Erté, Eternally Elegant

Did you know Erté – the incredibly talented Russian-born fashion and stage designer of the early twentieth century –  made up his own name? His full name was Romain de Tirtoff (or Roman Petrovich Tyrtov in Russian), and he took ‘Erté’ from the French pronunciation of his initials. Clever, huh? Very post-post-post modern of him, when you think of today’s celebrity acronyms like JLo and the heinous TomKat. (Any serious journalist who employs that term should be immediately sent to Coventry. But then, look at me, writing alliterative headlines!)

He was his own best publicist too, often wearing his own designs with theatrical flair. Most famously he donned a toreador outfit of gold lamé for an opera ball in Paris in 1926. He told Time magazine in 1982: “That night, the huge cape I designed was completely lined with fresh red roses which I tossed, one by one, at my audience as I descended the grand staircase.” [fashionising.com]

Erté (1892–1990) was born in St Petersburg, and designed his first costume at the age of five. He moved to Paris in 1912, and went on to fulfil his dream of becoming a fashion illustrator, contracting with Harper’s Bazaar, contributing to it for 22 years. Probably best-known for the elegant, sinuous flappers of his Art Deco drawings, Erté also designed gloriously extravagant costumes and sets for the Foliès-Bergere in Paris and White’s Scandals in New York. 

In fact, it was exactly the predominantly black drawing (top) that came to my mind last Tuesday in Sydney, when I happened upon just such a fan hat as this lady is wearing. I’ll leave the entertaining story of how I got it through airport security for another time, but suffice it to say mine is at least two-and-a-half times bigger – literally a metre wide and dancing with ostrich plumes. I can now have all the private Erté moments at home I want, whenever I feel like it.

Read more or peruse the galleries of Erté’s beautiful work at the official website.
Images from fashionising.com