SCARSDALE, NEW YORK
ART GALLERY
PRESENTS Anna Marie Magagna
“The Art of Fashion: From Bendel’s and Beyond” September 19
– November 2, 2013.
Madelyn
Jordon Fine Art
is pleased to present the first solo exhibition of original fashion
illustrations by acclaimed New York
artist, Anna Marie Magagna entitled Fashion
as Art: The Bendel Years and Beyond from September 19 – November 2, 2013. An
opening reception will be held Thursday, September 19, 2013 from 6-8PM. The
artist will be present and the public is invited. Previews and private showings are by
appointment only.
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A highlight of the exhibition will be over 25
original fashion illustrations, created from late 1969 to the 1990’s. As a young artist Anna Marie Magagna was
discovered by the American retail groundbreaker, Geraldine Stutz, then
President of Henri Bendel in New York City.
Stutz, selected Magagna to be the exclusive artist for Bendel’s from
1969 to the early 1970’s. This proved to
be a revolutionary moment in fashion history-- when the “look” changed in
Europe from elegant to edgy. Stutz, a
fashion innovator, recognized the shift and with Magagna’s fashion illustrations
in the New York Times, abruptly changed the look of Bendel from cool, lovely,
sophisticated and elegant to savvy, smart and edgy elegance.
Magagna’s drawings interpret fashion designs by
Stephen Burrows, Sonia Rykiel, Jean Muir, Zandra Rhodes and others. For example, there are two illustrations of
Burrow’s dress for Henri Bendel, "Empire
Waist with Eyelit Cutouts (Jacket in Hand Over Shoulder) (frontal view)" and "Empire Waist Dress with Eyelit Cutouts
(Jacket On) (profile view)." It is evident that Magagna has a natural feel
for the way dress fabric moves on the human body. These specific designs were published in the
New York Times during the popularity of the famous Studio 54 discoteque, which
Burrows frequented. In the drawing with
the Jacket Draped Over the Shoulder
one can see the impression of the leg in the foreground as the model walks
towards us. You can feel her walking right off the paper into your space. The
model is staring straight at us in both renderings of this dress to engage us,
bringing us into her world while creating a desire to purchase this dress so we
can be as elegant and hip as her personification.
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Magagna’s fashion illustrations were recently
exhibited in the exhibition at The Museum of the City of New York “Stephen
Burrows: When Fashion Danced,” the first major examination of the early work of
the designer.
Beyond fashion, the artist’s book illustrations
include Pearl S. Buck’s “Christmas Miniature” and “Little Men and Little Women”
by Grossett and Dunlap, among many others.
Previous
exhibitions include the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. and the New
York Historical Society’s “Two Hundred Years of American Illustration.”
A versatile artist for more than 40 years, Anna
Marie was academically trained at Marywood University in Fine Arts and Drama in
Pennsylvania and continued her studies at the Art Students League and the
School of Visual Arts in New York.
She
served on the faculty of the Pratt Institute, Marist
College, the Newark School of Fine and Industrial Art and Parsons
School of Design and for the past 10 years has become an International Portrait
Artist.
