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The Couture Council of The
Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology honored
Carolina Herrera with its 2014 Couture Council Award for
Artistry of Fashion on Wednesday, September 3, 2014 at a
benefit luncheon at the David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln
Center, New York City. As has become tradition, this
luncheon heralds the arrival of Fall Fashion Week.
This year’s
luncheon co-chairs were
Julie Macklowe and Elizabeth Musmanno.
Honorary
luncheon chairs were Maria Cristina Anzola, Amy Fine
Collins, Emilia Fanjul, Carolina
Herrera De
Báez, Julie Koch, Alexandra Kotur, Patricia Lansing, Lucy
Liu, Marigay McKee, Alexi Ashe Meyers, André Leon Talley,
Lynn Wyatt,
and Renée
Zellweger.
Luncheon guests included Maria Cristina Anzola,
Glenda Bailey,
Hilaria Baldwin,
Dennis Basso,
Dr. Joyce F. Brown,
Serena Boardman,
Graydon Carter,
Amy Fine Collins,
Oscar and Annette de la Renta,
John Dempsey, Prince Dimitri of Yugoslavia,
Linda Fargo, Jay Fielden,
Fe Fendi, Kathleen Hearst, Yaz
Hernández,
Reinaldo Herrera, Donna Karan, Mariana Kaufman, Julia Koch,
Alexandra Kotur, Steven Kolb, Kenneth Jay Lane, Patricia
Lansing, Ralph Lauren, Alexandra Lebenthal, Lucy Liu, Aileen
Mehle, Seth and Alexi Meyers, b Michael, Josie Natori, Liz
Peek, Marc Puig, Emilie Rubinfeld, Martha Stewart, Gina
Sanders, Abigail
Spencer, Dr.
Valerie Steele, André Leon Talley, Stefano Tonchi, Ivanka
Trump, Linda Wells, Jacqueline Weld Drake, Anna Wintour,
Lynn Wyatt,
and Renee Zellweger.
FIT President Joyce F.
Brown said, “It was our pleasure to honor Carolina
Herrera today. She is a brilliant and beloved designer whose
name is synonymous with elegance and grace—and whose success
is an inspiration to women throughout the world.”
Dr. Valerie Steele,
director of The Museum at FIT and chair of the Couture
Council Advisory Board, explained, “Carolina Herrera
exemplifies the woman of style, who is a very special kind
of fashion designer. Like Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel, Carolina
Herrera became famous for creating the kind of elegant,
beautiful clothes that she herself wears. Mrs. Herrera is
her own best model, and many women today want to look like
her.”
Couture Council chair Yaz
Hernández said “Every woman in New York wants to be
like Carolina Herrera. She’s created a world in her home, in
her atelier, and in her boutiques that is sophisticated
perfection. As a philanthropist, she is one of the few
leaders who never says no.”
Carolina Herrera
said,
“It is an honor to be the recipient of the
2014 Couture Council Award. I have great admiration for the
Museum at FIT because it is link between fashion, culture
and the rich history of our industry.”
Each year the Artistry of
Fashion award winner is chosen by the Couture Council
Advisory Board, which includes fashion journalists, editors,
retailers, and curators, including Glenda Bailey, Hamish
Bowles, Ken Downing, Linda Fargo, Nicole Fischelis, Akiko
Fukai, Pamela Golbin, and Suzy Menkes. Dr. Steele explained,
“The committee’s mandate is to look, not only at the
previous year’s accomplishments, but at a lifetime of
contributions to fashion. They chose Carolina Herrera to
receive the 2014 Couture Council Award for Artistry of
Fashion for a combination of reasons: because she creates
‘beautiful and elegant clothes,’ because her clothes are
‘couture quality,’ because she is herself ‘an international
fashion icon,’ and because she is ‘an important woman in
fashion.’ Although the board looks at a designer’s entire
career, it didn’t hurt that Mrs. Herrera is ‘having a
moment’ right now.”
ABOUT THE COUTURE COUNCIL
LUNCHEON:
The Couture Council luncheon
began with cocktails on the David H. Koch Theater terrace,
which overlooks the Fashion Week tents. Guests were then
ushered into the theater’s promenade for a three-course
luncheon. Bronson Van Wyck of Van Wyck & Van Wyck again
designed the flowers for this year’s luncheon.
Past recipients of the
Couture Council Award are Michael Kors (2013), Oscar de la
Renta (2012), Valentino (2011), Karl Lagerfeld (2010), Dries
Van Noten (2009), Isabel Toledo (2008), Alber Elbaz (2007),
and Ralph Rucci (2006). In 2008, Giorgio Armani received a
special award for Global Fashion Leadership.
ABOUT THE COUTURE COUNCIL OF
THE MUSEUM AT FIT:
The Couture Council of The
Museum at FIT, created in 2004, is a membership group
dedicated to supporting The Museum at FIT, a specialized
museum of fashion. The Couture Council helps make it
possible for the museum to mount world-class exhibitions of
fashion, to acquire important objects for its permanent
collection, and to organize public programs, such as the
annual fashion symposium. The Couture Council accomplishes
these goals through membership dues and by organizing
fundraising events such as the annual Couture Council Awards
Luncheon, which presents a chosen designer with the Couture
Council Award for Artistry of Fashion.
Members of the Couture
Council receive invitations to at least five special events
a year, including behind-the-scenes tours of the museum’s
collection and exhibitions, opening receptions, and visits
to the ateliers of fashion designers in New York. Couture
Council members are also the first to receive notice of the
annual Couture Council Artistry of Fashion Award luncheon.
In addition, Couture Council
members receive complimentary admittance to all museum
educational programs, as well as to the annual fashion
symposium, acknowledgments in FIT's annual report, in the
exhibition galleries and brochures, and on the FIT website,
and exclusive opportunities to meet other patrons of the
fashion arts.
The Couture Council of The
Museum at FIT’s board of directors includes Joele Frank,
Laura Lofaro Freeman, Anne Goldrach, Carole Divet Harting,
Yaz Hernández (chair), Celia Hegyi, Chiu-Ti Jansen, Eleanora
Kennedy, Michèle Gerber Klein, Alexandra Lebenthal
(president), Kamie Lightburn, Stephanie Loeffler, Julie
Macklowe, Barbara Malone, Elizabeth Musmanno, Liz Peek,
Darcy Rigas, Valerie Salembier, Peter G. Scotese, Jean
Shafiroff, Nancy Raquet Shaw, Michelle Smith, Jieun Wax, and
Sarah G. Wolfe.
Couture Council annual
membership is $1,000 per individual or couple, or $350 for
Young Associates (under the age of 35). Membership is tax
deductible to the extent provided by law. Please make checks
payable to the FIT Foundation. Mail checks to The Museum at
FIT, attention: Couture Council, 227 West 27th Street,
Director’s Office, Room E304, New York, NY 10001-5992.
For more about the Couture
Council visit
www.fitnyc.edu/couturecouncil.
ABOUT THE MUSEUM AT FIT:
The Museum at FIT is the
only museum in New York City dedicated solely to the art of
fashion. Best known for its innovative and award-winning
exhibitions, which have been described in The New York
Times as “ravishing,” the museum has a collection of
more
than 50,000 garments and
accessories dating from the 18th century to the present.
Like other fashion museums, such as the Musée de la Mode,
the Mode Museum, and the Museo de la Moda, The Museum at FIT
collects, conserves, documents, exhibits, and interprets
fashion. The museum’s mission is to advance knowledge of
fashion through exhibitions, publications, and public
programs.
CURRENT EXHIBITIONS AT THE
MUSEUM AT FIT:
Exposed: A History of
Lingerie
(Through November 3, 2014)
examines intimate apparel from the 18th century to the
present, featuring over 70 of the most delicate, luxurious,
and beautifully crafted objects from the museum’s permanent
collection. Each piece illustrates key developments in
fashion, such as changes in silhouette, shifting ideals of
propriety, and advancements in technology.
Dance & Fashion
(September 13, 2014-January 3, 2015)
explores the relationship between two great embodied art
forms: dance and fashion. Dance has utilized a wide variety
of costume, including contemporary fashions, to identify
different characters, but there are also certain iconic
styles, which represent a dance more abstractly. Tutus and
pointe shoes, for example, are integral to the image and
movements of the ballerina, just as leotards and tights are
associated with the modern dancer.
Traditionally, dance costumes were created by dancers (such
as Martha Graham), artists (such as Léon Bakst), and costume
designers (such as Karinska). But in recent years, fashion
designers have increasingly been invited to create dance
costumes. For example, Yves Saint Laurent and Valentino
designed for the ballet and Rei Kawakubo of Comme des
Garçons provided costumes for Merce Cunningham. Fashion
designers have also been inspired by the dance. Christian
Dior loved the tutus of Romantic ballerinas, while the shoe
designer Christian Louboutin has transformed pointe shows
into fetishistic high heels. The focus of this exhibition,
organized by Dr. Valerie Steele, is on ballet and modern
dance, but other dance forms, such as tango, flamenco, and
stepping are featured.
ABOUT FIT:
Fashion Institute of
Technology, a college of the State University of New York,
has been a leader in career education in art, design,
business, and technology for nearly 70 years. With a
curriculum that provides a singular blend of hands-on,
practical experience, classroom study, and a firm grounding
in the liberal arts, FIT offers a wide range of outstanding
programs that are affordable and relevant to today’s rapidly
changing industries. Internationally renowned, FIT draws on
its New York City location to provide a vibrant, creative
community in which to learn. The college offers 46 majors
and grants AAS, BFA, BS, MA, MFA, and MPS degrees, preparing
students for professional success and leadership in the
global marketplace. Visit
fitnyc.edu.
ABOUT CAROLINA HERRERA:
Carolina Herrera (www.carolinaherrera.com)
is an international fashion house recognized for timeless
elegance and refinement. Founded in 1981 by Carolina
Herrera, the eponymous label produces numerous collections
consisting of ready-to-wear and accessories for women, men,
and children, as well as bridal and fragrances available in
105 countries at 15,000 points of distribution, including
122 CH Carolina Herrera and three Carolina Herrera New York
retail locations. The collections reflect an effortless
sophistication inherent in the iconic style of founder
Carolina Herrera. Follow
www.facebook.com/carolinaherrerany and @houseofherrera
on Instagram for the latest news from inside the house.
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