Photo: Isri Halpern. Design: Menusi-Benoish. Styling: Nurit Bat-Yaar

Photo: Isri Halpern. Design: Menusi-Benoish. Styling: Nurit Bat-Yaar
All Photos & contents in this blog are protected by copyrights.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

"Israel Fashion Art 1948-2008" in Reality TV's "Mrhubarot 2"

Hi, If you missed the Surprise appearance of "Israel Fashion Art 1948-2008" album-book on television - here is the relevant scene. In chapter 8 of the reality show "Mehubarot 2" Dina Avramson, one of the shows stars, decides to give her mother
"שיכרון עיצובים - אמנות האופנה בישראל".
Her mother who, in her youth, dreamed of becoming a fashion designer receives the
gift, unwraps it and discovers the lush album-book greeting it with WOWS. She then leafs throughout its pages saying that the pictures are beautiful and daring and that she is going to enjoy the book very much.
The short scene ends with a dedication Dina is writing to her mom on the book's first
page, saying that for her - her mom would always be on top of things in fashion.

Leafing through the book's photos the mother observes some colorful hand-knitted
creations modeled by Galit Guttman, a Diva piercing-iinspired bikini modeled by Bar Refaeli, a Moshe Amar Egyptian inspired overall modeled by Yafa Grebenau, a Maskit circular crochet maxi dress modeled by Batia Dissenchik and a picture of Alber Elbaz hugging Sarah Jessica Parker.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

"Israel Fashion Art 1948-2008" on Radio, Television, & the Press.

"Israel Fashion Art - 1948-2008" - book's cover photo taken by Miri Davidovits of a Jacob Harpaz gown. Model: Adaya Meirchek.
Hi, It was past midnight. I was about to slip into dream world when the phone rang. Who could be calling me at such an hour, I was wondering while picking up the phone. The voice on the other end of the line informed me he is calling from Kol Israel's (The Voice of Israel's) Reshet Bet radio station and that Moshik Timor would like to interview me about my album-book "Israel Fashion Art – 1948-2008"
"שיכרון עיצובים – אמנות האופנה לישראל 1948-2008"

Moshik Timor is one of Israel's leading and most admired radio stars, and even though his late-night program "Shishi Ishi" starts at midnight, he has many listeners. So, I got out of bed and waited for his 1:20 a.m interview with me which started after a Julio Iglesias song.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Moshik Timor not only for saying that "the book is breath-taking" and "stunning" and for describing the "unbelievable research" it involved as: "a doctorate dissertation", but also for enabling me to answer his questions without cutting me short as interviewers tend to do nowadays. All the responses I've received after this interview from people who listened to it live or the next day on the internet were very appreciative.

Those of you who understand Hebrew can listen to it on the following link:
http://www.iba.org.il/bet/bet.aspx?type=aod
After clicking on it, please roll down the page to Moshik Timor, Shishi Ishi and put the video on 1:20.

One of "Israel Fashion Art 1948-2008" exclusive photos shown on TV's "Mehubarot 2" show. A Steve Neiman photo of Tamar Shalom & Ilit Danai 1994 knit design. Model: Galit Gutman.
Exciting as this interview was, it wasn't the only very pleasant surprise that the album book and yours truly experienced last week. There's a very popular reality television program being broadcasted nowadays called "Mehubarot" ("Connected"). It's about 5 gals that were each given a video camera in order to document their lives. The other day, while I was watching it, I all of a sudden, noticed my album-book on the screen. It turned out that one of the gals, Dina Avramson, decided to give it to her mother as a gift.

The mother, who in her youth wanted to be a fashion designer, un-wraps the gift and upon seeing the book's cover picture expresses her enthusiasm with three Wows!!! She, then leafs through its pages while saying how beautiful its photos are.

The link to that television episode is: http://hot.ynet.co.il/home/0,7340,L-9213,00.html
once you click on it – select chapter 8 and move the video to a little before 20 minutes at which point this scene begins. Thank you Dina, this was such an exciting surprise!

Last but not least, last Wednesday a striking picture from the book of a strapless velour dress by Papco was featured in "Yedioth Ahronoth"'s "Zmanim Modernim" ("Modern Times") magazine. Shelly Gross, the magazine's fashion journalist chose it as an inspiration reference to the color-blocks trend for her spring-summer trends article of this very special holiday issue of the magazine. Thanks so much Shelly.

Happy Holiday!



An 1977 Papco velour dress exclusive to "Israel Fashion Art - 1948-2008" album-book, taken by Mula Eshet. Model: Hani Perry.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Ancient Egypt and "Israel Fashion Art 1948-2008" - Album-Book fit for Passover.

Photo from "Israel Fashion Art 1948-2008". Designed for Gottex by Lea Gottlieb. Photographer: Nira David Dror.
Hi, Passover, the holiday in which families recall and commemorate the exodus from Egypt, is around the corner so what would be a better time to share with you the fact that "Israel Fashion Art - 1948-2008" "שיכרון עיצובים - אמנות האופנה בישראל 1948-2008"
includes a chapter about the influence of Ancient Egypt on Israeli fashion design.
The chapter is called "From Pharos daughters to Sadat peace visit to Israel".

I have always believed that one of the important attributes of great original fashion designers was the fact that they drew inspiration from their cultural heritage, be it Cristobal Balenciaga who inserted Spanish elements in his famed Parisian creations, YSL who was inspired by the coloration and richness of exzotic Algeria of his early years, or Issay Miake whose Japanese heritage is evident in his work.

Hence, I've decided to emphasize in my album-book Israeli fashion designs which also drew inspiration from the country's cultural heritage. And Ancient Egypt certainly played a very important part in this heritage. One of the most prominent designers who expressed her enchantment with the artistic elements of Egypt was Lea Gottlieb of Gottex who created the beachwear seen in the picture above. As soon as the peace treaty with Egypt was signed Mrs. Gottlieb also sent photographer Nira David-Dror along with a couple of models, Tami Ben-Ami (seen here) and Hani Perry to have her designes photographed near the Sphynx and the Pyramids.

In the relevant chapter I traced various aspects of our Egyptian history starting with Pharos daughters, one of which discovered and saved the life of Moses and another who became King Salomon's wife. I continued by mentioning one Egyptian historian's theory according to whom Moses was in fact one of the Pharos.

It occurred to me that this link of Israeli fashion design to Ancient Egypt as described and elaborated on in this chapter of the book makes the album-book a proper holiday gift for Passover. Certainly an un-expected, original one. Don't you think?

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Israeli Fashion & "Israel Fashion Art 1948-2008" Going International.

Lea Gottlieb for Gottex beachwear. Photo: Ben Lam

From right: Shay Shalom gown. Photo: Yaniv Edri. Saruel-style jeans by Frau Blau. Photo: Sasha Flit.

From right: Shirt by gershon Bram. Photo: Ido Lavi. Portrait of Nurit Bat-Yaar. Photo: Ron Kedmi.
Hi, my hope is that a translated version of the album-book "Israel Fashion Art - 1948-2008"
"שיכרון עיצובים - אמנות האופנה בישראל 1948-2008"
would be published overseas. This would bring the creative and original aspects of Israeli fashion design to the attention of design, art, esthetics, and culture lovers everywhere. Also, it would enrich the variety of albums about Israel beyond books about Jerusalem and would give people overseas another view of Israel and its culture not ordinarily seen on TV and in the News.

Therefore I am very happy and gratefull whenever the book is mentioned in articles outside of Israel. Up to now overseas articles about the book appeared in Yuli Ziv's New York's "My It Things" web magazine @http://myitthings.com/Yuli/Post/fashion/It-Thing/It-Book:--Israel-s-Fashion-Art---1948-2008--by-Nurit-Bat-Yaar./593252010130272281.htm
.
Also in New York's Fashion Institue of Technology's blog "On Pins and Needles" in an article by Keren Ben-Horin's @http://pinsndls.wordpress.com/2010/09/23/from-rags-to-riches-israeli-fashion-rediscovered/


About these two book coverages I reported here previously.


Last week another article was published overseas. This time by Sima Borkowsky in the Swiss magazine "Tachles". Sima interviewed me about Israeli fashion using the above photos from the book. As the author of "Israel Fashion Art 1948-2008" and the former fashion editor ( for several decades) of "Yedioth Ahronoth" I was in a position to tell her about the very unique beginning of Israel's fashion originating in Rut Dayan's "Maskit" as well as about the great success of Israeli fashion designers all over the world, and the leading fashion icons, Jacquline Kennedy, Princess Diana, Katherine Hepborn and many others who wore Israeli designed creations.
Thank-you Sima. I appreciate it very much.