the Lumier reading salon
INIVA x Desire Green
Lumiere Reading Salon is inspired by Josephine Baker, who found freedom of expression in the form of dance and performance. Artist Jade Montserrat explored baker's creative offerings, and her advocacy for black people within a series of watercolours and also performance.
"The extraordinarily successful black dancer Josephine Baker, though performing in Paris during the height of the Renaissance, was a major fashion trendsetter for black and white women alike.
"Her gowns from the couturier Jean Patou were much copied, especially her stage costumes, which Vogue magazine called "startling." Josephine Baker is also credited for highlighting the "art deco" fashion era."
As research for her paintings Jade Montserrat photographed herself as Josephine Baker (1906 - 1975), the celebrated African-American born performer and civil rights activist. Based in France, she was famous for her semi-nude performances at the French cabaret hall the Folies Bergère. Montserrat adopts Baker’s bodily poses, interested in how she enabled control of her physical presence and persona, the representations and possible manipulations of her body and her unapologetic quest for equality and freedom.
Inspiration for the reading salon
"At that time women had powerful influence over the salon. Women were the center of life in the salon and carried very important roles as regulators. They could select their guests and decide the subjects of their meetings. These subjects could be social, literary, or political topics of the time. They also served as mediators by directing the discussion.
The salon was an informal education for women, where they were able to exchange ideas, receive and give criticism, read their own works and hear the works and ideas of other intellectuals. Many ambitious women used the salon to pursue a form of higher education"
- French salon culture, enlightenment period
"It’s likely that Hurston’s vision for a Southern sanctuary for Black artists was inspired by The Dark Tower, Walker’s literary salon and an urban utopia for creators, benefactors, performers, and intellectuals to connect."
Jamia Wilson, the publisher of the Feminist Press
The league of coloured people
Contemporary
Inspiration
Contextualising the post-modern 20s: Contemporary Black Fashion
Desire Green
Lumiere collection
#BLACKINSTAGRAM
Tennis Chic: 1920s Silhouette
Suzanne Lenglen in 1926 (Photo: Everett); Alexander Wang Spring 2015 (Photo: Anthea Simms)
"With an average of 1.27 million viewers watching last year’s tournament live over the course of two weeks, the players’ on-court attire resonates with fans and designers..."
"..Their choices also are emblematic of societal changes, according to tennis legend Billie Jean King. From the Victorian era’s corseted tennis requirements for women to the current less-restrictive, body-baring styles, tennis attire is indicative of the freedoms that have been fought for." - WWD
The location
