Most other fashion industries of the world rely for solvency on the American store buyer: New York itself can import the best from Paris, London and Rome, and exacts the utmost in professionalism from her own fashion industry. The enormous demand in rich America has made New York the financial centre of world fashion, considers Cherry Twiss.
MINI-SKIRTED velvet doublet and orange hose photographed at the Electric Circus. Note: This particular photograph was the magazine cover shot for the seven page fashion report from New York contained within, but apart for the previous brief description which I found in the contents section, there was no other information. However, I'm pretty sure that it is the work of the designer Diana Dew, which was available from the boutique at the Electric Circus. I've uploaded an illustrated example of the dress from a print advert for the Electric Circus Store below, also from December 1967.
Muttonchop Dress in brown crepe and brown velvet by Diana Dew, available from the boutique at the Electric Circus, December 1967.
THE CONSPICUOUS EAST frames the long printed silk crepe shift above by Oscar de la Renta, the newest star in the New York design firmament. His design holds it's own with the ultra-violet lighting and psychedelic murals of the Electric Circus, New York's swingiest discotheque, in the East Village. The stimulants are drugs — the Circus is strictly non-alcoholic. The constantly changing colour films projected on ceilings and walls — stretched with jersey stockinette — and flickering strobe lighting give the illusion of being ''turned on''. Note: Although uncredited in the magazine, I believe this to be a photograph of the Electric Circus mural artist 'Louis Delsarte' alongside the model, surrounded by his work, on the stairway to the entrance of the club.
THE SHIRT DRESS, the New York classic stand-by, is softened and romanticised, above, by Donald Brooks in white organza strewn with organza tulips. The wind-blown look was caused by the arrival of of the half-hourly helicopter from John F. Kennedy Airport on the roof of the Pan American building, towering majestically over Park Avenue in the heart f New York. This service, scheduled to connect with Pan Am flights, speeds travel-worn passengers between airport and city centre in minutes.
IMAGE CREDITS & LINKS
All images scanned by Sweet Jane from The Daily Telegraph Magazine, December 8th 1967, from an original editorial by Cherry Twiss, all photographs by Horn/Griner. Hair throughout is by Marc Sinclair of New York, Jewellery by Ken Lane and Sant Angelo, Shoes by David Evans, Golo, Hebert Levine and I. Miller, Stockings by Bewitching, Make-up by Revlon, Gloves and scarves by Sant Angelo, model uncredited. You can view one of my previous posts which featured the Electric Circus as the backdrop to a fashion shoot here and you'll discover more about it's creator Jerry Brandt here, and also on The Bowery Boys: New York City History blog here, there are several posts about the club on the excellent ''It's All The Streets You Crossed Not So Long Ago' blog as well as 'what can be retrieved from the Grateful Dead's weekend at the Electric Circus and an attempt to look at the club itself' here. Discover further information about 'Louis Delsarte' the artist who painted the murals inside the club and on the stairway featured in the photograph above on his website. Another iconic and long lost St Marks Place landmark in the form of the Limbo St Marks boutique "the East Village clothier of the 'tuned-in' generation." here, And finally, some rare psychedelic footage filmed inside the Electric Circus club here.