JARDIN MAJORELLE

Happy New Year!

Morocco had been on my list of places to visit for a long time, and I finally had the chance to make the trip over the holiday.  It. Was. Everything.

The colors, smells, shouts of people in the street coupled with quiet courtyard oases in Marrakech; 

The fresh, serene, contemplative feeling of the Atlas Mountains;

The golden ripples of the sand dunes in the Sahara Desert;

The medieval intrigue of Fes,

and the salty air of Casablanca all contributed to one of the most amazing trips of my lifetime.

These photos are from French painter Jacques Majorelle's garden in Marrakech, formerly owned by Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Berge.  Though Majorelle (1886-1962) was a painter, his most well-known work of art is his garden, which he created during a time of convalescence in Marrakech. 

One of my most anticipated aspects of visiting Marrakech, Majorelle's Garden did not rival the sensory overload of the Djemaa El-Fna souks or the winding streets of the medina.  Still, the relatively quiet oasis, beautiful colors, and thousands of exotic plants made the garden a welcome retreat along the journey.

The exact shade of blue used in the garden is named after Majorelle, but is a common hue found in Berber accessories and tiles.  Luckily, I was able to bring home a can of official Majorelle Blue paint, so I can recreate a bit of Marrakech in Brooklyn.

Jacques Majorelle

Similar Dress

Shoes: Salvatore Ferragamo

Photos by William Sealy; Majorelle painting: dnliving.com

NOW WEARING: On the Fringe.

Inspired by the acrylic paintings of Tomie Ohtake, I put together this look for a masquerade at the New York City Ballet.  Born in 1913, Ohtake's work has spanned many artistic movements, but she is most known for her informal abstractionism, such as this Untitled work, from 2012.

Dress: Save the Queen

Clutch: Thrifted

Mask: via amazon

Photo by Meri Feir; Ohtake image via Artsy.net

NOW WEARING: Bubbles.

The best way for me to deal with a gray day has always been to pull out my brightest brights.  When I came across this umbrella on Fab.com, I knew it would be the perfect way to offset the blahs of a rainy day.  I paired it with this bubble print wrap dress to evoke the work of Karen Tompkins.

I discovered these gouache paintings on Artsy, and was immediately intrigued by the way color and light is reflected within the works.

According to the artist, bubbles are a way for her to express energy and the ephemeral experience of nature.

Capturing in paintings the quixotic bubble forms that usually escape the eye of the viewer in the fraction of second that they exist, is a magical experience...Not unlike the way Da Vinci is said to have exalted in seeking out “the invisible key of Nature” through his art. Nature, in this case, hands us one of it’s most beautiful keys...the most energy-efficient configuration in nature is a bubble. In this way, the Circle Series brings to light a mysterious world of creation and transformation.  --Karen Tompkins 

Wrap Dress: Diane von Furstenberg

Heels: United Nude

Handbag: Michael Kors East to West Tote in Mandarin

Umbrella: via Fab.com

[Tompkins images from artsy.net; photos by Brett McKenzie.]

HADIEH SHAFIE

Hadieh Shafie, Magenta (Ketab Series), 2012

I'm fascinated by the hand-dyed, rolled paper works of Hadieh Shafie (1969-), an Iranian artist who studied at Pratt.  Reminiscent of ancient scrolls, and inspired by Abstract Expressionism, the works resound on multiple levels.  When a friend sent me the above image of myself, which was enhanced using the iPhone app Percolator, I was delighted by it's affinity to the mesmerizing sculptures.

[Shafie image from artsy.net; image of me by Brett McKenzie.]

INTERNATIONAL KLEIN BLUE

Although green has been my favorite color since age eight, I've recently been gravitating toward various shades of blue (evidenced here, here, and here). Simply adding one new color to your wardrobe can help you see old clothes in a plethora of new ways.

The blue in this ensemble was inspired by French artist Yves Klein (1928-1962). Though his artistic career spanned only a short time, he made invaluable contributions to the history of art; most notably, International Klein Blue. IKB is a saturated cobalt color Klein specially formulated and patented for his own artwork.

Much of his art centers on the use of IKB, whether simply as the color itself, or in various iterations of texture and medium.

In Blue Venus, Klein was clearly inspired by Matisse's Blue Nude, mentioned before.

Klein further explored the Blue Nude concept, painting nude models with IKB paint and having them impress their bodies onto paper--the resulting work was quite a lovely figural action painting.

Isn't the wearing of an outfit really a figural action painting in itself?

For my IKB ensemble, I chose to pair the color with camel--a no-fail match in my opinion.

Since camel was heralded as the color of the season, I've been scouring out pieces from local thrift shops, including these Betty-Draper-esque slacks, which I foresee becoming wardrobe mainstays.

I'm wearing all vintage with a Christian Lacroix jacket and Cynthia Rowley patent leather reptile purse.

[Klein images from keepitchic.com, decadentflux.com, 1.bp.blogspot.com, and farm4.static.flickr.com.]