In the Labyrinth

How to Be Elegant in a Time of Pandemic....

 

Because this is so much more beautiful, poised, and calm,

in the next pandemic, I will strive for loveliness.

 

 

 

 

Jack and Jill of the Green

I have recently come across a host of wonderful green images of spring -- a rarity in this desert to be treasured. It reminds of more northern places, where rhubarb leaves unfurl through spring snow, lambs gambol in wet green fields, and the air itself is heavy with dew and rain, and earthly scents. So here is an 18th century bodice fit for Titania, Queen of the Fairies, and splendid images from photographer Morgan Silk of Jack and Jill of the Green.   

Visual Nutrition: Finding the Satyrs of The Innamorati

Every time I work on a book, I spend almost as much time looking for evocative images as I do the right word or phrase. I never know exactly where I will find them -- though heaven knows, Pinterest has provided me with much joy recently. And I now keep all the found images from my past (when I used to spend the day collecting xeroxes from the Art section of the University Library) and the newer ones now available in internet searches on my pinterest boards, instead of yellowing and cracking on my bulletin board. (See the full photograph of this pair here.)

Here are two favorites -- These were part of an article on a fashion shoot, photographed by Annie Leibovitz and featuring a young designer, Matthew Barney who created a myth-inspired event with these remarkable satyrs. The first time I saw them, I had only just finished introducing the satyrs in my novel of 16th century Italy, The Innamorati, and my head and heart jolted at the familiarity of what I had written and what I was seeing in a fashion magazine in a doctor's waiting room. Here's how they first appeared in the novel when the young heroine Zizola discovers herself pulled into the thickets of the great maze and carried away by a rough crew of satyrs:

 "...Her head was bouncing up and down, but she couldn't help noticing that the abductor was only partially man, naked to the waist and flocked with patches of light brown hair. Below the small of his back the smooth skin became a pelt of shaggy brown fur. A short, scraggly tail flicked with excitement and two long spindly legs terminatng in black hooves cut deep grooves in the dirt as he ran...Following close behind her captor were three other creatures, prepared Zizola thought, to relive this one if she prove too heavy. Their faces were squat and ugly, with protruding wide brows that hung like balconies over their deep-set yellow eyes. Horns burst through the skin of their forehead and curled back over short manes of thick hair. Their noses were lumpy and their lips were thick and red..."

 

Only later, when the satyrs at last put her down, kicking and complaining and very afraid of them, does Zizola realize that their intention is not to harm her, but to care for and protect her -- an unexpected opportunity for a girl who has grown up in poverty on the streets of Labyrinto. What was fearsome about them, becomes comforting as she is drawn into the wildness of the maze. 

"They gathered around her, their bodies close and pressing. She felt the warm breath of one on the nape of her neck, the touch of another on her hair. Even the one she had scratched caressed her shoulder. The largest satyr took her hand and turning it over, kissed the palm. He looked down, his yellow eyes gazing at her from beneath heavy brows...For all their wildness, their hands were soft. She was captivated by the ivory sheen of their curling horns and the pomegranate redness of their lips. Even their musky scent had a certain forest charm to it that she found more tolerable than the sour breath of drunks in the street. "

Fiction and Family Meet At the Bon Marche

Quite a while ago I wrote about attending a conference in which one of the novels we were discussing was Emil Zola's terrific novel, Au Bonheur Des Dames (The Ladies Delight.) The novel, set in the late 1860's, centers on the invention of the department store (based on the historical store Bon Marché in Paris). The owner Mouret -- a scoundrel and womanizer -- is also a creative genius, gathering together all the different trades under one roof, creating "departments" and then using price incentives, advertising, and spectacular displays (worthy of Alexander McQueen) to draw women from all the classes ("democratizing luxury") into the store to shop in a sensual frenzy. The novel lingers on some of the most sensual and textural imagery -- with sumptuous passages -- which can be read here in my previous post. 

I love the novel -- and so you can imagine my utter astonishment when I discovered this bit of family connection to Bon Marché -- which could have easily, easily been one of the narrative threads of Zola's novel! This was written in a memoir by my great-great uncle, the Rev. Francois Marie Menager, S. J. in the summer of 1964 about his grandfather Alcindor Parfait Le Provost, the father of his mother Henriette Provost. 

"Grandpere Provost came from a wealthy family of Normandy. Most of his male relative were lawyers or teachers. His parents had eleven children and Mme Le Provost was provided for as his father was a successful lawyer and notary. His father was very generous to his friends and always ready to help them. He lent them quite a deal of money without being too careful about promissory notes. When he was about 50, he died suddenly. His widow and children found themselves practically ruined. All the debts were paid by the valiant widow, but the little money that was left was hardly enough to support the family. Then, the oldest of the children, my grandfather (Alcindor) Le Provost who was then about twenty years old, decided to go to Paris to make  his fortune. He was bent on pulling his mother, brothers, and sisters out of their misery.

"When he got to Paris, he took a humble job as a clerk at the famous and original Bon Marché, a very successful store of general merchandise and of clothing. Grandpere Le Provost got interested in different sorts of cloth fabric. He studied and experimented a great deal for two to three years until one day he brought out a special cloth of his own invention calling it "English Broad Cloth." I believe that through the help of some of the kind officials of the Bon Marche, his cloth was brought to the attention of the public and it became a great success. Within a few years, he became a millionaire. He generously provided for his mother and his brothers and sisters. Through clever speculation he managed not only to keep his money but also increased his fortune substantially. He was a keen business man, making excellent deals and became one of the most successful Capitalists in Paris. When about 27 years of age, he married Mlle Menard -- one of the loveliest women in Paris. Their marriage was blessed with four children: two boys, Edouard and Ernest and two girls, Marie and Henriette." 

How perfectly wonderful, and what serendipity it is to learn, that after spending three days steeped in discussing Zola's novel -- everything from the style of writing, to its ideas on commerce, money, business, luxury, the cloth industry, the rise and fall of fortunes, speculation, and the opportunity in a world that had not previously seen such -- to acquire wealth through hard work and entrepreneurial verve. Cool.  

I Need To Stand Up Straighter

Especially when I write. The ciagrette is a dramatic touch too. Honestly, forget the bunny slippers, last night's t-shirt, and sleepy face washed out in the blue light of the computer screen. This look is to die for and even if the novel doesn't sell...well, I would still be awesome.

*with apologies and much admiration to the great Maria Callas.

A Moment of Dress-Lust

For this beautiful, hand embroidered, silk 1940's cocktail dress -- currently housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which I guess  makes a lot of sense. Still...it does inspire.

 

Trajes Tipicos Mexicanos: Vintage Mexican Paper Dolls

I found these beauties sorting through yet another still-packed box in the garage. I was given these Mexican paper dolls when I was quite young and have fond memories of spending hours studying their regional costumes. One folded the arms behind the back, creating a cone shaped figure and then slid the ends of the shawls into a slot in the front of the dress (see last picture). I always played with them unfolded however, because one could see more of the clothes and I loved the details of their dress.

 

 I have scanned all fifteen of them and created a gallery for them, which you can find in the right sidebar. Perhaps this year I will finally find a way to frame them altogether.