THE AUTHENTICITY OF MOVIE COSTUME SKETCHES Part 2

Movie costume sketches are wonderful things. They combine art and fashion and evoke the role the actor/actress is going to play. And more, they are documents that can show both the creative aspect of the movie business and it's costume design nuts and bolts: fabric samples, labor hours and cost to produce, changes in design, the designated scene , and often who in the development chain approved the specific sketch. While costumes for supporting cast were usually designed in the same way, it was the film's stars that had the best costumes and the most costume changes. Knowing that the movie star in all likelihood held that costume sketch adds much to its cache. For these reasons, the costume sketch made during production is far more significant that a later artistic rendering or presentation sketch made as a gift. Unless one is just seeking an art piece representing movie fashion to hang on the wall, one should know the difference between an original costume sketch and an illustration of movie costumes.



This original costume sketch is a design by Edith Head, and there is no signature. Neither a film title nor  a star is identified. The provenance of the sketch and the fact that this sketch was acquired with similar but signed Edith Head sketches makes me certain this is an Edith Head design.

                                                                               

How can you tell the difference between an original costume sketch and a later illustration? The fundamental difference is that one is a creative tool and the other is a finished piece of art. As a tool in the movie costume design process, the original costume sketch will undergo a lot of handling. For those sketches produced during the classic era, the vast majority of them will show signs of wear: pencil marks, smudges, pin holes, staple marks, and erasures, not to mention written notes and re-drawings or secondary drawings. The backs of the sketches will often have film production notes, signatures, Studio stamps with boxes to show approval initials, budgets, etc. The one thing that was not included on a costume sketch was a Studio property stamp. There was no rationale for identifying a sketch as Studio property. During the days of the Studio system, this work was done in the Wardrobe Department (occasionally the independent Western Costume was used). Dozens of sketches could be produced for a single movie. During production or pre-production, sketches were just tools. After the movie was released hardly anyone cared what happened to the sketches, least of all the Studios. Back then a costume could be re-used - a costume sketch was next to worthless.

                                                                    


The back of an Edith Head sketch for Betty Hutton in Miracle of Morgan's Creek has very useful information like the director's approval, budget for the costume, and how long it should take to make.

                                                                                                                                                                                       


This sketch is for one of the ladies in The Ladies Man starring Jerry Lewis. It has several notes in Edith Head's handwriting.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

A "presentation sketch" or a costume illustration, whether intended as a gift or created to display at a fashion show, is made as a final product. It will depict accurately the movie costume because it was done after the movie was finished (often years after). It was meant for show or as art. Accordingly it was carefully painted, with more eye-appeal, and it is sure to boldly place the stars' name, movie title, and designer signature on the work. It will rarely show wear. These pieces invariably illustrate glamorous costumes on iconic stars in famous movies. Because of this fame factor, these sketches often sell for large sums of money. One can be very happy to own or acquire such pieces, but for the collector, one should know the difference. And for professional dealers and auctioneers, efforts should be made to determine this status and make it clear in the cataloging or description. Needless to say, designers may have made several copies of a presentation sketch. Each production costume sketch, on the other hand, is unique.



This is a later exhibit or presentation sketch. It was meant to be an eye-popper from across the room and was probably done for Miss Head's fashion shows. It shows Ann-Margret in The Swinger.The film title and star are in bold writing.

                                                                              


This is one of the original costume sketches from The Swinger. It was rendered by Edith's sketch artist Richard Hopper in a very different style than the one above.

                                     
                                                                       

In addition to the wear factor and other signs mentioned above, there are other clues. A new-looking sketch of a glamour gown from a 1930s movie should be considered suspicious. Getting to know the rendering style of a designer or their sketch artists can tell you if there's an anomaly. Edith Head's sketch style is often associated with her sketch artist from 1954 to 1963, Grace Sprague. A 1940s Edith Head costume design done in Grace Sprague's distinctive style is a giveaway that the piece is not an original costume sketch. And since Ms. Sprague died in 1963, a sketch done in her style for a later film or appearing freshly made should be considered suspicious. Since sketch artists very rarely signed a sketch, getting to know their style is achieved by looking at a lot of sketches or looking at the several excellent costume design books that reproduce them. In Edith Head's long career, she used many different sketch artists, so after a while one can tell the period of the film just by looking at the style of the sketch artist that worked with her at the time.



The costume sketch above was for a design for Natalie Wood in Sex and the Single Girl. It was rendered in the distinctive style of Edith' Head's sketch artist Grace Sprague, and has scene numbers, costume change number, and other notations.

                                                                                

                                                                                

Several notable designers never used sketch artists but made their own sketches. Thus their distinctive style stayed the same throughout their careers. These include Adrian, Rene Hubert, Irene Sharaff, Orry-Kelly, Robert Kalloch, Howard Shoup, Mary Wills, Theadora Van Runkle, Donfeld, and others. And several costume designers began or worked early in their careers as sketch artists, These include Bill Thomas, Bob Mackie, Yvonne Wood, Edward Stevenson, Adele Balkan, Renie, and Edith Head herself. Getting to know their styles will be rewarding, and will provide in itself an education in the history of movie costume design. And there's no substitute for doing your background homework when considering spending a lot of money on a costume sketch.  With the high prices realized for many sketches there is more incentive for forgeries as is the case with other art and antiques. An unsigned sketch can be enhanced by a forged signiture. One that has no star or movie title on it can also be enhanced by pencilling in an iconic star's name and movie title. View the films the sketches are supposed to be from. Do they appear, even modified a bit, in the movie? Do the styles and periods match the rest of the costumes in the film?    Check out those books, and screen those movies. If that sketch looks too perfect, maybe it's trying too hard to look like the real thing.





THE AUTHENTICITY OF MOVIE COSTUME SKETCHES

There is sometimes confusion, and even indifference, as to whether a movie costume design sketch is the real thing. This sometimes happens when costume sketches come up for sale, either by auction or through private sale. As with other Hollywood movie memorabilia, the prices can be breathtaking. Unfortunately, whether the costume design sketch was made as part of the film's original production, or whether it was rendered years or even decades later as an illustration of a movie costume, is information that is rarely provided. Why would this differentiation matter? And why does it happen? After more than twenty years of collecting and studying movie costume sketches, I would like to provide some guidelines.



A costume sketch for Gloria Swanson for the costume worn in her first appearance in the film Sunset Blvd. The costume fabric lining was changed for the film.

                                                                       

Since early in the twentieth century, costume designs for films have mostly started as design sketches, usually rendered in watercolor or gouache on paper or illustration board. The costume sketch was the costume design. It not only represented the designer's intent, but it was shown and passed around to the film's director, producer, and the star or actor it was designed for. It often had their approval initials, fabric samples, production number, scene number, and costume change number, as well as information on the back as to budget, costs, accessories, and sometimes which costume fitter worked on it. The costume sketch then went to wardrobe, where it was passed around from fitter or draper to seamstresses and beaders. The costume sketch was usually painted to be beautiful, because the star was beautiful and the costume was to make them beautiful, as well as to further their role. This is also where the star could fully visualize themselves in the role. And part of the job of the sketch was to appeal to star and director to get their approval. But sketches were not meant to be art - they were working tools. Sometimes parts of the costume in the sketch were scratched out with pencil. The sketches could be signed by the designer, or not. Often the designer used a sketch artist to do the costume sketches. This was often done because the designer didn't have the time to do a well-rendered sketch.

                                                             

This is a costume sketch for Eva Marie Saint in Raintree County by Walter Plunkett. Although Plunkett was a good artist, a separate sketch artist rendered this sketch.

                                                                             
                                                                                

An original costume design sketch could be modified while the costume was being fabricated in Wardrobe (or after the Studio system, wherever the costume was made). Sometimes the costume was made but never used in the film, or its scene was edited out, or the costume could only be partially seen. Regardless, these costume sketches, whether used or not, should be considered original production costume sketches whenever they were made as part of the movie costume design process.


There exists a variety of "costume sketches" that should not be confused with original production costume sketches. These were often done by the costume designers themselves or by their own sketch artists years after the original movie was released and all the costumes had been made. There were several reasons for these to be produced. Some designers like Edith Head and Helen Rose did charity fashion shows late in their careers, featuring their famous costumes. Since the original costume sketch no longer survived or was not in their possession, another one was made to display at these shows. These were often illustrated with more eye appeal than the original, and now featured bold designer signatures and the names of the stars they were for and the film titles. In the Studio days, it was well known who the designer was on any given film, so signatures were irregularly added. Sometimes in retirement a designer liked to revisit their creations and had the leisure to paint their most famous or favorite costume designs. Walter Plunkett recreated many of his in this manner and had some printed as lithographs. Other designers recreated their own most famous costume sketches to give as gifts or to sell at benefit auctions. The intent of the designers here was never to deceive. And during the lifetimes of the classic era designers, costume sketches had little financial value anyway. When a film wrapped, there was no need to re-do costume design sketches - everyone moved on to the next film.

                               
                                                                              
These re-do "costume sketches," since they were done long after the costumes were made and the films produced, had the luxury of being more or less exact replicas of the costumes as seen on the film, and often in the star's iconic pose from the film. But since they were not part of the original production of the movie nor of the design process of the costumes, they are not costume design sketches at all but rather illustrations of the costumes as seen in the films. That these sketches are signed by the designer does not make them original costume designs. They may be beautiful and worthy of framing and hanging on a wall as art, but they should not be described as original costume design sketches. Since these tend to be done picturing the most  iconic gowns or costumes, one can spend many thousands of dollars on such  illustrations. Perhaps that is perfectly satisfactory to some, but I'd like to know if the sketch is original, and if it isn't , how many more like it might be around?



This is not a costume sketch. It is a lithograph printed from a painting that Walter Plunkett did after he retired. It illustrates the velvet curtain dress Vivien Leigh wore in  Gone With The Wind.

                                                                                                                                                           
Having the extra trappings in an original costume design sketch, such as fabric samples, scene numbers, approval signatures, and budget figures, are for the collector a matter of taste and degree of curiosity vis-a-vis a clean sketch. But nothing can replace the knowledge that the original sketch was handled personally by the star, by the director, by the producer, and not least, by the skilled artisans that actually made the costume that was depicted. The sketch that was made subsequent to the movie's production is a shadow of these things.



This is a costume sketch for Jane Wyatt in Our Very Own, designed and rendered by Mary Wills. The sketch also has her signature and costume notes.

                                                                   
How can one tell the difference between an original movie costume sketch and a later illustration or some other kind of fashion sketch? Sometimes it may not be possible, but there are signs. Stay tuned for the next post.