RIP Oscar de la Renta

I like light, color, luminosity.  I like things full of color and vibrant.

--Oscar de la Renta (1932 - 2014)

In light of the passing of one of my most revered fashion designers, I'll find a way to wear my favorite garment, a custom Oscar de la Renta gown. RIP OdlR

RECAP: Favorite Colors of 2013

What a year it's been for Artfully Awear!  In a mood of reflection, I've decided to recap some of my favorite moments of the year.  In April, I launched a project with Pantone, in which I created artwork-inspired outfits centered around their forecasted palette of fashion colors.  My favorites were as follows:

1.  Green Glow

I used the work of Tauba Auerbach and a gorgeous Oscar de la Renta dress to draw correlations with the bright, springy green hue.  Coincidentally, my favorite dress of the year is my favorite color of the year!  View my original post here.

2.  Grenadine

With this hot, bright color, I was inspired by Jason Martin's paintings.  See the post here.

3.  Emerald

Pantone's Color of the Year was also one of my favorites, and it is found in the work of Helen Frankenthaler.  View more photos here.

4.  Magenta Purple

A rich, warm purple is showcased by a Nicole Miller gown and Morris Louis Color Field paintings.  See my post here.

Thank you for a great year!  

ARTFULLY AWEAR + PANTONE: Green Glow.

I decided to save the best for last in the final post in my Artfully Awear + Pantone series: my favorite dress and my favorite color.  Pantone's Green Glow is showcased by this Oscar de la Renta gown and captured by these tromp l'oeil paintings by Tauba Auerbach.

Born in 1981 in San Francisco, Auerbach now lives and works in New York City.  I first came across her work in Vitamin P2, one of my favorite painting books, and became better acquainted with her story via The Gentlewoman.

The canvases shown here are just one part of her artistic oeuvre, and I've found them extremely powerful in their use of the canvas as well as paint, to create a two-dimensional/three-dimensional dialogue.

The unique rumpled, wrinkled effect is achieved by folding or crumpling the canvas before stretching.  Finally, Auerbach adds paint using a spray gun.

According to Auerbach's profile on the website of the Whitney Museum of American Art, "By creating an object in which two supposedly discrete states—flatness and three dimensionality—are merged, Auerbach confronts the limitations between these states, revealing an ambiguity that is often overlooked."

I love the way the unique fabric of this dress holds beautifully imperfect wrinkles, and the color and texture reminded me of Auerbach's gorgeous canvases.

Auerbach will be signing a limited edition issue of The Thing Quarterly at the New York Art Book Fair this Saturday!  Details here.

Dress: Oscar de la Renta

Embroidered clutch: Vintage, belonged to my Grandmother

Shoes: Brian Atwood (also worn here for one of my most popular posts to date)

The Artfully Awear + Pantone series has been a dream for me.  One last thank you to Pantone for the opportunity!

Photos by Kathy Paciello.  Auerbach images from taubaauerbach.com, pictify.com, and wiels.org.