The Battle of Versailles Fashion Show
Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. The Battle of Versailles Fashion Show was an event created by Eleanor Lambert and Versailles curator Gerald Van der Kemp to raise money to restore the famed palace. Held on November 28, 1973; it pitted French designers (Yves Saint Laurent, Pierre Cardin, Emanuel Ungaro, Christian Dior, and Hubert de Givenchy) against American designers (Oscar de la Renta, Stephen Burrows (designer), Halston, Bill Blass, and Anne Klein, who brought along her then-assistant, Donna Karan).
With a guest list of 700 and notables such as Princess Grace, Marie-Hélène de Rothschild, Jacqueline de Ribes, Gloria Guinness, Andy Warhol and Liza Minnelli, the event became legendary.Each designer was to submit eight designs for consideration. The Parisian designers viewed their competition as mere sportswear designers.The American designers used an unprecedented number (eleven) of Black models from the era. The American designers and their models stole the show.
In 2011, The Huffington Post Game Changer Awards honored the African American models of Versailles with the Style Award. The models included Pat Cleveland, Bethann Hardison, Billie Blair, Jennifer Brice, Alva Chinn, Norma Jean Darden, Charlene Dash, Barbara Jackson, China Machado, Ramona Saunders, and Amina Warsuma.
In 2012, filmmaker Deborah Riley Draper chronicled the event in the feature documentary, Versailles '73: American Runway Revolution. The film included designer Stephen Burrows, French Chambre Syndicale President Didier Grumbach, and many of the models, journalists and guest who attended the event in 1973.
Notes
- 1. Morris,Bernadine. "Review/Design:When America Stole The Runway From Paris Couture".The New York Times 10 Sep 1993.
