Something for the Weekend

Cecil Beaton and Jean Shrimpton by David Bailey

 Cecil Beaton and David Bailey

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.

XXX

Something for the Weekend

Cecil Beaton

 Leombruno-Bodi

 Leombruno-Bodi

 Leombruno-Bodi

 Elsa Martinelli, Henry Clark

Gloria Vanderbilt, Horst 1941

Not quite the weekend but nearly! Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.
XXX

Cecil and David

Peter Schlesinger

In 1969, David Hockney was asked by Vogue to do a drawing of Cecil Beaton, David went to stay with Cecil for three days at Reddish...

"To begin with I was utterly appalled, having remained in some romantic but extremely uncomfortable pose for a great deal too long, when I saw an outline in Indian ink of a bloated, squat, beefy businessman.  He laughed.  No it wasn't very good, and he embarked upon another which turned out to be just as bad"

"About eight horrors were perpetrated while the days advanced until, finally, something rather good emerged".

"It is always fascinating to see someone as remote as oneself working in the same field. I was intrigued to see him admiring things that I like from a completely different point of view.  We could not be farther apart as human beings and yet I find myself completely at ease with him and stimulated by his enthusiasm. For he has this golden quality of being able to enjoy life".

"He is never blasé, never takes anything for granted. Life is a delightful wonderland for him; much of the time he is wreathed in smiles.  He laughs aloud at television and radio. He is the best possible audience, though by no means simple. He is sophisticated in that he has complete purity. There is nothing pretentious about him; he never says anything he does not mean. In the world of art intrigue he is a complete natural".

"After dinner at Dickie Buckle's, David talked of the coming of the Golden Age. He had read many philosophers and has thought a great deal. In the next forty years all will change. The computer will do away with work; everyone will be an artist".

A recent photograph of David Hockney

Excerts from Cecil Beatons Diary,  1963-74 The Parting Years. 

Cecil in the Picture

Cecil, Mick Jagger, Anita Pallenberg, on the set of Performance, 1968

Cecil, Mick Jagger

Cecil, David Hockney at Reddish 1969, Peter Schlesinger

Cecil, Bianca Jagger 1978

Blonde Geisha

Jean Shrimpton by Cecil Beaton 1964

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend

XXX

The Party of the Century

 On September 3rd 1951 Don Carlos de Beistegui y de Tturbe or Charlie de Beistegui to his acquaintances  threw a lavishly extravagant, decadent, masked, costume ball, which he called 'Le Bal oriental'.  The venue was his newly restored Palazzo Labia in Venice.  The ball was the first grand ball to be held after the second world war, quite a bold move considering Europe was still picking up the pieces and rationing was still in place in many countries, (food rationing in Britain ended in 1954).

Charles Beistegui on the balcony of the Palazzo Labia

 Palazzo Labia

 Palazzo Labia, John Singer Sargent

Charlie was of Mexican and Spanish origin, he was the heir to a Mexican Silver fortune although he only went to Mexico twice, he was born in France and educated in England.  Charlie was an eccentric, multimillionaire, art collector and interior decorator and one of the most flamboyant characters of the 20th century.  Despite all this he was not the most popular person, he was often described as being personally aloof and shadowy with a reputation of treating his friends and mistresses poorly.

 Charles de Beistegui

  Cecil Beaton wrote in his diary:

 "Beistegui is utterly ruthless. Such qualities as sympathy, pity or even gratitude are sadly lacking. He has become the most self-engrossed and pleasure-seeking person I have met."

 'His personal aloofness' did not stop people wishing to attend his party, his guest list was high profile and everybody who was anybody during that period expected an invitation. Guests took months preparing, choosing costumes and rehearsing grand entrances.  The ball helped launch Pierre Cardins career, he designed thirty costumes.  Today, 'Le Bal oriental' has achieved legendary status and is indeed referred to as 'The party of the century'

 Excert from 'Wait For me!' Memoires of the youngest Mitford Sister, Deborah Devonshire:

The extravaganza gave rise to green-eyed jealousy over invitations and was the talk of London, Paris and New York for months.  Andrew and I were lucky enough to be invited.  He went in eighteenth century costume and I wore a simple, white muslin dress with a pale blue satin jacket, copied from a portrait of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, by John Downman.

The ball was an unforgettable theatrical performance with entrees of men and women in exquisite costumes. M. de Beistegui, in a vast wig of cascading golden curls and a lavishly embroidered brocade coat, stood on stilts as to be easily recognised.  Daisy Fellowes regularly voted the best dressed woman in France and America, portrayed the Queen of Africa from the Tiepolo frescoes in Wurzburg.  She wore a dress trimmmed with leopard print, the first time we had seen such a thing (still fashionable today, sixty years on), and was attended by four young men painted the colour of mahogany.  So many women threatened to be Cleopatra that the host decided to settle it himself and named Diana Cooper for the roll.

 Daisy Fellowes

Lady Diana Cooper as Cleopatra

One memorable entree was Jaques Fath, the Paris couturier, who came as Louis XIV in a headdress of white ostrich feathers as tall as himself, and a shimmering white satin jacket and skirt - like a doublet and hose - embroidered with gold.  Cecil Beaton, dressed as a French Cure and dancing with Babara Hutton, was worth watching. 

 Jacques and Genevieve Fath

 Jacques Fath

Cecil Beaton and friends

Wine, food and entertainment were provided on the public square outside the palazzo for the citizens of Venice.  At least one Frenchman of noble birth, who thought he should have been asked to the ball, enjoyed himself among the crowd who were climbing up greasy poles for chicken and hams, and he was visited every now and again by the glamourous figures from the palazzo.  As this extraordinary night turned into dawn, we splashed our way down the Grand Canal back to our hotel, having had the time of our lives.

 Orson Welles

 Jean Tierney

Photographs sourced from: http://scalaregia.blogspot.com/