In Praise of Kitsch
You have to respect things that wear well even though they are not usually recognized as an enduring classic or an iconic part of the culture. The ability of a small piece of creative art to surprise, please and captivate, particularly in the fickle world of fashion, deserves a show-stopping bow.
And so it is that this 1989 gem featuring the work of, unarguably, the most influential designer of the decade, Jean Paul Gaultier, will leave you feeling stunned and awed at its brilliance, as it did me. And for the unmoved and choosiest: consider again the date 1989; this little musical extravaganza was produced twenty years ago in the late unimaginative 80′s, meeting its debut with a rousing chorus of bored yawns. But that’s fashion for you, always priding itself on affectation — blase, nonchalant, unimpressed.
“Aow Tou Dou Zat” (also known as “How to Do That”) is enthralling with its chorus line of giant dancing scissors, crazy furnishings reminiscent of Garouste & Bonetti, cone-breasted bustiers, cameos of demi-stars like the model Cameron and, most notably, the incredibly crafted couture sketches of the designer himself, brought to life in flawless and beautifully executed animation (and “oh my” on the torso).
With so many fashion labels enjoying a new wave of appreciation due, in part, to the current 1980s revival, I nominate the irrepressible and characteristically unconventional enfant terrible of French fashion – Jean Paul Gaultier.
Whoa.