Fashion Fair at MAG brings eye-popping ensembles
For Delores Jackson Radney, the Ebony Fashion Fair was an affair to remember.
Growing up in Buffalo, she looked forward to attending the traveling fashion show that would make its way to her hometown annually. It was the one place where women who looked like her strutted the runway.
“It was a glorious event for me, my sister, my mom and my aunties,” recalls Radney, 59, who now lives in the 19th Ward. “It was an event for all the women in my family.”
Radney and many other fans of the Ebony Fashion Fair will be able to take a trip down memory lane at the new Memorial Art Gallery exhibit "Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair."
Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent and Oscar de la Renta are just some of the famous designers whose fashion creations were selected for the fair, a traveling spectacular that ran from 1959 to 2009 and helped redefine the concepts of empowerment, pride and achievement for African-Americans.
The show, which runs through April 24, brings together 40 styles, from haute couture to casual. The MAG is the only Northeast venue for the show, which is in the midst of a national tour.
The exhibit also honors the inspirational woman behind the fair, Eunice Johnson. She was an executive at Johnson Publishing, which was known for publications Ebony and Jet that celebrate black success, said Marie Via, director of exhibitions at the MAG. Johnson took over as producer and director in 1963 as the traveling show gained new audiences. Show organizers overcame racial prejudice to bring fashion to people eager to see a new black America.
During Johnson's tenure, the Ebony Fashion Fair helped raise millions for charity — and the profile of Johnson Publishing Co. By the time of Johnson's death in 2010, Ebony had achieved a readership of 1.25 million people.
"Inspiring Beauty" features the era's most celebrated designers alongside black designers, because Johnson wanted the same fashions to be accessible to black women, Via said.
A dress with the silhouette of a shower head cascading down the back was designed by Karl Lagerfield in 1983, creating evening wear with a sense of humor.
There’s the tightly fitted yellow and black flamenco dress by Emanuel Ungaro from 1987 with a Spanish flair and plenty of ruffles.
Many of the outfits were aspirational, inspiring women to aim for creative couture looks. While the Ebony shows touted the latest and greatest in designer garbs, Eunice Johnson’s personal style was professional, and a royal blue dress from her wardrobe is included in the show.
“She was a business woman,” Via said. The conservative blue dress “was her aesthetic.”
"Inspiring Beauty: 50 Years of Ebony Fashion Fair" was developed by the Chicago History Museum in cooperation with Johnson Publishing Company. The exhibit has three segments — vision, innovation and power, with ensembles illustrating the themes.
The city of Rochester is one of many community and government sponsors that helped bring the show to Rochester. The city's sponsorship will support free admission on three Saturday mornings: Feb. 6, March 5 and April 2, as well as all day during Black History Month Family Day on Sunday, Feb. 21. The Black History Month Family Day will also showcase tours of the collection, musical performances and hands-on activities for families.
“This dazzling and vibrant exhibit offers a unique view on black history and demonstrates how beauty and fashion can be an inspirational force for positive social change,” Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren said in a statement. “I am especially pleased that it will be here during Black History Month. I encourage everyone to experience it for themselves.”
Warren is also hosting a formal event at the MAG titled Empowering Young Women: The Mayor’s Red Carpet Affair for 200 young women to meet accomplished women in the Rochester community. The goal is for these future leaders to meet current leaders from a variety of professions in an elegant setting and hear how they became successful and what "Inspiring Beauty" means to them. To attend, the young women submitted essays on the topic of “What Inspiring Beauty Means to Me."
“I want the young women of Rochester to know their dreams have no limitations. The Ebony Fashion Fair exhibition provides a perfect setting to inspire these young women to dream big while they meet women who have actually accomplished their dreams,” Warren said.
Rochester resident Carolyn Haygood, 56, said the Ebony Fashion Fair pushed her as a young woman to explore the fashion field. In her youth, she modeled for local retailers such as B. Forman and McCurdy's and worked with her mom on patterns to sew outfits.
“It was a good influence for me,” Haygood said.
Radney attended the Ebony Fashion Fair shows in the 1960s through the 1970s. Back then, there were no women of color featured in magazines. (Iman and Beverly Johnson did not come on the scene until the mid 1970s.)
“The role models were people in our community,” Radney said, explaining that fashion inspirations for black women came from church and family gatherings where women get dressed up.
“Ebony Fashion Fair took it to a whole new level,” she said. That’s a major event for black women to see what’s in vogue on the runway around the globe.
Radney is welcoming that glamour back to the community with the traveling exhibit. She a co-chair of the Inspiring Beauty Gala at the Memorial Art Gallery on Saturday, April 2. There are other events, too, such as Gospel Brunch by Brown Hound Downtown at Memorial Art Gallery and a sale of fashions by local African designer Nita Brown under the brand MansaWear.
Yes, it’s been a long time since she’s seen Ebony Fashion Fair, Radney says. She is excited about the arrival of the "Inspiring Beauty" exhibit as it will conjure up many memories. But most of all, she is looking forward to inviting her mother Carlene Jackson to the MAG exhibit for a day on the town, just like the old days.
MCHAO@Gannett.com
Inspiring Beauty: 50 years of Ebony Fashion Fair
When: Jan. 31 through April 24. The museum is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday; 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays.
Where: Memorial Art Gallery, 500 University Ave.
Information: For ticket prices and details on special events, call (585) 276-8900 or go to mag.rochester.edu.
Special events
The MAG has scheduled a variety of special events through the duration of the exhibit. Find full details at mag.rochester.edu. Some highlights:
Sunday, Jan. 31 at 2 p.m.: Lecture by "Inspiring Beauty" curators Joy L. Bivins, of the Chicago History Museum, and Virginia Heaven at Columbia College in Chicago.
Sunday, Feb. 21 from noon to 5 p.m.: Black History Month Family Day features hands-on arts activities, dance demonstrations, music and cultural displays. Suggested donation is $5 per family.
Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 5:30 p.m.: "Be the Canvas: Explore Your Personal Style at the MAG." The $100 ticket includes a talk by Emmy Award-winning fashion stylist David Zyla, admission to the exhibit, a reception and a copy of Zyla's book.
Sunday, Feb. 28 at 3 p.m.: "A Nostalgic Look Back at Ebony Fashion Fair," a panel discussion moderated by WHEC Channel 10 news anchor Janet Lomax.
Saturday, April 2 at 2 p.m.: Talk by Cheetah Girls author and model Deborah Gregory.
Saturday, April 2 at 8 p.m.: Inspiring Beauty Gala.
Gospel brunches: On select Sundays, brunch will be served by the MAG’s new café, Brown Hound Downtown from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Sales events: The Gallery Store will feature clothing, jewelry and accessories by regional designers, gifts inspired by the exhibition and books that explore the art of fashion.
Classes and camps: Creative Workshop will offer fashion-related art and art history classes, as well as a teen fashion camp that meets during spring break week, March 28 through April 1. The gallery will be open on Monday and Tuesday for both school breaks in February and spring. Kids up to age 18 will receive free admission when accompanied by a paying adult.