FASHION ALERT: VALENTINO TO RECEIVE THE 2011 COUTURE COUNCIL AWARD FOR ARTISTRY OF FASHION AWARD LUNCHEON BENEFITS THE MUSEUM AT FIT Wednesday September 7, 2011 David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center Kicks Off New York Fall Fashion Week
The Couture Council of The Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) will honor Valentino with their 2011 Couture Council Award for Artistry of Fashion on Wednesday September 7, 2011 at a benefit luncheon at the David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln Center, New York City. As has become the tradition, this luncheon heralds the arrival of Fall Fashion Week. 1stdibs, the luxury on-line retailer, is a sponsor of the luncheon and a generous supporter of The Museum and its activities.
The Board of Directors includes: Chair Elizabeth T. Peek and Vice Chair Yaz Hernandez.
The Luncheon Chairs includes: Ann Bass, Daphne Guinness, Charlotte Moss, and Diane von Furstenberg.
The Honorary luncheon Chairs includes: Donna Acquavella, Marisa Berenson, Georgina Brandolini, Gisele Bündchen. Naomi Campbell, Anna Carter, Claire Danes, Maria Grazia Chiuri, Dr. Joyce F. Brown, Mica Ertegün, HRH Princess Firyal of Jordan, Charlene de Ganay, Susan Gutfreund, Anne Hathaway, Iman, Deborra-lee Jackman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Pilar Crespi Robert, Allison Sarofim, André Leon Talley, Barbara Walters, and Natalia Vodianov.
Celebrities attending include: Shirin and Frederic Fekkai, The Honorable Daphne Guinness,
Martha Stewart, Ivanka Trump, and Paula Zahn.
Martha Stewart, Ivanka Trump, and Paula Zahn.
Fashion industry guests include: Dennis Basso, Hamish Bowles, Glenda Bailey, Robin R. Burns, Amy Fine Collins, Renaud Dutreil (Chairman of LVMH Inc.), Simon Doonan, Tiffany Dubin, Zani Gugelmann, Carolina Herrera, Alexandra Korur, Dawn Mello, Helen O’Hagan, Josie Notori, Lisa Perry, Nadja Swarovski, Marcy Syms, Andre Leon Talley, Robert Verdi, Adrienne Vittadini, Diane von Furstenberg, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff and Anna Wintour.
Social guests attending include: Fabiola Beracasa, Melissa Berkelhammer, Buffy Cafritz, Lisa Cashin, Chloe Crespi, Pilar Crespi Robert, Matilda Cuomo, Christina Davis, Annette de la Renta, Patricia Duff, Susan Magrino Dunning, Mica Ertegun, Pamela Fiori, Hilary Geary Ross, Agnes Gund, Susan Gutfreund, Sharon Handler, Michelle Harper, Yaz Hernandez, Marlene Hess, Hon. Brenda Johnson, Kim Kassel, Mariana Kaufman, Eleanora Kennedy, Martha Kramer Fox, Evelyn Lauder, Alexandra Lebenthal, Heather Leeds, Francine Lefrak, Karen Lefrak, Shirley Lord, Ambassador John Loeb, Carol Mack, Charlotte Moss, Nancy Novograd, Dayssi Olarte de Kanavos, Liz Peek, Laura and John Pomerantz, Priscilla Rattazzi, Denise Rich, Elizabeth Rohatyn, Beth Rudin DeWoody, Jacqueline Sackler, Daisy Soros, Alfred & Judith Taubman, Jamie Tisch, Lizzie Tisch, Barbara Tober, Lauren Veronis, Jacqueline Weld, and Sarah Wolfe.
As our tradition the delightful Simon Doonan will be the master of ceremonies; introducing Dr. Joyce Brown, President of FIT. Charlotte Moss will thank the other Luncheon Chairs Anna Bass, Daphne Guinness, and Diane von Furstenberg and ask them to stand. Anna Wintour will make remarks and present the Artistry of Fashion Award to Valentino. Liz Peek, the founder and Chairman of Couture Council will make the closing remarks as she has in previous years.
The Tuscan countryside was the inspiration for the décor and menu. Guests will be served a bed of arugula topped with figs and prosciutto, followed by a main course of breast of chicken with apricots and pistachios accompanied by grilled asparagus oreccchiette pasta with sun-dried tomatoes and olives served in a basil sauce. The dessert will include lemon sorbet with raspberries. The tables will be garnished with baskets of fruits and ivy and guests will dine with bamboo flatware.
Dr. Valerie Steele, director of The Museum at FIT, announced, “Valentino was chosen in recognition of his status as a world-historical figure in modern fashion, a man who has dressed every beautiful woman of the past 50 years, from Jacqueline Kennedy to Madonna. Valentino’s concept of beauty is Apollonian in its classicism and perfect taste. Yet red, the color of love and passion, runs like a leitmotif through his career, asserting his passionate love of beauty. In today’s world of an often debased celebrity culture, Valentino’s dresses continue to assert an aristocratic ideal of art and beauty.”
FIT president, Dr. Joyce F. Brown, noted, “We are delighted to have this opportunity to honor Valentino, who, through his timeless and elegant designs, is a legend to all those who love fashion. He is an inspiration not only to students of fashion – like those at FIT – but to his fellow designers as well.”
Last year’s luncheon, which honored Karl Lagerfeld and was the first Couture Council Luncheon held at Lincoln Center, was attended by over 500 guests and raised over $600,000. Already this year we have exceeded that amount in both financial contributions and guests attending the lunch.
In 1950, while still an adolescent, Valentino Garavani went to Paris to study at the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, having already discovered (at a premiere of the Barcelona Opera) the perfect red that would become a leitmotif throughout his career. In 1968, a year of radical revolt, Valentino presented his immaculate Collezione Bianca of white and off-white dresses whose simple elegance proved that couture was not irrelevant. In today’s world of an often debased celebrity culture, Valentino’s dresses continue to assert an aristocratic ideal of art and beauty.
Valentino was chosen to receive The Couture Council Artistry of Fashion Award by the Couture Council Advisory Committee, an independent group consisting of curators, editors, and retailers. Members include Pamela Golbin, curator of the Musée de la Mode; Akiko Fukai, director and chief curator of the Kyoto Costume Institute; Caroline Milbank, independent curator and author; Glenda Bailey, editor-in-chief of Harpers Bazaar; Hamish Bowles, European editor-at-large of Vogue; Ken Downing, fashion director of Neiman Marcus; Linda Fargo, senior vice president of Bergdorf Goodman; Nicole Fishcelis, vice president and fashion director at Macy’s; and many distinguished others. Dr. Steele serves as chair.
Luncheon chairs for the Valentino Award are Anne H. Bass, Charlotte Moss, Diane von Furstenberg and The Honorable Daphne Guinness, whose personal collection will be the subject of an exhibition opening at The Museum at FIT in September 2011. A number of Valentino’s masterpieces will be featured in this exhibition.
The Couture Council, which was created in 2004, has become an integral part of the museum and a recognized authority in the fashion world. Its Artistry of Fashion Award furthers FIT’s deep connection with the fashion industry. Dr. Brown added, “We are very grateful to the Couture Council for the important work it does to support the mission of The Museum at FIT.”
Past recipients of the Couture Council Awards are Karl Lagerfeld in 2010, Dries Van Noten in 2009, Isabel Toledo in 2008, Alber Elbaz in 2007, and Ralph Rucci in 2006. In 2008, Giorgio Armani also received a special award for Global Fashion Leadership.
About The Couture Council Luncheon:
Tickets for The Couture Council luncheon honoring Valentino are priced as follows:
Haute Couture Table at $25,000
Premium seating for table of ten and listing in the invitation as Philanthropist.
Couture Table at $15,000
Premium seating for table of ten and listing in the invitation as Benefactor.
Fashionista Table at $10,000
One table of ten and listing in the invitation as Vice Chair.
Couture Ticket at $1,500
Superior seating and listing in the invitation.
Fashionista Ticket at $1,000
Seating and listing in the invitation.
To purchase luncheon tickets, please contact Vicki Guranowski, 212 217.4105, fax 212 594.9206, or email Victoria_Guranowski@fitnyc.edu
About The Couture Council:
The Couture Council 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 collecting 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.
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 Educational Foundation for the Fashion Industries. Mail checks to The Museum at FIT, attention: Couture Council, 227 West 27th Street, Director's Office, Room E304, New York City 10001-5992.
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 the annual fashion symposium, which includes an invitation to meet the speakers at a cocktail reception at the home of Valerie Steele, director and chief curator, The Museum at FIT.
The Couture Council of The Museum at FIT recently established a board of directors that includes Liz Peek (chair), Yaz Hernà ndez (vice chair), Suzi Cordish, Joele Frank, Michèle Gerber Klein, Anne S. Goldrach, Michelle Harper, Celia Hegyi, Chiu-Ti Jansen, Eleanora Kennedy, Alexandra Lebenthal, Kamie Lightburn, Doris P. Meister, Charlotte Moss, Peter G. Scotese, Jean Shafiroff, Adrienne Vitadinni and Sarah G. Wolfe.
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 by Roberta Smith 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.
On view through May 10 at The Museum at FIT is His and Hers, which explores the relationship between gender and fashion over the past 250 years. More than 100 garments, accessories, and textiles from the Museum’s permanent collection are featured chronologically, from a seemingly “feminine” 18th-century man’s velvet suit, to a woman’s “power suit” from the 1980s.
Sporting Life, an exhibition exploring the relationship between active sportswear and fashion from the mid-19th century through the present, opens at the Museum at FIT on May 25, on view through November 5. Clothing for sporting activities has often influenced fashion—and vice versa. In fact, sportswear manufacturers have been responsible for many innovations in performance apparel, even as they recognize that “fashionability” is an important factor. Indeed, much of today’s active sportswear is just as fashionable as it is functional.
Daphne Guinness will be the subject of a major exhibition at The Museum at FIT on view from September 16, 2011 through January 7, 2012. Approximately 100 garments and accessories from her personal collection will be featured, along with clothes that she has designed herself, a selection of her vertiginous shoes, and her films, The Phenomenology of the Body and Mnemosyne. The exhibition will be co-curated by Daphne Guinness and Valerie Steele.
For more about The Museum at FIT, visit www.fitnyc.edu/museum
About FIT:
The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), of which The Museum at FIT is a part, is a college of art and design, business and technology that educates more than 10,000 students annually. FIT is a college of the State University of New York (SUNY), and offers 46 majors leading to the AAS, BFA, BS, MA, MFA, and MPS degrees. For more about FIT visit www.fitnyc.edu.
