Lights, Camera, Auction! : Cosprop and Kerry Taylor Auctions
Helena Bonham Carter's costume from A Room with a View, designed by Jenny Beavan and John Bright. Images courtesy Kerry Taylor Auctions
In Conversation with Kerry Taylor,
Director/Owner, Kerry Taylor Auctions
by CHAD KENNERK
Last year, Bafta & Academy-award winning costumier and designer John Bright invited Kerry Taylor to visit the renowned Cosprop store in London to select costumes for a special charity auction in aid of The Bright Foundation. Cosprop has been owned and managed by Bright since its founding in 1965. The company is known for providing the entertainment industry with authentic, highly-detailed period costumes. Bright and fellow collaborator Jenny Beavan have been nominated six times for the Academy Award for Best Costume Design, winning for A Room with a View, for which they also received a Bafta award.
The 69 lots chosen in Lights, Camera, Auction - Live Cosprop Sale represent iconic roles, actors, and moments from the last 50 years of film history. The motion picture costume designers represented in the sale are a who’s who of the costume world, including Bright, Beavan, Marit Allen, Colleen Atwood, Alexandra Byrne, Milena Canonero, Paco Delgado, Odile Dicks-Mireaux, Sonia Grande, Ray Hughes, Keith Madden, Ruth Myers, Patricia Norris, Michael O'Connor, Janet Patterson, Judy Pepperdine, Anthony Powell, Tom Rand, Penny Rose, and Dien Van Straalen. In total, the film designers represented have garnered some 65 Academy Award nominations and have taken home the Oscar 17 times.
The proceeds of the sale will go to arts-based education charity The Bright Foundation, which provides free access to creative activities, including visual and performing arts, for children and young people facing disadvantage. For nearly 60 years, John Bright has helped bring characters on stage and screen to life, assisting generations of award-winning costume designers in realising their creative visions. Bright shared, “My life’s work has been committed to costume design for film, TV and theatre and I feel incredibly fortunate to have been able to pursue this path. It is my firmly held belief that the arts and creativity can shape happier and healthier children and enable young people to reach their full potential.”
Lights Camera Auction - Live Cosprop Sale is open for bidder registration and the auction takes place 5th March. There’s also an opportunity for buyers of all levels to find a new treasure. To coincide with the main event, an online-only auction is currently running until 10 March, featuring one-of-a-kind experiences, memorabilia and items donated by celebrity ambassadors and supporters of the Bright Foundation. Kerry Taylor Auctions has also announced that they will donate the buyers premium for the sales to The Bright Foundation. In celebration of the upcoming 5th March event, Film Review talks with Kerry Taylor of Kerry Taylor Auctions to learn more about this unique charity auction.
Film Review (FR): What sparked this project and how did it begin?
Kerry Taylor (KT): Cosprop approached me a year ago and invited me to put together a charity auction in aid of The Bright Foundation. I worked my way through their exhibition department and selected about 150 pieces which were whittled down to around 60. There are some pieces John is still very emotionally attached to and couldn't let go.
(FR): Cosprop is known for bringing highly-authentic period costume pieces to the screen and there's no shortage of them here. Do you have any personal favourites among the motion picture costumes?
(KT): I love the Keira Knightly costume from The Duchess, which is designed by Michael O'Connor — a brilliant designer in my view. The whole wardrobe had to be made in a month, but the attention to detail is extraordinary. I can't watch some films and TV programmes if the costumes are wrong. I just can't bear to watch them. Michael won both the Bafta and Academy awards for this film.
(FR): This auction features marvellous pairings of period costumes for modern films like The Duchess, as well as Finding Neverland, Casanova, The King's Speech, The Danish Girl — and the list goes on. It's a unique and lovely approach for an auction.
(KT): I felt that the pairings worked well together visually and for museums and public galleries wishing to display them, it makes more sense.
(FR): The auction also tells a tale of two Emmas — Gwyneth Paltrow's costume designed by Ruth Myers from the 1996 film and Anya Taylor-Joy's costume designed by Alexandra Byrne from the 2020 film.
(KT): I think these two dresses show how far costume design has come. Gwyneth's dress is very simplistic and although reasonably historically accurate, it’s not slavishly so. The pelisse robe and bonnet worn by Anya Taylor-Joy is more of an historic re-creation, with the deep saffron colour being taken from original fabric samples discovered by Alexandra Byrne. She writes, ''I looked at existing period clothes in museums archives, and found incredible colours hidden in seam turnings where there was no fading from daylight." It is beautifully made with lots of hand-finishings.
(FR): In working with John and Cosprop on this sale, what were some of the most interesting ‘behind-the-seams’ stories associated with these pieces?
(KT): Undoubtedly the pink taffeta Christian Dior gown, circa 1955, which was copied for Madonna to wear in Evita. However, having seen the original she refused to wear the copy (luckily for us), which of course increased the value. In this costume, we have a great French couturier, combined with a great performer and a great film. It ticks all of the boxes.
(FR): Nicole Kidman is receiving the AFI Life Achievement Award this spring. This sale includes several costumes from her career, including her iconic roles as Grace Stewart in The Others (costumes designed by Sonia Grande) and as Isabel Archer in The Portrait of a Lady (with costumes designed by Janet Patterson).
(KT): The embroidered muslin bustle gown and bonnet worn in The Portrait of a Lady is a particularly beautiful and opulent costume. It emphasises Nicole's tiny waist to perfection. The dress worn in The Others is John Bright's personal favourite in the entire sale. Mid-1940s in style and of aubergine crepe, he says he loves how this dress emerges from intentionally gloomy dark interiors in the film. She is a brilliant actress and in this sale we showcase two very different roles.
(FR): When picking up his Bafta this year for Oppenheimer, Robert Downey Jr. told the story of his life in 30 seconds, mentioning his two Sherlock Holmes films for director Guy Ritchie. Designer Jenny Beavan wrote, “Robert is very inventive with clothes. I gave him fairly straightforward — if carefully chosen! — clothes and he would wear them upside down and back to front in imaginative ways. It is the teamwork and collaboration with an actor that makes costume design so fun and interesting.”
(KT): Robert Downey Jr. insisted his costumes were made as stretchy as possible as his role was so active, which explains why there is an insert of stretch lycra down the back. He has very set ideas when it comes to his costumes; he gets quite involved.
(FR): Many of the suits in the sale were worn not just for one scene, but throughout most of the film, such as Daniel Radcliffe's costume (designed by Keith Madden) from The Woman in Black and Johnny Depp's costume (designed by Colleen Atwood) from Sleepy Hollow.
(KT): Daniel Radcliffe's wool suit is remarkably small in comparison to other costumes in the exhibition. It's something you don't realise until you see costumes in the flesh. Everyone who sees it comments on it. The Johnny Depp Ichabod Crane costume, although understated, is superb. The tailcoat edges are couched with a strand of silver thread and the interior lining has an embroidered monogrammed inner breast pocket. These are details lost on film viewers, but would have been very evident to the actor and presumably helped him get with his role. These small details are what sets Cosprop apart from other costumiers perhaps. Many of the actors I have spoken to have told me that the excellence of the costumes really helped them get into role and gave them confidence to do so.
(FR): In some cases original period pieces were reworked by the designer for the film costume, such as Margot Robbie's costume from the film Goodbye Christopher Robin.
(KT): There are numerous occasions where antique or vintage pieces were used or re-worked, such as the bodice in A Room with a View, which won designers Jenny Beavan and John Bright both the Academy and Bafta awards for costume design. The elaborate ribbon-work was taken from an Edwardian silk apron. I love this about Cosprop; they use original pieces from their archives to copy, and they also incorporate antique fabrics and trimmings. On occasion they will use an original antique dress.
(FR): There are plenty of memorable and iconic pieces here. Certainly for any 90s kid, the Cinderella gown and Prince Henry costume from Ever After are likely to top the list.
(KT): One of the most popular lots is Lot 1 — the Ever After dress worn by Drew Barrymore. When it was first shown to Drew Barrymore, apparently she was very disappointed by it. It’s hard to imagine that as it is so pretty and so detailed. It seems that every little girl growing up in the 90s now wants to buy it to wear for their wedding dress! I definitely got the estimate of £1000-1500 wrong on that one! I think my estimate will be outstripped in seconds, such is the demand for this piece. Lot 1 will be a battle of the brides. It’s going to go mad!
(FR): In crafting this sale, what was the most important element to get right?
(KT): With this auction, I felt it was important to give a voice to the designers, where possible, and to at least properly acknowledge them. Most auction catalogues concentrate on the actors and the film, but the designers, who bring so much to the movie as a whole, are usually ignored. I wanted to give them credit for the fantastic work they do to turn dreams into a celluloid reality.
(FR): With pieces beloved for their significance on the screen, are you expecting to surpass most of the auction estimates?
(KT): I love the little black dress worn by Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose. It's a very simple dress and perfect for the role of Edith Piaf — and Cotillard was incredible. It has a moderate estimate because it is a relatively simple LBD (little black dress), but it was a great film and launched Cotillard's career. We shall see what happens. It's not until I step onto the rostrum and bring the gavel down that all will be revealed! The sale has attracted huge attention and most of the people wishing to register have never bid in an auction before. It has really captured the public imagination and of course every penny is going to the charity The Bright Foundation.
Learn more about Kerry Taylor Auctions and register for Lights Camera Auction - Live Cosprop Sale
KERRY TAYLOR AUCTIONS specialises in exceptional fashion (both vintage and contemporary), fine antique costume, European, Asian and Islamic textiles. Their name is internationally synonymous with excellence, unparalleled expertise and extraordinary, record-breaking sales. They typically hold five auctions each year – treasure troves for private individuals, collectors, museums and institutions the world over. The biannual Passion for Fashion sales include only the best examples of vintage, haute couture, contemporary show pieces, rare antique costume and luxury accessories, which have earned the auction house a devoted global following. Kerry Taylor Auctions is based in Bermondsey, London, close to the White Cube gallery and the London Fashion & Textile Museum. For more information on Kerry Taylor Auctions and to register for the sale, visit kerrytaylorauctions.com.
