Natural Fashion

from the Neue Galerie Exhibition

The power of the past and its influence on design is something we talk about here all the time.
How can it not be so? I appreciate the modern , the new-but let it be grounded in the firmament of history. For me-it doesn't count if it does not spring from the past.

Madeline Weinrib is always reaching back to create vibrant new designs from the past for modern life. Her Ikat textiles and carpets are saturated in updated rich color and their patterns evolve from her years of travel and diligence in working with the authentic and skilled craftsmen to stretch those contexts into the future. She does it like no other. I find her bespoke approach to be a unique one in the world of mass, mass, more, more. One of her ongoing collaborations is with Neue Galerie, here she creates a special kimono in the Opium pattern in celebration of their VIENNA 1900 Exhibition.

According to Neue Galerie the OPIUM KIMONO was inspired by the photograph of Viennese photographer Madame d'Ora. The Weinrib kimono fully reflects the mode of the photograph's Eastern influence. Viennese artists took Eastern influences for their own and indelibly marked them as theirs during the artistic Renaissance in early 20th century Vienna. The Opium pattern by Weinrib is exclusive to Neue Galerie and is woven from resist-dyed silk threads over many months.

Madame Dora Kallmus was the first woman to be admitted to study theory at the Graphische Lehr- und Versuchsanstalt (Graphic Training Institute) & was also a member of the Vienna Photographic Society. Kallmus used the name "Madame d'Ora" professionally throughout her professional life and was a favorite of the aristocracy and celebrity in Vienna and Paris where she had studios. In 1940 Madame fled Paris when the Nazis invaded France.

Artist self-portrait 1925

revealing her beautifully long hands and heavy lids

Madame D'Ora portraits of Maria Ley IM Rokoko 1924, at l., & Tamara Lempicka, at r., 1929

two of my favorite photographs by D'Ora

story LINKS below:
the Opium Kimono is available at the Design Shop, Neue Galerie-here
the Exhibition runs through June 27 of this year, more information here
in the Gallery here
Vienna 1900 art works here

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Self portrait
My previous post (Otto Dix & Estee Lauder?), about the dancer Anita Berber, included the photo below (now removed). Why?, Well, because when I googled Anita Berber this was the photo that came up first and frequently. In other words, everybody said it was her, so it must be her. So much for “the wisdom of crowds.”

It took the “expertise of one,” to set the record straight. Playwright and painter, Susan Tammany contacted me immediately to tell me that “This is not Anita.” She also included info on the photographer of this image, Dora Kallmus, who, in fact, made many photographs of Anita Berber. So, just because most photos of Anita Berber are by Dora Kallmus, does not mean that most of Dora Kallmus' photos of dancers are Anita Berber. I went back to the images and, indeed, there is a spectrum of idents on this photo. From a blogger: “Anita Berber, duh” to Getty Images: “Dancer (presumable Anita Berber),” to The Tate: Anonymous photograph of a dancer taken at the studio of Madame d'Ora (Dora Philippine Kallmus) in Vienna (1923). Gelatin silver print

The facts: Dora Kallmus? Yes. Dancer? Yes. Gorgeous photo? Yes. Anita Berber? Maybe, maybe not.

Dora Philippine Kallmus (1881 – 1963), despite being denied access to technical training in photography (for being female), ran the highly successful photo studio Atelier d’Ora.

Madame d’Ora’s vibrant portraits of twentieth-century artists and intellectuals remain important testaments to European cultural life at the turn of the century and beyond. Not only did her high quality photographs of well-known figures such as Josephine Baker (1906–1975), Karl Kraus (1874–1936), Arthur Schnitzler (1862–1931) and Gustav Klimt (1862–1918) receive international acclaim, but her studios in Vienna and Paris also became fashionable meeting places for the cultural and intellectual elite. D’Ora’s achievements also paved the way for other European women’s careers in photography…” (Lisa Silverman, Jewish Women’s Archive)

Some Dora Kallmus and Atelier d’Ora photos of dancers …