This book highlights and showcases many of Adrian great costume and fashion designs from the 1920s through the 1950s. Not only are his timeless glamour gowns, period costumes, and amazing show-girl costumes shown from the movies, but also his impeccable suits and beautiful gowns from his private label. The ten years of Adrian Ltd. are summarized year-by-year, and his life with Janet Gaynor and his taste for decorating and art are described.
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From the Author
Adrian's great fashion influence is disproportianate to his name recognition. At his peak as head costume designer at MGM in the 1930s his looks for the film goddesses influenced how women wanted to look throughout the modern world. For the first time, even the Paris couture emulated his looks and those of the other Hollywood designers. And American women entering the workplace for the first time took their fashion cues from Adrian-dressed stars like Joan Crawford. When Adrian left MGM and opened his own business as the U.S. entered WWII, many thought he was crazy. He succeeded in using his endless creativity in the designs for his couture and ready-to-wear business, and American women could now aspire to be dressed by the designer to the stars. His attraction to contrast and polarity, his myriad uses of beauty, his centered design philosophy, ethnic influences, and his keen wit, informed most of his design. Adrian closed his own business rather than have any other designer involved, and his name was almost forgotten. But we have many great films to remind us now of his stunning creations, and which serve as endless inspiration for modern designers.
From the Inside Flap
Greta Garbo's cocked hat in Romance , Judy Garland's blue and white gingham pinafore in The Wizard of Oz , Katharine Hepbburn's white and gold gown in The Philadelphia Story : these stunning film looks were all created by fashion designer Gilbert Adrian. As chief costume designer at MGM from 1928 to 1941, Adrian designed costumes for dozens of films featuring the stars of Hollywood's golden age, including Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Loretta Young, Lana Turner, Jean Harlow, and many others. But his most glamorous star was Garbo, whose gowns he designed for Camille, Grand Hotel, Queen Christina , and Mata Hari .
In 1942, Adrian opened up his own couture and ready-to-wear business, featuring elegant designs characterized by asymetrical draping, broad shoulders, dolman sleeves, slim skirts, unique patterned fabrics, and splashes of color. His theme was unmistakable: American design for American women.
Adrian: Silver Screen to Custom Label is the first book to present the the full range of the designer's work and its far-reaching influence on decades of fashion design. Author Christian Esquevin discusses Adrian's talents for art and design; his studies in Paris, which led to work on Broadway for Irving Berlin; his long tenure at MGM; and his wildly successful fashion line. Copiously illustrated with archival images from film and and fashion runway alike, this volume showcases Adrian's hauntingly beautiful designs and his unrivaled position as creator of American style.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
24 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I've got to say that when I saw a book devoted to "Adrian," I got very excited, because I am a great admirer of his work during his years at MGM. However I must admit that I was disappointed with this book for its lack of actual content. If this were a simple photographic display of Adrian's works, I would have enjoyed the book more; it is the content that weakens the presentation.
The narrative starts out fine, giving the reader a sense of Adrian's struggles to delve into the fashion business first in Paris, then in America. Wonderful tidbits about the actresses like Crawford and Garbo are scattered throughout the initial 20 pages. But once Adrian's reign at MGM ends, so does the intrigue of the text. The interesting dichotomy of grand art and snappy human interest evolves into a verbose textual rendering of Adrian's creations, spanning about 15 years. Pages upon pages are spent lightly describing gowns from each collection, them not all having photographic companions to help the non-seamstress reader visualize these descriptions. In addition, the layout of the book causes confusion in that gowns described in the text are not necessarily juxtaposed on the same or corresponding page; then, too, some photographs are included that never were referenced in the text, making the reader wonder if they "missed" something.
I feel that this book's content could have been made stronger if more was included about Adrian's personal life, to give the reader insight into the genius behind the design. It is obvious that very little research, outside of photographic, has contributed to the content, which I think reasons its sketchiness.... Read more ›
The narrative starts out fine, giving the reader a sense of Adrian's struggles to delve into the fashion business first in Paris, then in America. Wonderful tidbits about the actresses like Crawford and Garbo are scattered throughout the initial 20 pages. But once Adrian's reign at MGM ends, so does the intrigue of the text. The interesting dichotomy of grand art and snappy human interest evolves into a verbose textual rendering of Adrian's creations, spanning about 15 years. Pages upon pages are spent lightly describing gowns from each collection, them not all having photographic companions to help the non-seamstress reader visualize these descriptions. In addition, the layout of the book causes confusion in that gowns described in the text are not necessarily juxtaposed on the same or corresponding page; then, too, some photographs are included that never were referenced in the text, making the reader wonder if they "missed" something.
I feel that this book's content could have been made stronger if more was included about Adrian's personal life, to give the reader insight into the genius behind the design. It is obvious that very little research, outside of photographic, has contributed to the content, which I think reasons its sketchiness.... Read more ›
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
adrian, a/k/a gilbert adrian, was one of the few designers for the classic hollywood films that did not blow his own horn during his time in the fashion industry as both costume designer and couturier.
in his somewhat short life, he worked hard, played hard and draped some of the film industry's most glamourous bodies in uniquely beautiful designs. his creativity was unstoppable. yet, in a weird twist of fate, he was never to compete for an academy award.
it is a wonderful thing to see another book published about this genius/workhorse! there are some of his gowns that defy description, such as his 'letty lynton' dress with its wildly ruffled sleeves. or, his showgirl get-ups that were featured in 'the great ziegfeld' and re-used time and again for mgm's less lavish musicals. and his period designs for the films of garbo and jeanette macdonald (to name a few), while not painstakingly researched, supply great amounts of aura for these actresses and the films.
it would be nice for the academy to pay tribute to him, travis banton and many others one year. but as it won't get more people to watch, it probably won't happen.
but that's fine. let the books keep coming and let the reinvestigations of the makings of glamour, hollywood style, spark many a scholarly discussion as they should.
in his somewhat short life, he worked hard, played hard and draped some of the film industry's most glamourous bodies in uniquely beautiful designs. his creativity was unstoppable. yet, in a weird twist of fate, he was never to compete for an academy award.
it is a wonderful thing to see another book published about this genius/workhorse! there are some of his gowns that defy description, such as his 'letty lynton' dress with its wildly ruffled sleeves. or, his showgirl get-ups that were featured in 'the great ziegfeld' and re-used time and again for mgm's less lavish musicals. and his period designs for the films of garbo and jeanette macdonald (to name a few), while not painstakingly researched, supply great amounts of aura for these actresses and the films.
it would be nice for the academy to pay tribute to him, travis banton and many others one year. but as it won't get more people to watch, it probably won't happen.
but that's fine. let the books keep coming and let the reinvestigations of the makings of glamour, hollywood style, spark many a scholarly discussion as they should.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
By Ulita
Format:Hardcover
I work a lot. My spare time is really limited, so I wanna enjoy it. A couple of years ago, I sort of noticed that while I was watching movies, I hooked up on fashion stuff, like outfits, gowns, etc. The movies that I, as a matter of fact, watch are forgotten films dated 1920's, 1930's. I am keen on silents, actually.
So, my shy acquitance with fashion started with the aforementioned silents. For me, silents represent some kind of a wondrous space, which is unique and challenging. Ladies and gents that show up in these movies are the miracles which appeal to your perception of reality. The images of many such an actress and actor are complex and dubious.To grasp this complexity, I surmise, you have to consider the image multi-faceted.
Facets differ, you know. One of them is clothes. At the time, Gilbert Adrian aka Adrian Adolph Greenberg was the biggest polisher of facets. He used to be a Costume Designer for MGM studios in 1920's-1950's. The scope of creative work performed by his genius totals 250 films. These are gowns tailored by him that you find the most tantalizing.
He dressed different ladies of the day and enigmas of the century like Joan Crawford, Norma Shearer, Janet Gaynor and, among others, his inspiration, Greta Garbo.
You can't help resisting the temptation of figuring out how Adrian managed to work out and create such an avalanche of glamorous wardrobe.
In the book "Adrian: Silver Screen to Custom Label", you will find a lot of information how Adrian would come up with his ideas and the influences he got to make his ideas work. The book also covers after-movies period in Adrian's life, his trips to Africa and South America.... Read more ›
So, my shy acquitance with fashion started with the aforementioned silents. For me, silents represent some kind of a wondrous space, which is unique and challenging. Ladies and gents that show up in these movies are the miracles which appeal to your perception of reality. The images of many such an actress and actor are complex and dubious.To grasp this complexity, I surmise, you have to consider the image multi-faceted.
Facets differ, you know. One of them is clothes. At the time, Gilbert Adrian aka Adrian Adolph Greenberg was the biggest polisher of facets. He used to be a Costume Designer for MGM studios in 1920's-1950's. The scope of creative work performed by his genius totals 250 films. These are gowns tailored by him that you find the most tantalizing.
He dressed different ladies of the day and enigmas of the century like Joan Crawford, Norma Shearer, Janet Gaynor and, among others, his inspiration, Greta Garbo.
You can't help resisting the temptation of figuring out how Adrian managed to work out and create such an avalanche of glamorous wardrobe.
In the book "Adrian: Silver Screen to Custom Label", you will find a lot of information how Adrian would come up with his ideas and the influences he got to make his ideas work. The book also covers after-movies period in Adrian's life, his trips to Africa and South America.... Read more ›
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I have long been an admirer of Adrian. It's a shame that Oscars for costume design weren't given out until 1949, because he'd have garnered many of them. He could design something as basic (yet revolutionary) as the "Letty Lynton" dress, or as dazzling as the costumes in "The Great Zigfeld," both in the "A Pretty Girl Is Like A Melody" number, then in the "You Never Looked So Beautiful Before" stage show. I think his crowning glory was his work on "Marie Antionette." I knew little about Adrian after he stopped turning out his stunning creations for the movies, and went into private business. This is a beautifully produced book, with many pictures of his later coture creations, some insights about his married life with actress Janet Gaynor, and his passion for travel. For Adrian fans everywhere, this is a book to own and cherish.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
It was great since my uncle owned this company
My uncle was vice president of this company His namewas Cleo " Woody " Feurt. I enjoyed reading about how he and Adrian started this company.
Published 12 days ago by Leo D Feurt
5.0 out of 5 stars
A GREAT TRIBUTE TO A GREAT DESIGNER
As one who enjoys old movies, I had seen Adrian's name next to the credits for costume design in countless movies over the years, but I didn't know anything about this creative... Read more
Published 16 months ago by Marie Antoinette
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful book for the Adrian's fans.
I think this book has a lot of information on Adrian's career and wonderful photos of his models and of the Hollywood stars. Really interesting.
Published 17 months ago by Eva Esther Tomas Soto
3.0 out of 5 stars
adrian sikver screen to custom label
THIS COPY WAS DAMAGED OBVIOUSLY FROM THE PRINTER...BAD CUTTING JOB.
I LIKE THE BOOK VERY MUCH BUT I AM WAITING FOR A REPLACEMENT FROM THE DEALER. WE SHALL SEE.
I LIKE THE BOOK VERY MUCH BUT I AM WAITING FOR A REPLACEMENT FROM THE DEALER. WE SHALL SEE.
Published on February 17, 2011 by Del S. Frnka
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic book
Fantastic book - gorgeous photographs and behind the scenes antidotes give you the sense of actually being there in Hollywood during this glamorous age.
Published on May 31, 2008 by T. Francis
5.0 out of 5 stars
great reading!!!!!
I love this book soooo much i remember all the old movies that Adrian desigend for .. so happy with this book thanks Robert
Published on May 2, 2008 by Robert Modena
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