CFDA film chronicles American fashion history

Longtime fashion industry insider, show producer and filmmaker Nian Phish does a fantastic job summarizing the impact of American sensibilities on the global fashion scene in just under 10 minutes. She was entrusted with the project by her CEO, Steven Kolb, of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA).

On Wednesday, the organization invited members and press who missed the premiere to watch at the Crosby Street Hotel, followed by a chat with Fish and CFDA editorial and communications director Mark Karimzadeh. included the strength of women in the U.S. fashion industry, most notably CFDA founder Eleanor Lambert. American Leadership on Diversity; American Designers as Activists. And a warning about sticking to ’90s nostalgia.

Fish recalled the woman who most influenced her career choices: the late stylist and publicist Kezia Keble.

“[Keeble] She asked me to do bookkeeping and then taught me to be a stylist. The three of us put everything together. Music, casting, lights, styling, steam. (Keble and Kabako are KCD’s K and C. The late John Duka, a former New York Times columnist-style reporter, is D, and he’s already co-founder of one agency).

Her first request was for a three-and-a-half-minute movie, so she almost skipped the assignment. “I turned it down four times. The scary part was that certain designers weren’t included. I thought I would miss some,” she recalled. “Stephen complimented my ego and said, ‘You’re the only one who does this.’ said

The making of the film also helped solidify the influence Eleanor Lambert and the CFDA had on American fashion as we know it today.

“[Lambert] I asked the media to look at American designers. She realized they were artists. Versailles Her shows were all her clients. Her PR skills made it happen. The Met Ball and Best Dressed List were also meant to promote her clientele,” she said, adding, “I love American fashion, but I feel like a lot of people don’t. We are still fighting for second-class citizenship to Europe, especially to Paris.”

Narrated by John Waters, the film begins before Lambert’s tenure dates back to the Gibson Girls (a distinctly different concept of Gilded Age America).

World War II provided an opportunity for Eleanor Lambert, a former art publicist turned original fashion publicist, to work with designers such as Claire McCardell and Norman Norell to promote fashion in America, where European-made garments had not yet been imported. defines a pivotal moment in American fashion when it’s grabbed. , Adrian (a costume designer for Hollywood’s off-screen costumes), Lily Dachet, and others became famous for not having European designers like Christian Dior and Cristóbal Balenciaga in retail. Publicists established the Best Dressed List, Coty Awards, New York Press Week and the Met Gala to promote designer clients and the industry at large.

By 1962, she was lobbying state senators to consider fashion and art for recognition by the National Endowment for the Arts. She founded her CFDA with founding members such as Bill Blass and her Oscar de la Renta. Other key highlights include First Lady Jackie Kennedy supporting American Oleg Cassini and later Hatter Halston. Youthquake 60s, as Diana Vreeland named it, by designers like Betsy Johnson, Stan Harman (from 1991 until she was president of the CFDA until 2006) and Rudy Gernreich.

The ’70s brought Halston’s dominance, especially at Studio 54 and the famous Battle of Versailles (a fundraising event for the then crumbling palace). During his 80s during the Reagan era, American-made hip-hop influenced fashion around the world, with brands like Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Donna Karan making their mark.

The first CFDA Fashion Awards were held in 1981, with Fernando Sanchez winning for womenswear and Jane Burns for menswear. Amidst the emergence of supermodels in the 90s, he called on the fashion community to support the fight against AIDS and breast cancer, including Halston, Perry Ellis, Patrick Robinson and Willie Smith, who took their lives. CFDA is backing support through Seventh on Sale, along with Vogue, and Fashion Targets Breast Cancer, each targeting breast cancer.

From Tom Ford to Gucci to Saint Laurent, American design talent is leading European maisons for the first time. From Michael Kors to Celine. From Narciso Rodriguez to Loewe. And from Marc Jacobs to Louis Vuitton. Years later, guests celebrated his Spring 2002 collection of Marc Jacobs and his new perfume on the Hudson River pier just before the terrorist attack crashed down on the Hudson River pier overlooking the Twin Towers.

The event spurred the creation of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund to support emerging designers. In 2020, an unimaginable global pandemic has fostered A Common Thread, designed to help designers navigate unprecedented events.

The project also emphasized America’s leadership in diversity.

“Yves Saint Laurent used black models because he saw Americans use black models at the Versailles show,” she explained. (Editor’s Note: The 1973 show was a contest and the Americans were declared the winners. We didn’t talk about it. It just was.”

Environment is what she sees American designers talking about.

“We’re activists for a real cause, a planet that made me realize that making movies is the mission of American designers,” she said. He claims to be the first American designer to win an associated CFDA award. She began her story with Karimzadeh by mentioning her own age. “No woman says her age. That’s the next aspect of diversity: the inclusion of age,” she affirmed.

But Fish’s age affords her the luxury of witnessing some of American fashion’s most significant moments, including Calvin Klein’s influential 1992 show. I consider my mentor the American most famous for sexualizing .

“At the time, you were working directly with the designers on the show, putting together looks in slip dresses on voluptuous Amazon models like Cindy Crawford and Nadja Auermann in high heels. ‘ she recalled.

“Then comes Kate Moss. She’s very young, 5″ 7”. The stylist told her to put on flat sandals and I told her to cut off the lining of the dress. He changed the entire casting and recast everyone who looked like Kate. He said he made a great contribution to

She’d love to see the Calvin Klein Collection make a comeback, but she’s trying not to get stuck in what she called a ’90s predicament. “Sure, I miss the ’90s because they were more pure, but I got over my nostalgia through this movie. It’s a waste of anyone’s life to go back to anything but learning. We have to move forward.” No,” she concluded.

“Americans have an independent spirit. The t-shirts and jeans we made look easy, but I think Americans dressed up more and became different and diverse in the 60s. We want you to create something unique like, we can do it!”