Friday, December 02, 2011
The 1930s — Sexiest Decade in Clothing?
NYTimes.com: “Everybody imagines the Dust Bowl era in sepia and gray,” says Tobin Ost, the scenic and costume designer for “Bonnie and Clyde,” which opens on Broadway tonight at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater. “But dyes certainly existed back then, color was very much alive and well.”
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6 comments:
I totally agree that the era around the 1930's has to have been the sexiest decade in clothing. For men especially, there is something to be said about a good well fitting suit, sharp hat, and shiny shoes. I think it also had more to do with the attitude of the people. Because people had more of a pride in the way that they looked, not just sometimes but all the time. Even if you didnt have the nicest things you were always clean an held yourself well. I mean even today you can see it with say our grandparents generation. They always have pride in the way you look, I always even like to see when I see an older gentleman waiting in line at the grocery store or something and he has on a 3-piece suit. Its not that hes putting on heirs, that was just how he was raised, you go out in public and you look nice. It is a notion that I wish people would hold to a little more often nowadays.
I have to say, after that description and those candids from the play, there is no doubt in my mind that the colors merely faded after the 20s ended. The initial response to the 30s, I think, is the reaction to the depression and the image of America settling in the lowest of low places. On the other hand, the glamour of the 20s didn't die as well. It makes sense that Bonnie and Clyde would have the richest clothing with the impeccable style and the disarming stance. They stole, they killed, they did everything Mother Teresa would consider a heinous crime while still looking good. It is up to characters such as Bonnie and Clyde to make looking bad, look so good. That is what was envisioned for their characters because, how would they receive any support from someone who doubted their looks. It is the sharp maroon and the flawless pinstripe that draws you in and for a moment, agrees with their actions. Long enough for them to turn and stab you in the back. If they looked like villains, this couple would be dully one dimensional.
Sonia is so extremely right. There is something about a slick suit on a man that will never get old. I am always in favor of going for the classic, trimmed look and the 30's was definitely the decade for this classification. To me, the decade seems to evoke sexiness not only because of the clothing but the lifestyle. It seemed to have a classier air about it. That being said, none of us commenters were alive in the 30s. All of my information about it has been passed to me through novels or film, which can typically be extremely altered from the truth. This is ones of those times I didnt leave my time machine parked in my garage back home. Oh well, it'll have to wait until winter break1
Like the other ladies who have commented on this article, I agree that a man in a nice suit will never cease to be attractive. I saw a picture the other day that placed a 1940s era man looking suave in a suit next to a Jersey Shore looking guy of today. The caption of the picture said something along the vein of "Men- what happened?" or something like that. While I know that there are still gentlemen in the world today, is is sad that so many men don't carry themselves or dress like gentlemen. The thirties just seem so romantic- and I think that the way people dressed has a lot to do with that. I have recently read about a few updated productions of Shakespeare plays that were set in the 30s for that reason. I love that Tobin Ost explores both the sweeter, humbler and more edgy looks of the 30s in his Bonnie and Clyde designs. He seems to using the most wonderful aspects of 1930s dress to capture the characters well.
I find the title of this article to be completely wrong for the content provided. To begin with, the article itself barely talks about how "sexy" this clothing is. Instead the writer comments on how most people think of dust-bowl-gray clothing, while in fact the clothes had a lot of color. But that doesn't necessarily mean that the clothes were sexy... And actually, the pictures of the renderings show the most unsexy and unflattering clothing of the 1930's. Most women's clothing hung on their bodies and often hid their waists. The only sexy clothing at the time for women were the gowns, which were not shown in this article. I do agree with the other ladies here on the fact of classy men in suits, however, let's find another word than sexy.
I hope the show does well, it seems like there's a really great concept! I think the era produced some great contributions to fashion. There's nothing better than a sharp dressed man in a fitted suit and a woman in a fitted jacket and flattering pencil skirt. With trying to recover from the stock market crash, image was a big thing for people to uphold. Judging by the production photos, it looks like the costume designer embodied all the great aspects of fashion in the 30's.
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