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Here we go Volume 24! For this edition I revisited another go to spot in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan. While last time I wrote about the father of dark style this newsletter I'll discuss a matriarch in the all black movement.
Located on the first floor of Pace Gallery is Louise Nevelson's Shadow Dance. The walls are painted a cold almost purplish gray to set the backdrop for her monochromatic works mainly done in black with a few all white pieces shown above center stage. There is a 'things organized neatly' vibe to the work which actually isn't necessarily organized but just components fixed together and cleanly painted black. As you stare deeper into each work you'll start to notice some elements seem familiar. Nevelson herself would say she was the 'original recycler' repurposing found objects in the streets of New York or from her father's lumber yard into jigsawed environments.
This style of hers began as she was exploring her own way of art avoiding the common metal work of her contemporaries at the time. At first she strictly stuck to horizontal and vertical lines but in her later years she, no pun intended, slid into a diagonal direction of form. Her sculptural collage like works and a single hue wash shifts the focus onto shadows and shapes in her larger than life forms. Heavily inspired by Cubism and Constructivism she always maintained to stay in a realm of abstraction.
To disguise the initial function of the acquired goods, Nevelson decided to spray paint her works in black. She likened the use of black because the color to her represented totality and acceptance; being that the color black is actually all colors together. Believing black was an aristocratic color and saying that it is the only hue that transformed things into greatness, giving them a sense of peace. When walking around her work I can't help but to feel a sense of calm, that peace she speaks of. My eye isn't jumping around to all the colors but feels hooked onto the work patiently exploring all that she layers into it.
Personally I began wearing all black after a color theory class in college where I felt I looked best in black and that if I was going to wear anything going forward it might as well be black. Clearly I haven't looked back on that thought since.
Going back to a Collection 1 favorite, I wore the Sapporo / Safed combo. The Sapporo Dress is definitely one of our most loved pieces and I totally get it. The heavy rib knit fabric has a nice body to it and the cut is perfectly skimming. With thumb openings for a subtle edginess and a high low slit hem hitting mid thigh, I find myself going back to this piece time and time again. Paired with the Safed Top, it is like a little icing on the cake to go with the Sapporo. Cut in our signature sandwashed satin for a bit of sheen, this crop top criss cross back adds depth to the outfit and plays with proportions.
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