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Fashion runway slide collection

 Collection
Identifier: KA-0016-01

Online Access

Available digital items: https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/collections/KA001601

Summary

Saks Fifth Avenue compiled this collection of more than 1,100 slides depicting fashion runway shows in the 1990s. The 35 mm slides depict haute couture and ready-to-wear collections from an array of fashion labels, including Adrienne Vittadini, Bill Blass, Calvin Klein, Dolce & Gabbana, Issey Miyake, Max Mara, Michael Kors, Oscar de la Renta, Ralph Lauren, Rifat Ozbek, Versace, Vivienne Westwood, Yves Saint-Laurent, and many others.

Former Parsons School of Design students include but are not limited to Marc Jacobs, Donna Karan, Badgley Mischka, Isaac Mizrahi, Charlotte Neuville, Anna Sui, and Yeohlee Teng. Dan and Corina Lecca, Chris Moore, and Dino Scrimali are some of the photographers whose work is represented in the collection.

Dates

  • 1990 - 2000

Creator

Extent

10.4 Cubic Feet (8 boxes (1,157 slides))

Additional Description

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of 35 mm color slides compiled by Saks Fifth Avenue documenting fashion runway shows during the 1990s. It is unclear which corporate function collected or commissioned these slides, but it is possible buyers used them to determine which collections would be sold by Saks, or the images may have been used for advertising.

Designers represented in the collection include Bill Blass, Oscar de la Renta, Dolce & Gabbana, Calvin Klein, Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren, Rifat Ozbek, Adrienne Vittadini and many others. Former Parsons students include but are not limited to Marc Jacobs, Donna Karan, Badgley Mischka, Isaac Mizrahi, Charlotte Neuville, Anna Sui, and Yeohlee Teng.

Slides mounts are all labeled with year, season and collection identification. It is unknown whether the photographer, the fashion house, or some other entity labeled the slides. The majority of labels are in English, although a few are in French.

Slides are arranged in their seasonal order. Spring and summer collections are combined, as are fall and winter collections. Explicitly labeled cruise, resort, haute couture and ready-to-wear collections have been separated from general seasonal collections. According to notations on the slide mounts, the images depict runway shows in New York, Paris, and Milan. There is no known connection to Parsons School of Design; the school did not host the runway shows depicted in the images. While the photographer is not identified on many slides, the most frequently credited photographer is Dan Lecca, followed by his wife, Corina (sometimes identified as Corine) Lecca. Chris Moore and Dino Scrimali are also identified as photographers. It is believed that the different fashion houses represented in the collection hired the photographers to document their runway shows.

The number following the designer's name in the collection inventory indicates the total number of slides contained within each folder.

Language of Materials

Slide mounts labeled in English and in French.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research use. Please contact archivist@newschool.edu for appointment.

Use Restrictions

To publish images of material from this collection, permission must be obtained in writing from the New School Archives. Please contact: archivist@newschool.edu.

Historical Note

The company that compiled and donated this collection of slides, Saks Fifth Avenue, is an upscale department store chain, with a flagship store located on Fifth Avenue in New York City, between 49th and 50th Streets. Saks Fifth Avenue originated as a collaborative effort between Horace Saks of Saks & Co. and Bernard Gimbel of Gimbel Brothers department stores. The flagship store opened in 1924 and is famous for its window displays.

Adam Long Gimbel (1893-1969), cousin of Bernard and assistant to Horace, became president of Saks after Horace died in 1926 and led the company for many decades until his retirement in 1969. Adam and his wife, renowned fashion designer Sophie Haas Gimbel (1898-1981), were donors to Parsons School of Design. In 1974, the Parsons School of Design's library was dedicated as the Adam L. Gimbel Design Library in honor of a gift from the family of the Saks Fifth Avenue executive. In 1982, it was rededicated as the Adam and Sophie Gimbel Design Library following a fundraising initiative headed by the Gimbel's son Jay Rossbach (1921-2014) and Saks executive Helen O'Hagan.

Organization and Arrangement

Slides are arranged chronologically by year and by season, and within each season in alphabetical order.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by the Fashion Department of Saks Fifth Avenue in 1999.

Related Materials

The Saks Fifth Avenue fashion publicity records (KA.0018) in the New School Archives documents designer apparel and accessories sold at Saks Fifth Avenue during the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s.

Processing Information

Processed by Agnes Szanyi in 2014, relying exclusively on information printed on slide mounts to identify and arrange slides by designer and season. No external research was conducted to confirm the accuracy of the information. In cases where slide labels appear in French, such as "P.A.P." for "pret-a-porter" or "hiver" for winter, they were translated into English for consistency in folder titles. The New School Archives gratefully acknowledges Peter Shand's insight and recommendations regarding the processing of this collection.

Subjects

Record Groups

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Guide to the fashion runway slide collection
Status
Completed
Author
New School Archives and Special Collections Staff
Date
August 23, 2016
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Revision Statements

  • October 27, 2021: Wendy Scheir added dates and number of slides in each folder.