Monday, August 27, 2018
‘Black Panther’ costume designer celebrated in retrospective
New Pittsburgh Courier: For more than 30 years, costume designer Ruth E. Carter’s creations have brought the African-American experience to life on the big screen, from 19th century slave ships in “Amistad” to 1980s Brooklyn in “Do the Right Thing,” to the Afrofuturistic land of Wakanda in “Black Panther.” Now, she’s bringing the spectrum of her work to Pittsburgh for a new exhibit called “Heroes & Sheroes: The Art & Influence of Ruth E. Carter in Black Cinema.”
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I was able to go to the presentation that Ruth E. Carter gave to students on Monday and she is a fantastic and personable human being. The fact that we have the opportunity to go see these costumes a little more up close and personal here in Pittsburgh excites me greatly after hearing her discuss the research and hours that were put into Black Panther to make sure that every piece was representative without being appropriative as well as meeting the “Corporate Overlord” (Marvel’s) standards and ideas. Glancing through the pictures in this article, I’m curious as to how the exhibit presents the research Carter spoke about, and how many little details are left out. For example, I can see that there is at least a prototype of Queen Ramonda’s hat in one of the displays, I am looking forward to visiting to see if they discuss how Carter decided that the hat needed to be perfectly symmetrical to represent the balance of the Monarch, and therefore had an architectural engineer help her design and 3-D print it. Further I can’t help but emphasize the ending of this article on the importance of representation. This exhibit is unique in that all of the things it has on display are their own vehicles of representation, but the publicity of Carter is another step toward that representation.
Listening to Ruth Carter’s lecture today was a true blessing. In this article, Ruth says that “costume design is somewhat of a mystery to people.” In my case, this is very true. I understood the personality a designer could give a character through their clothing, but I never realized how much thought, perspective, and time went into this detailed process I was completely alien to. Carter’s work was incredible, and the way she spoke about it seemed magical. Because Black Panther is the film she spoke about today, I will focus more on that. It is awe-inspiring how subtly she represented both Wakanda and various tribes from the African continent in her costumes for the actors in Black Panther. While holding on to the traditions and long-standing values represented by the garments, she managed to give them the futuristic technology and flair that Wakanda will become known for in the Marvel Universe following the conclusion of the movie. I am excited to hopefully see more of her designs grace the Marvel screen in the future (provided that the end of Infinity War not be a permanent thing). This exhibit is a fantastic opportunity for people to learn more about costume design, just as I did through Carter’s lecture.
I was able to hear Ruth Carter speak about her work on Monday and, after hearing her and after reading this article, I am very appreciative that there will be an exhibit showcasing her incredible work for anyone to see. Like many areas in theater, costumes can often be hard to appreciate—sometime only noticed when they’re especially bad—but the attention that a designer pays to a show and making each costume unique should be acknowledged just as much as the quality of an actor is. Carter discussed the thought processes and all of the ideas that went in to the tiny details of each costume, without which the film would not have been as meaningful as it was.
An exhibit like the one at the Heinz History Center is exciting because it will allow anyone to examine the costumes up close and gain a deeper understanding of design in film and how important costumes are to any production. In my experience, designers in film and theater pride themselves on not being noticed and there is definitely great value in having such a smooth design that it enhances the audience’s experience without their knowing, but I believe there is also value in the audience’s understanding what is being done by everyone—not just the actors—to further the story.
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