This essay was originally intended to be a review of the reprint of the cult classic Take Ivy (powerHouse Books), about which in the end I can only say that it was not worth my time (I guess that statement does make this a book review, if a brief one).
Perhaps I am jaded as I was at school in the Ivy League shortly after the original was published and it brought those years back when I saw it. But the joy of that experience was the photography and, sadly, the photos in the new edition are underwhelming. In the authors' defense, they did include the Yale University dress code of the time, and a recommended Ivy League wardrobe, both of which seem to me to be useful today (I found myself checking to make certain I had trousers in the requisite colors). But that was all.
Much more worth while in my opinion is the series CLOSE UP AND PRIVATE, the source of the illustration. CLOSE UP is a visual multi-media project by Sergei Sviatchenko that looks to capture the spirit of modern style, a style that in his interpretation has a lot in common with American trad or prep.
UP CLOSE AND PRIVATE is so named because because it represents Sviatchenko's method of getting up close to the clothes so the focus is exclusively on them, and in a way it is making something public that is usually private. At least, it is private everywhere but here at ASW, where no detail is too small.
Check it out.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Not A Review of Take Ivy
Illustration: Sergei Sviatchenko
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5 comments:
Couldn't agree more Will. I fail to see what all the excitement is about even on blogs I enjoy like The Trad. And I will check out Mr Sviatchenko's book particularly since the fair isle vest is very similar to one I purchased in RL the other day and when fall comes around I plan on wearing it in a combo that bears an uncanny resemblance to the one in his pic.
Whew, and I thought my relative naivete re dress was the source of my disappointment upon reading my brand new copy of Take Ivy! I was but a wee lad when Take Ivy was written, but I'd rather look at Apparel Arts or Esquire drawings for a visual sense of dress than the tourist snaps that make up the Take Ivy Book. I guess I feel like I have been "taken", given the blogospheres build up for publication.
I guess I shall simply remain your faithful reader... and be excited that I have 2 Sam Hober grenadine ties waiting at the post office for me on the way home!
Agree 100% Will. I tried to view Take Ivy through the lens on someone who in 1965 had never seen this country and who'd never thus experienced Trad duds firsthand-from the country of origin. A Japanese kid who in 1965 was dreaming of all things Western and more precisely, Trad, surely loved it. I had to remind myself that we were never the intended audience.
Agreed, Will. I just left a brief comment on ADG's website (before reading yours) saying much the same thing. I actually think most of the Ivy students in the book look very uncouth. I am thinking of donating my copy.
I was under the impression, having not seen a copy firsthand, that the new copy was identical to the original, simply with the Japanese text translated to English. Am I mistaken?
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