required the strictest sartorial etiquette, and the exhibition included a court dress from Jays of Regent Street, of white embroidered satin, with the regulation train, here of emerald green velvet. Another occasion which demanded exact gradations of color and style, was mourning; from the Abbey House Museum, Leeds, came a half-mourning day dress of black and white striped voile with velvet appliqué, of 1905.

It was, of course, Beau Brummell who defined elegance in male dress by the quality of the cut and the sober colors of dark blue and buff which he popularized; a return to Regency style can be seen in the camel coat with black broadcloth collar and cuffs.

Gasesc incantator modul in care majoritatea personajelor de mai sus se uita la pictor :) Nu stiu, dar eu cel putin sesizez pe fata lui Earl of Dalhousie un adanc si nedisimulat dispret amestecat cu un zambet strengaresc abia schitat. Cred ca dupa ce a terminat de pozat l-a lovit pe pictor peste umar si i-a spus: What about a drink?

* Aileen Ribeiro, Costume in the Age of Sargent, in The Burlington Magazine, nr. 917/ 1979, pp. 533 + 536.