#SuzyNYFW Anna Sui Enters Fashion’s Firmament

They have also included films of Anna Sui shows, and displays of her make-up and beauty products that have been so successful. There is even a touch of the designer’s whimsy in a model of Diana Vreeland, early Vogue editor and fashion curator at New York’s Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vreeland’s distinctive fierce face greets museum visitors as they exit the elevator.https://www.instagram.com/p/B2WOAs2HVr_/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=dlfixIn the exhibition, the primary feeling is of colour, used in a galaxy of different shades that run from head to toe in Anna Sui’s outfits – not least for the boots displayed at the museum on pieces of dark furniture borrowed from the designer’s Downtown store. The clothes are also much the same in their deep decoration, whatever the subject of the season, such as those displayed in the ‘Punk’ category.

To complement the exhibition, the Spring/Summer 2020 show was quieter than usual, with no all-singing, all-dancing model shenanigans. Instead, the colours were quiet, drawn from Mid-century Modern artists such as the set designer Lila de Nobili, who worked with the great Italian directors, Visconti and Zeffirelli. The colours were exceptionally soft: coral, apricot, and rose printed in jungle gardens, daisies or stripes, or a butterfly quilted jacket and lace-trimmed sandals.

Noted for her intensely researched shows, Anna elaborated on the influence behind this season. “Nobili had this light airy touch,” Anna explained. “She was the niece of Marcel Vertès [a celebrated artist who painted the walls of New York’s famous Café Carlyle] and not only made costumes, but worked with Lorenzo Mongiardino on interiors. For Lee Radziwill’s house, the one with the gypsy scarves on the walls, Nobili painted the flowers on Mongiardino’s striped wallpaper. That’s how I came across her name, through a Mongiardino book. I loved the femininity, the lightness and the airiness of her work, and the fact she had a [design] family that she worked with her whole life.

“Also, my favourite vintage vendor has gorgeous posts on Instagram. She does colour hues, so I put a lot of them up on my wall. And then there’s this woman who does these beautiful flowered cupcakes on Instagram – the most incredible colour stories. I feel that some of my embroideries are confections. We did a lot of quilting – that pale lemony-yellow embroidery with the roses feels like cupcakes have been put on the dress.”

Dresses good enough to eat – pure Anna Sui.

‘The World of Anna Sui’ is at the Museum of Arts and Design, New York until 23 February 2020 (for more information, click here).