Irene Sharaff(1910-1993)
- Costume Designer
- Costume and Wardrobe Department
- Art Department
Nominated for fifteen Academy Awards, charismatic costumer Irene
Sharaff once declared "you can acquire chic and elegance, but style
itself is a a rare thing" (NY Times, August 17, 1993). During her long
and distinguished career, Sharaff became known as much for her
meticulous attention to detail and her sense of colour as for her
versatility in adapting to many genres and periods. For this, she drew
inspiration from a wide variety of sources, which included
impressionist and post-impressionist painting.
Irene Sharaff received her training from the New York School of Fine
and Applied Arts, the Arts Student League and at La Grande Chaumiere in
Paris. Her first work in the world of fashion was as illustrator for
Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. She then served a two-year apprenticeship as
assistant designer under Aline Bernstein
at the Civic Repertory Theatre Company. Her first own creations
appeared in Broadway by 1932. She also added scenery design to her
portfolio for Eva Le Gallienne's
production of "Alice in Wonderland" (1932) and for the Ballet Russes de
Monte Carlo. Further accolades came her way for her costuming of
Gertrude Lawrence, who played a
fashion designer in "Lady in the Dark". Sharaff was nothing, if not
prolific on Broadway, beginning with the musical revue "As Thousands
Cheer" (1934), for which she created an entire ensemble of sepia-toned
costumes to resemble early rotogravure pictures. Her versatility also
encompassed designing for the American Ballet Theater and the New York
City Ballet. Her private time was spent sculpting and painting.
Sharaff eventually attracted the attention of Hollywood producers.
However, she would only spend a total of four years under contract: at
MGM, for the Arthur Freed unit, between
1943 and 1945; and at RKO from 1946 to 1948. The rest of her time in
Hollywood was strictly free-lance. At MGM, her use of vibrant colours
(she was fond of saying, that she saw everything "in blocks of
colour"), became ideally suited to the new Technicolor process. An
understanding of movement in the design of dresses also became a key
element in her work on musicals. Sharaff did her best designs in the
1950's on
Meet Me in St. Louis (1944),
An American in Paris (1951),
Guys and Dolls (1955) and
The King and I (1956). For the
latter, she created history twice: first, by convincing
Yul Brynner to shave his head; secondly, for
her prodigious use of Thai silk, which created such a stir in the world
of high fashion that the product ended up becoming Thailand's number
one export.
From the late 1950's, Sharaff often alternated work on the same
production for both Broadway and Hollywood, notably
West Side Story (1961)(stage
version, 1964) ,
Flower Drum Song (1961) (stage
version, 1958) and Funny Girl (1968)
(stage version, 1964). She became a favorite costumer of
Elizabeth Taylor, designing in
starkly contrasting styles the bohemian/swinging sixties outfits she
wore in The Sandpiper (1965), her
flowing, ornate renaissance dress in
The Taming of The Shrew (1967)
and, in collaboration with Renié, her opulent
costumes for Cleopatra (1963).
Sharaff once declared "you can acquire chic and elegance, but style
itself is a a rare thing" (NY Times, August 17, 1993). During her long
and distinguished career, Sharaff became known as much for her
meticulous attention to detail and her sense of colour as for her
versatility in adapting to many genres and periods. For this, she drew
inspiration from a wide variety of sources, which included
impressionist and post-impressionist painting.
Irene Sharaff received her training from the New York School of Fine
and Applied Arts, the Arts Student League and at La Grande Chaumiere in
Paris. Her first work in the world of fashion was as illustrator for
Vogue and Harper's Bazaar. She then served a two-year apprenticeship as
assistant designer under Aline Bernstein
at the Civic Repertory Theatre Company. Her first own creations
appeared in Broadway by 1932. She also added scenery design to her
portfolio for Eva Le Gallienne's
production of "Alice in Wonderland" (1932) and for the Ballet Russes de
Monte Carlo. Further accolades came her way for her costuming of
Gertrude Lawrence, who played a
fashion designer in "Lady in the Dark". Sharaff was nothing, if not
prolific on Broadway, beginning with the musical revue "As Thousands
Cheer" (1934), for which she created an entire ensemble of sepia-toned
costumes to resemble early rotogravure pictures. Her versatility also
encompassed designing for the American Ballet Theater and the New York
City Ballet. Her private time was spent sculpting and painting.
Sharaff eventually attracted the attention of Hollywood producers.
However, she would only spend a total of four years under contract: at
MGM, for the Arthur Freed unit, between
1943 and 1945; and at RKO from 1946 to 1948. The rest of her time in
Hollywood was strictly free-lance. At MGM, her use of vibrant colours
(she was fond of saying, that she saw everything "in blocks of
colour"), became ideally suited to the new Technicolor process. An
understanding of movement in the design of dresses also became a key
element in her work on musicals. Sharaff did her best designs in the
1950's on
Meet Me in St. Louis (1944),
An American in Paris (1951),
Guys and Dolls (1955) and
The King and I (1956). For the
latter, she created history twice: first, by convincing
Yul Brynner to shave his head; secondly, for
her prodigious use of Thai silk, which created such a stir in the world
of high fashion that the product ended up becoming Thailand's number
one export.
From the late 1950's, Sharaff often alternated work on the same
production for both Broadway and Hollywood, notably
West Side Story (1961)(stage
version, 1964) ,
Flower Drum Song (1961) (stage
version, 1958) and Funny Girl (1968)
(stage version, 1964). She became a favorite costumer of
Elizabeth Taylor, designing in
starkly contrasting styles the bohemian/swinging sixties outfits she
wore in The Sandpiper (1965), her
flowing, ornate renaissance dress in
The Taming of The Shrew (1967)
and, in collaboration with Renié, her opulent
costumes for Cleopatra (1963).