Taking to the red carpet with a dream – and an agenda...
EMMA STONE AND RUTH NEGGA’S stunning dresses; Moonlight almost being robbed of a moment of much deserved glory on stage; Dolce & Gabbana’s model-free catwalk extravaganza at Milan Fashion Week – who knew Noel Gallagher’s teenager Anais had such swagger? – we haven’t had a shortage of things to talk about in fashion this week.
I must admit, I had to take a rain-check from Instagram in the midst of it all, for fear of getting nothing done all weekend. I could have happily skipped three piles of laundry for a Sunday night on the couch stalking red carpet television but rather luckily the time difference never allowed for it. Then an early Monday morning start on a fashion set in rural Kildare, with dodgy reception all day, meant I didn’t catch all the glitzy coverage until my return home.
On a rainy Monday evening, I watched the ceremony back. Who bagged the honour of dressing Stone in the end? Who was the brainchild behind Dakota Johnson’s high-necked Gucci Grecian-inspired number? Who sold the idea of a custom-made chantilly lace red Valentino gown to Negga? More importantly, why did it feel much more about highly-charged political statements than style this year?
Emma Stone accepting her Oscar for best actress in La La Land in a fringed gold Givenchy gown wearing a gold pin in support of Planned Parenthood. Ruth Negga graciously smiling sporting a blue pin across her crimson breast. Karlie Kloss shimmering in a cream caped Stella McCartney gown protesting America’s new travel ban with the same colour ribbon attached to her waist.
Dozens of others joined them. Costume designer Colleen Atwood wore a bright turquoise pin, safeguarding the rights of marginalised communities. Star of movie Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda accompanied his mother in matching monochrome colours with the bold blue ribbons pinned on their left shoulders. Dakota Johnson switched it up, wearing the gold ribbon on her handbag instead of her gown. Even the stylists who spent months planning and preparing for the night joined in on the conversation, taking the limelight away from their work. ‘The accessory I’m most proud of’, Ruth Negga’s stylist Karla Welch posted after instagramming a picture of the actress’s ribbon.
The red carpet has grown from a frivolous sideshow into an event in its own right. Twenty years ago actresses dressed themselves and the big-brand impact of pre-ceremony hardly existed. Today, in a culture where the right Oscars ensemble can land lucrative ad campaigns, boost earnings and promote magazine covers, it’s refreshing to see stars take risks and use the carpet to announce hardline stances on issues such as transgender rights, racism and immigration.
The red carpet has grown from a sideshow to an event in its own right