FOUNDATIONS REVEALED COMPETITION ENTRY
Prince Donkeyskin
(click images to to enlarge)
Other Credits
Roberta Cillotto (painter); Claudia Tempesta (photographer)
Outline the story …
One of my favourite fairytales, that I remember I read when I was in my late years in primary school, was “Donkeyskin” by Charles Perrault, first published by him in 1694 but with some oral versions dating back to the 16th - 17th century
In the story, a dying queen makes his husband promise not to marry except to a woman whose beauty and attributes equalled hers, only to find that the only woman is her daughter.
The princess ask her fairy godmother for help, who suggests asking for impossible conditions like a dress as bright as the sun, a dress the colors of the moon, a dress all the colors of the sky, and finally, the hide of a magic donkey who made gold instead of manure - which is not a dress but gives the name to the story). A ring and a cake also have important roles.
I decided to use Donkeyskin and his three dresses for the competition so I could finally unleash all my fantasies about them. I made only two changes: I switched Donkeyskin from a princess to a prince (because I usually saw for myself) and I mixed the three dresses into one (plus the - fake - donkeyskin).
While researching for details about the story, I discovered that 7 years old king Louis XIV (le Roi Soleil – the Sun King) couldn't sleep if his nanny told him Donkeyskin, so I included a bit of him into the design.
Outline the construction…
I started from a 18th jacket and waistcoat pattern that I already used for other works, which dates from the period that I was an intern / theatre undergraduate in Venice.nThe jacket represents the sky dress, made of a light blue moiré cotton where I hand sewn the embroidery on the front panels, the cuffs and the fake pockets closures.
The vest mixes the sun and the moon dresses, made of two different fabric: the black dotted one for the moon and the gold flamboyant damask one for the sun. The drawing on the vest represents Louis XIV's sun emblem, half painted white on black as the moon by me and half painted gold and red as the sun by Roberta Cillotto. The lower part of the vest has the same embroidery as the jacket. Both the jacket and the vest are interlined with a layer of a mockup cotton known as “carta scena” and a white old heavy cotton bedcloth (like 30-40 years old).
I made the shirt and the jabot a few years back. I bought the “carta scena”, the fake "donkeyskin" fur, the trousers and the stockings. All the structural stitching was done by machine, while all the borders and decorative parts (cuffs and pockets too) and the seams closure are done by hand. I'm also wearing a ring, belonging to my mother, because it has an important role in the story.
Such a creative interpretation of this fairy tale…which is one of my favorites as well. I like it!
Thanks 🙂
Very dapper
Thanks 🙂
Amazing job of blending all those aspects of the story together. Beautiful work.
I tried 🙂 Thanks 🙂
Lots of ideas and details in that outfit! Love it♡
Thanks 🙂
This fairytale is a favourite of mine, and I love your interpretation of it, and the way you blended all the elements of the different dresses together! Also the story about King Louis XIV as a child is so funny! It was a nice idea to incorporate his image into your outfit too, well done!
I don’t know this tale at all but I like your description and the end result is lovely. I particularly like the art combination on the waistcoat and the coat pocket flaps!