Patrick Robinson, the creative force behind the Gap, was one of the hosts of this year’s
Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Gala
, and so it would have been fitting to have Robinson dress some of the night’s bold faces. Unfortunately, it seems that Hollywood isn’t in favor of being dressed solely by the Gap, and needs a designer name attached to their garment. In the ultimate high-low combo, a slew of past CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund winners (Rodarte, Alexander Wang, Sophie Theallet, Thakoon), teamed with the Gap to design one-of-a-kind looks that were then auctioned off for charity.
I’m not actually sure why the designs were called names such as ‘Rodarte for the Gap’ since none of the garments created will ever hit Gap stores, and not one of the participating designers seemed to incorporate anything that one would traditionally expect from the Gap. Rodarte for the Gap was more like Rodarte for Rodarte. Nevertheless, it’s interesting to hear about the designers’ points of inspiration, and British Vogue had a chance to speak to each of the them. As predicted, none of the designers mention anything about the Gap.
Alexander Wang, who dressed MIA and Zoe Kravitz, based MIA’s dress “on a modern gypsy” using a combination of hand-crochet and engineered ribbing with appliqué. As for Kravitz, Wang remarked that her “look brings a new perception to eveningwear, pairing a luxe metallic-iridescent wife beater tank top with a men’s inspired wide trouser.”
Sophie Theallet, who dressed Jessica Alba and Vera Farmiga in arguably two of the more unfortunate looks of the night, said that she was inspired by “the glamorous tradition of Hollywood actresses,” adding that she “wanted both of them to be timeless beauties.”
Thakoon, who dressed Kerry Washington and Riley Keough, noted that for ”Kerry, she really loved the idea of tight and loose, so I thought this dress would be perfect for her. She’s quite classic in her beauty, and I wanted to give her something more sensual rather than just sexy.”
The Rodarte girls, who outfitted Kirsten Dunst in a beautiful white number, as well as Jamie Brochert, didn’t have much to say about their inspiration, but for those curious about what was used to make Dunst’s dress – “a combination of floral embroidered voile, pleated silk tulle, mohair fringe, and draped Swarovski crystal pearls.”
