Paler Shades of White
 Combining the innocence of the oldest symbol of purity with the
sophistication of the space age, the new color to wear for the coming of the
millennium is white. This color looks both backward and forward, recalling
simple undyed clothing of the past and projecting the brilliance of the stars
which with advancing space technology, we may one day begin to approach. Dozens
of fashion shows feature white this coming season. The New York Metropolitan
Museum of Art's costume institute exhibition of their new acquisitions opens
with a collection of white clothing throughout the centuries. From the runways
to the museum, everyone is doing white this
season.
Don't think that you have to consign your greys and blacks to
boxes and suitcases for the time being. After all, winter is generally the time
for the darker colors. White will provide a beautiful contrast to the pieces
already in your wardrobe.
White's capacity lies in drawing attention towards the cut
and style of the apparel, in emphasizing the fabric, the handiwork, the draping
of the clothing; louder and darker colors detract from the importance of the
shape. Therefore, expect this season's white clothing to be exquisitely crafted
and to take on many shapes from fur encrusted coats to knee high boots, to knee
length and floor length skirts, to driving length jackets. A white shirt,
consequently, will not do as your white item of clothing.
BCBG Max Azria's fall collection included a floor-length white skirt
with a white turtle neck vest. Ruben Campos demonstrated a white tiered dress
with a long stole draped over the model's arms. Chanel, classic as ever,
included this classic color in the form as a knee length skirt with boots and a
sweeping floor length jacket, all in white. Betsey Jonson emphasizes the
color's strength by drawing attention to the fabric in a multi-tiered white
dress in a textured fabric paired with a green corset. Anna Sui designed a white
dress with exotic black designs around the bottom. John Galliano for Christian
Dior used white in a huge cable-knit
sweater draped over a skinny ivory skirt.
Givenchy infused its show with white, featuring a coat dress, a full
length flowing coat, a narrow pantsuit, and a white dress with accents in cream.
Jean-Paul Gaultier included white by using bed clothes; his show included a
white down skirt, reminiscent of your grandmother's duvet, and a puffy down ski
jacket to complete the ensemble.
Alexander McQueen's show also included white, but perhaps more to echo his set
and his theme rather than an overarching theme of white for the millennium: his
set included ice, snow, and wintry trees, the white thus reflecting snow and
ice.
The trend away from minimalism and towards luxury which has been
occurring for a few seasons is in full swing this coming season. Opulence,
perhaps even decadence, is reflected on the runways perhaps as a final farewell
to the materialism of this century, perhaps to set the tone for the forthcoming
century. Luxury fabrics from Indian silks to cashmere make an appearance, and
fur is back in a big way. Fur is trimming everything from coats and hats to
boots, purses, and stoles. White fits perfectly into the luxury, with white fur
trimming darker jackets, white leather finding its way on knee-high boots, and
white cashmere forming the larger-than-life bulky cable knit sweaters, like the
one in the Christian Dior show.
New seasons can afford to introduce many new colors on the
scene, and the forthcoming one is no exception. There will be a peachy orange
which no one will call orange because people find it an unappetizing color. Red
was all over the runways. In fact, with opulence and minimalism fighting it out,
the entire spectrum of colors is present and accounted for, from the blacks and
greys with which we are so familiar, to reds, blues, and purples. White remains
the fresh and pure surprise, perfectly compatible with both minimalism and
opulence depending on the cut and the fabric of the piece.
The profusion of white this coming season represents both
simplicity and opulence, innocence and experience. Because of the many things it
can express, it will be a popular choice. The coming of the new millennium
influences the whiteness of the season; as Ralph Lauren expressed on
Entertainment Television, the abundance of white illustrates a "cleaning of
the palate for the new millennium."1
By Jenny Moussa
1Entertainment Television, July 2,
1999.
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