It was a chockers week in the Voxoffice; more kneezups and noteworthies than you could poke a stick at but for you, dear reader, we’ve plucked our faves and packed them into this quick-stix four-pack of partypops and diary jots.
Ready? Here we go..
FROCKING ON
Australia’s only 100 year old fashion brand, Sportscraft, threw a posh bash at Cafe Sydney to celebrate this extraordinary birthday. Older than Dior, beloved of lovers of The Well Cut Slack and Classic Blouse, this Aussie icon also strums the heartstrings of our youngest fashionistocrats, season after season. Over a candlelit dinner for fashion’s A-listers flown from all corners of the continent, Sportscraft introduced its newest ambassadors and proved its remarkable sprawl across modern markets segments and fresh generations. Actress Rachel Griffiths lead a glossy pack on stage to cut the centenarian’s cake: Ita Buttrose, Kylie Kwong, Michael Klim, Nick Farr-Jones, Grace Otto, Anthony “Harries” Carroll and the delightful Samantha Harris (pictured).
Samantha Harris models Sportscraft blouse from its Iconic collection
All were picked for their jigsaw fit with the Sportscraft ethos of easy Aussie style. A filmette and stream of archival gems barely skimmed its history, peppered in every decade by campaigns involving icons and legends of fashion: Helmut Newton, Jean Shrimpton, Angelica Houston, Maggie Tabberer, Kristy Hinze, Woolmark, Vogue, to name a few. Sportscraft was founded by Russian immigrant Woolf Bardas the day after World War One was declared in 1914 and the irony, of a brand born to celebrate the Aussie lifestyle simultaneously losing the entire generation of fit young men to which it was pitched, was not lost on its more reflective guests. Sportscraft is now part of the Apparel Group. Voxfrock wishes its well, thanks it for flying editor Janice Breen Burns in for the celebrations, and sincerely hopes its reign over classic Aussie chic stretches on and into another century. A limited edition Iconic Sportscraft collection is accessible here. (Main picture, top,the original supermodel Jean Shrimpton rocking green for Sportscraft in the 1960s.) #sportscraft100 @sportscraft
THE BALLET BODY
Bodies don’t come prettier than those typical in an elite ballet company, a duh fact pinged in The Australian Ballet’s new filmette The Ballet Body. It’s an intimate view of skin and sinew, elastic as cooked spagetti, starring AB dancers Dimity Azoury and Rudy Hawkes as they perform feats of strength and balance in marvelous muscular slo-mo. Explanatory narration by body conditioning specialist Paula Baird-Colt from the company’s medical team, makes for mesmerising viewing. Voxfrock was particularly enamoured of a segment dubbed Pick it up and intends to practice in the privacy of our own loungeroom. (Wobble wobble.)
The Australian Ballet also announced this week, a new season of Graeme Murphy’s Swan Lake . It will return to Sydney in 2015, its first in the city since 2008 and years of sell-out seasons in London, Paris, Tokyo, New York, Los Angeles and Melbourne. Tickets for the performances at Capital Theatre, February 20 – 28, 2015, are on sale from today and accessible here.
PLUGGING THE PAST
Frockshows and exhibitions are popping up like mushrooms across Melbourne. Impossible to plug them all, dear Voxfrockers, but Polyester and Pantyhose; Silhouettes of the Sixties, opening tomorrow, August 9, is a gem worth the exception. It promises a sartorial journey from the glamour gowns of the late 1950s, through the 1960s’ neat mini shifts and radical maxis, to the bohemian drifts of the early 1970s. Original designs by Prue Acton, Norma Tullo and Merivale are among many being mounted as we speak with fashion shots by photographers including Bruno Benini and – piece de resistence – the 1963 Gown of the Year by Hartnell of Melbourne.
Pictured, wedding gown worn by Melbourne personality and former model Coral Knowles in 1966 will be exhibited in Polyester and Pantyhose.
On Tuesday, September 9, at 2 pm., fashion historian, author and revered local vintage dealer Nicole Jenkins will also present a rich discussion of 1960s fashion. The exhibition launches tomorrow from 2 to 4 pm and runs until September 28 at The Gallery, Bayside Arts & Cultural Centre, Brighton Town Hall, Cnr. Carpenter and Wilson Streets, Brighton, (03) 9592 0291. Information is accessible here
ANOTHERY UNLIKE THE OTHERIES
Victorine is an elegant little sparkler in Melbourne’s swelling galaxy of new stores. It’s a carefully curated multi-brand boutique with three distinctive rooms; three lovely layers. One specialises in classic, hand-made shoes “of beautiful construction and timeless style”.
Another room, The Apothecary, offers beauty products and perfumes including Victorine’s own eau de parfum, Figue + Poivre designed by Robertet of the fabled French perfume district of Grasse. The third room is rich with offbeat exquisitries from around the country and globe: Scottish silk scarves, Canadian screen printed socks, beautiful handbags, original artworks, even antique Danish furnishing pieces and Art Deco light fittings.
Victorine.
The store, housed in a Victorian terrace, is named after 19th century French artist and model Victorine Meurent (Google her; she’s fascinating) and furnished in the manner of a chic home to encourage relaxed browsing; 275 Coventry Street, South Melbourne (03) 9699 7759 and online here
Compiled by Terry Carruthers, info@voxfrock.com.au and Janice Breen Burns, jbb@voxfrock.com.au
