The first few weeks of 2023 have seen an extraordinary increase in fashion auctions across the capital. Earlier this week, the round red ‘flesh and blood’ dress worn by Julia Fox on the cover of ES Magazine went under the hammer, all to raise money for east London-based designer LeMáine. Have you ever dreamed of owning a real Andy Warhol print? Or maybe one of Grayson Perry’s neat doll dresses? Well you can, provided you are the highest bidder of course…
A collection of Andre Leon Talley
Fashion enthusiasts listen up: A collection of Andre Leon Talley to be auctioned today. Following the death of the legendary editor in January last year, the auction will celebrate his life and tell more than five decades of fashion history. After brief stints at Christie’s Palm Beach and Paris, all of Talley’s prized possessions, from avante-garde kaftans to kimonos (there’s even a Hèrmes bicycle!), will be available for online bidding until mid-February.
The first Black person to serve as creative director of American Vogue, Talley has forged professional and personal relationships with some of the industry’s leading visionaries including Karl Lagerfeld, Tom Ford and former Vogue editor-in-chief Diana Vreeland – all of whom are featured within it. the auction.
A photograph of Miss Vreeland – shot by image maker Horst P Horst in 1979 – sitting in her all-red upper class Manhattan home is up for sale. There is an exquisite silkscreen of Andy Warhol’s sitting saddle, with more of the pop artists’ prints to follow. Three Yves Saint Laurent three-colour paper collages, Karl Largerfeld polos, a Louis Vuitton gold-plated monogram stock and an iconic photograph, taken by Bob Colacello, of the then-young editor with Bianca Jagger are available. But the highlight has to be Talley’s classic navy silk opportune Chanel navy cape, for which he was well known.
The famous editor’s joie de vivre and pride in appearance was nurtured in the churches of his youth, where he would do his Sunday Best every week. Proceeds will go to two New York Protestant churches close to Thalley’s heart – his family’s church, Mt. Sinai Missionary in Durham (where he wrote his memoirs, The Chiffon Trenches) and the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem. “I want to be remembered as someone who made a difference in the lives of young people – that I nurtured someone and taught them to pursue their dreams and careers, to leave a legacy,” he said in an interview by the New York Times in 2009.
The online auctions run from January 27 to February 16-17, christian.com
Sir Grayson Perry Auction at Central Saint Martins
Central Saint Martins is to host a presentation and online auction of the 62-year-old Turner Prize-winning artist’s dresses next week, which will go once, twice until sold… as so get ready to bid to your heart’s content.
Every year, second year BA Fashion Print students are challenged to create a quirky design for Perry’s alter-ego, Claire. The auction will feature 41 looks collected from the project over the past 16 years, all of which will be revealed in the full catalog on Monday.
Highlights include dresses with light blue polka-dot balloon sleeves, playful Peter pan collars and prints in tribute to Alan Measles, Perry’s teddy bears.
Perry has a long-standing relationship with the prestigious art school and has been Chancellor since 2015, encouraging and nurturing the school’s new talent. Funds from the auction will be donated to the university’s hardship fund, which aims to support students and launch the careers of emerging creative young people.
The full catalog will be unveiled on Monday 30 at @bafcsm and the online auction will start on February 3 from 5pm at Central Saint Martins, LVMH Theatre, 1 Grange Square, N1C 4AA. Register to bid at: graysonperrysdresses@arts.ac.uk