Ford Models Fashion

When one thinks of haute couture, the physical garments themselves that are meticulously sewn by hand (petites main), the mind almost immediately conducts these thoughts on egg shells lest a hem snag or a stitch loose in the process. The thousands of hours that go into creating a single gown especially for one client are almost too staggering to even countenance.  Still, though every pleat of tulle, every sewn embellishment is carefully executed without the use of machinery so that the final product becomes an extension of its patron’s body. As the apotheosis of fashion haute couture often suffers from its own exalted status with photographers and houses preferring instead to present the works of art in a static way. This no doubt aids in the apprehension of a garment’s precision detailing, but it only does so at the cost of its overall spirit. Seeing a garment in motion, embodied if you will, is to truly see a garment. Haute couture is no exception and especially not as it is so sumptuously presented by photographer Nick Knight for an editorial in V71 Summer 2011 featuring Ford’s Ming Xi.

Titled “Ode Couture,” this Jonathan Kaye-styled story sets in motion an haute couture study in seven parts that include looks by Givenchy Haute Couture by Riccardo Tisci, Valentino Haute Couture, Dior Haute Couture, Atelier Versace, Chanel Haute Couture, Gaultier Paris, and Giorgio Armani Privé. These arresting photographs are deliberately blurred by the orchestrated movement of Ming, who instils a certain dynamism in every portrait. The fifth look by Chanel Haute Couture might as well be the editorial’s thesis: a silk chiffon dress embroidered with flowers of feathers; top embroidered with pink, turquoise, and gold pearls and sequins; matching sleeves and train. In motion, the delicate dress resembles champagne being poured into a flute. The movements are fleeting, but when captured with a slower shutter speed endeavor to make the silhouette all the more permanent. With haute couture so masterfully presented in this manner it is easy to understand why Ming Xi says in a SHOWstudio interview, “every girl has a princess in her heart.”

Please buy various special editions of V71 by visiting VMAGAZINE.com. Also be sure to pop over to SHOWstudio to watch videos that detail every look, see an interview with Ming Xi, and read the complete credits for this story.

Credits include: Publication, V71 Summer 2011; Title, “Ode Couture”; Photography, Nick Knight; Styling, Jonathan Kaye; Hair, Sam McKnight at Premier using Pantene; Makeup, Petros Petrohilos at Streeters London for NARS Cosmetics; Manicure, Adam Slee at Streeters London using Rimmel London; Photography assistance, Zoe Hitchin, James Robotham, Roo Kendall, Laura Falconer, Alex Lockett; Styling assistance, Raquel Franco, Max Ortega; Makeup assistance, Sofia Bermudez; Hair assistance, Cyndia Harvey; Casting, Michelle Lee at KCD; Casting assistance, Kristina Kim; Digital capturing, Joe Colley at Passeridae Ltd; Digital production, Tom Wandrag at Epilogue Imaging Ltd; Image source, tFS.