How Victoria Beckham's Latest Collection Recalls the Splendor of Past Masters

How Victoria Beckham's Latest Collection Recalls the Splendor of Past Masters

• 

  Still Life Vibrancy

  Michaelina Wautier, A Garland of Flowers, Suspended Between Two Animal Skulls, A Dragonfly Above. Estimate $150,000–200,000.
  
  Whether verdant vines, lush fruit or radiant flowers, the unparalleled colors of nature have provided inspiration for generations of artists to capture in still lifes . Like many floral still lifes, Wautier includes flowers that bloom in different seasons, meaning that this exact bouquet could never exist as such in reality. Victoria Beckham's Pre Spring Summer 19 collection features a brilliant red hue, reminiscent of the poppies and fiery flora in Wautier’s painting.

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  The Chemise

  Angelika Kauffmann, Portrait of Three Children, Almost Certainly Lady Georgiana Spencer, Later Duchess of Devonshire, Lady Henrietta Spencer and George Viscount Althorp. Estimate $600,000–800,000.
  
  Although this portrait is of children, the gauzy gowns call to mind a key fashion depicted by Vigée Le Brun: the chemise à la reine. Coinciding with the French Revolution, Marie-Antoinette took an interest in all things natural, inspired by Jean-Jacques Rousseau. The same year she asked to extend the gardens at Versailles into what would become her bucolic Hamlet, the Queen famously sat for Le Brun wearing a white muslin chemise, sans corset, with natural hair and holding a rose. Exhibited at the Salon of 1783, the painting shocked the public. Not only was the ensemble perceived as underwear, but it was also viewed scandalously for promoting a foreign muslin fabric rather than French silk. The painting was quickly replaced with another where the Queen is wearing traditional garb. Victoria Beckham's Wrap Front Cami Evening Dress shows how fashion has evolved in the last 200-plus years; for a woman can wear a free-flowing white gown as formal wear!

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  Looking East

  Elisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun, Portrait of Muhammad Dervish Khan, Full-Length, Holding His Sword in a Landscape. Estimate $4,000,000–6,000,000.
  
  With the Silk Road and later the proliferation of Indian cotton, the East has had a significant influence on European fashion, in both fabric and design, for centuries. Those noble and aristocratic enough to take part in the courtly celebrations at Versailles were exposed to utmost international splendor in elaborate gift exchanges between French royalty and foreign leaders. The French particularly admired the traditional dress of Muhammad Dervish Khan, an Indian ambassador sent to France. Vigée Le Brun depicts him here in a gold-embroidered muslin costume – the gauzy fabric of which was becoming increasingly popular, albeit controversially in Marie-Antoinette’s case, with Europe’s elite. Victoria Beckham's V-Neck Long Sleeve Top and High Waisted Midi Skirt also subtly nod to traditional Eastern garments. Uninhibited by rigid understructures, the more T-shaped garments of the East often have overlapping, asymmetric frontal closures, allowing for a relaxed silhouette.

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  Undone Beauty

  Marie-Victoire Lemoine, Portrait of Madame De Genlis (1746-1830). Estimate $60,000–80,000.
  
  The concept of playing with exposure through cutouts and layering has been used in clothing throughout history. For example, "slashing" was a popular technique in 16th- and 17th-century garments where small cuts in the outer fabric revealed a contrasting inner lining. Created in the following century, Marie-Victoire Lemoine's portrait depicts a young woman in her undershirt, clutching flowers to her bare chest. Rather than deliberate slashings which expose an inner layer, the garment's tie closures reveal the sitter's porcelain skin, suggesting a more natural sensuality, which starkly contrasts the rigid corseted bodice that would have likely gone over the wearer had she completed her ensemble. Beckham's Slash Front Long Sleeve Midi Dress not only evokes the effortlessly draped white undergarment in Lemoine's painting, but its convertible neckline and open sleeves also play with the timeless art of the reveal.
  

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  Animal Instinct

  Rosa Bonheur, Le labourage. Estimate $80,000–120,000.
  
  Rosa Bonheur was one of the most successful animaliers of the 19th century. This scene of agricultural labor reflected a contemporary trend celebrating rural traditions and honoring the peasant, themes which Bonheur continued to explore. Although Beckham’s Pre Spring Summer 19 collection features several types of animal print, the one that closest mirrors the gleaming coats of the horses in Bonheur’s work is the cow hide digital print seen on the Fitted Shirt and Multistitch Waistband Midi Skirt .

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  Return to Classicism

  Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguereau, La captive. Estimate $250,000–350,000.
  
  Elizabeth Jane Gardner Bouguereau was one of the most accomplished Salon artists in mid-19th century Paris. Viewing the classical age as a precursor of academicism, many artists of this period depicted classical subjects, as Gardner has here. Beckham's Pleat Hem Shift dress not only resembles the subtle hues of the figures’ gowns, but it also can be seen as a contemporary iteration of the seamless, pleated tunics closely associated with ancient Greeks and Romans.

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  Distinct Sleeves

  Elisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun, Portrait of a Young Woman Dressed in White, Half-Length. Estimate $40,000–60,000.
  
  Elisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun was less than twenty years old when she painted this portrait of an aristocratic woman in traditional garb. We see the narrow, conical torso, typical of 18th-century bodices, as well as the attention to detail, achieved by lace, pearls and other frills. Sleeves were yet another key vehicle for adornment, but interestingly, this woman's sheer sleeves lack the engageantes, or false, flouncing sleeves, fashionable during the period. A creative twist on the classic white button-down, Victoria Beckham's Tie Sleeve Shirt illustrates how in 2019, sleeves remain enduring areas for sartorial experimentation.

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  Luxe Fabrics

  Amile-Ursule Guillebaud, Portrait of the Artist, Seated at Her Easel. Estimate $8,000–12,000.
  
  While today most could identify a tactile difference between cotton and silk, people in centuries past were much more fluent in the articulation of textiles. Fabrics were akin to affluence, with the rarest creations exceeding costs of modern-day cars or other high luxury items. Several techniques could be used to achieve a sparkle or sheen, associated with more luxurious garments. In this painting, almost certainly a self-portrait of the artist in her studio, light bounces off the women's dress, which emits a red iridescence over its predominantly violet hue. Beckham's One Shoulder Twist Dress features a shimmering copper fabric conveying a similar metallic finish as the one in Guillebaud’s – not to mention they also share an exaggerated shoulder.

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  Frothy Fichu

  Elisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun, Portrait of Mrs. Spencer Perceval, née Jane Wilson (1769-1844), bust-length. Estimate $150,000–250,000.
  
  Like a handkerchief or scarf, the fichu was worn primarily in 18th-century fashion under low-cut bodices. Typically made of write cotton or linen, they were tied or crossed at the chest to provide coverage. At the turn of the 19th century when Le Brun created this pastel of Mrs. Spencer Perceval, the fichu evolved into more varied gauzy underlayers, such as the one we see here. The ruffle on Beckham's Flute Sleeve Shirt could be seen as referencing the fichu, but of course for centuries before and after this accessory made its way to women’s necks, the white shirt had been an enduring fashion symbol in its own right.

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• 

  Tailoring & Uniforms

  Antoinette-Cécile-Hortense Haudebourt-Lescot, A Swiss Guard, Full-Length. Estimate $20,000–30,000.
  
  Ever since the Pontifical Swiss Guard entered the Vatican for the very first time in January 1506, its distinct uniform has become one of the world’s most famous. Even today’s rendition of the ensemble is inspired by a Renaissance silhouette, a modified form of which can be seen in this painting by Antoinette-Cécile-Hortense Haudebourt-Lescot who spent nearly a decade in Rome recording scenes of everyday life. The guard’s doublet, breeches, hose and jacket form an overall billowing silhouette, made all the more striking in the symbolic blue, red and yellow combination, the colors of the Medici family. Though its silhouette is significantly sleeker, Beckham's High Waisted Wide Leg Trouser and Long Sleeve Stripe Top evoke the commanding effect of the Swiss Guard uniform. Beckham proves that when used sparingly, striped color blocking is both eye-catching and modern.

  View Lot View Auction

  Share
• • 

    Type: story

    Category: Traveling Exhibition

    Victoria Beckham x Old Master Paintings
  • 

    Type: story

    Category: Old Master Paintings

    Masterworks by Trailblazing Female Artists Spanning the 16th through the 19th Centuries
  • 

    Type: story

    Category: Sotheby’s Magazine

    The Women Who Dared to Paint
  • 

    Type: story

    Category: 19th Century European Paintings

    3 Women Artists Who Broke Boundaries During the 19th Century
  • 

    Type: story

    Category: Old Master Paintings

    The Volatile Saga behind Elisabeth-Louise Vigée Le Brun's Portrait of India's Ambassador to France
  • 

    Type: slideshow

    Category: Interiors + Design

    Proof that Minimalist Interiors are Phenomenal Canvases for Master Paintings