Elle Fanning’s Royal Women’s Dresses in ‘The Great’ References Simone Rocha, Cecilie Bahnsen and Lacroix of the 90s
Warning: Vandals for episodes one through three of ‘The Great’ season two, below.
“Do you like what I wear to the coronation?”, Catherine asked (Elle Fanning) for an admiring group of Russian imperial empresses in Hulu season two”Wonderful thing. “After witnessing the lavish ceremony of the newly crowned Queen, the ladies now feel inspired and invigorated to pursue an education they were previously denied.
In creator Tony McNamara’s modern cruel and irreverent interpretation of the early reign of Russia’s longest-ruling female monarch, Catherine the GreatThis moment teaches you a lesson from history books: Fashion is a powerful tool to help inspire change.
Catherine (Elle Fanning) in a coronation dress.
Photo: Gareth Gatrell / Courtesy of Hulu
Born in Prussia to German royalty, Catherine the Great truly established the style of Russian royal dress to distinguish it from the French and Western European fashions favored by the court. With fashion as a soft power, the Queen showed her national pride and connected with the Russian people by wearing traditional Russian clothes, like rural folk costumes – sarafan – back to style.
In “The Great,” Catherine uses her coronation dress to reach her new audiences directly, changing the story of the “mail-order bride” to German (according to husband Peter, due to Nicholas Hoult) and send messages about modernity and change.
“Fuck. We actually banned most of those fabrics – I think you’re bringing Russia into the future, not grandma’s house,” snapped Peter, now banished to the other wing of the palace, when he crowned her.
Peter (Nicholas Hoult, right) says, when planning the pair’s unique coordinated outfits.
Photo: Gareth Gatrell / Courtesy of Hulu
Season two costume designer Sharon Long Start by studying the historically recorded robes of Catherine the Great, traditional Russian dress, and gold textiles for a period-appropriate background. “It was just a very slow process with a lot of research and looking at how you can subvert that sarafan and give it a contemporary feel because she has to appeal to the Russian people,” she said.
Enjoying the freedom that is not the era (also evidenced by the delightfully pungent contemporary vernacular), Long looks to the 90s era Christian Lacroix and even more spectacular runway finalists “aughties.”
“That’s what she’s doing as Catherine the Great, in the modern sense,” she said. “We all had to gasp when Elle walked into the set. We wanted to feel like it was an incredible outfit.” Huzzah!
Catherine inspired the young women of the court through her maternity fashion.
Photo: Gareth Gatrell / Courtesy of Hulu
Officially ruling Russia and enacting change isn’t the only new phase for Catherine in the new season: She’s also pregnant with the royal heir. So her outfit is now related to the late 1700s-ish maternity wear.
“[The pregnancy] took her in a slightly different direction and gave us some gravity,” Long said. She is still a young queen and she has a certain amount of power, but she is practical and appears like an idealist, and should look a little different from the rest of the court. . “
However, it was “quite difficult in the 18th century to get pregnant”: Long points out that maternity dresses existed during that period, but didn’t quite translate to the camera or Fanning, so she She has turned to inspiration from contemporary designers known for their volume and edgy retouchers taking on classic silhouettes, such as Simone Rocha and Cecilie Bahnsen, plus the 50s era Pierre Balmain.
“We use really nice silks and keep it so light and foamy,” she says.
Sadly for Fanning’s level of comfort, pregnant women in the 18th century continued to wear corsets, only special types.
In episode three, Catherine, energized by the thought of enacting her progressive policies (and by some lavender powder, which she snorted), did an all-night planning session. with your group. She is so enthusiastic, she hasn’t changed her clothes at home, by 2021 her eyes look like a chic fuchsia robe, an Instagram-ready crop top and low-rise trousers. The shirt was formerly based on the banyan tree, a robe worn in 18th-century Europe influenced by the Japanese Kimono. In real life, Catherine the Great lived lavishly in her royal room filled with banyan trees, while writing letters to her good friend Voltaire and other French philosophers.
“She spent a lot of time dressing comfortably,” says Long. “We really wanted to recommend the corset because it was a corset for women, with straps on the sides. People were already wearing them.”
The film also highlights Catherine’s excitement for her prolific plans: “She surprises and attracts people and demands their attention, and she hardly wears any clothes. any clothes. It just adds to the humor of the situation and the madness, really.”
Peter (Nicholas Hoult, second from left) fights his wife’s coup in a faux leopard coat and yellow denim pants.
Photo: Gareth Gatrell / Courtesy of Hulu
With Catherine currently “improving Russia”, Peter can focus on “improving himself”, as he seriously puts it with delightful self-discipline. Even in the opening scenes, when his wife’s coup takes place in the palace, he throws back wine and gourmet canapés with his dependent co-stars.
“He’s still pompous and hedonistic, and his clothes aren’t needy,” says Long.
Playing the violin (but pretty badly), Peter tries to wait for a stylistic revolution: a fur vest, topped with a subtle leopard print, his signature layered pearls, and leather-like denim pants metal (above), inspired by a vintage photograph by British Musician Yusuf Islam (later Cat Stevens).
“There’s a brilliant ’70s photo of him in what looks like the metallic gold jeans we’ve worn on Nick and a fur collared coat,” says Long. “So we mixed up ’70s rock star references, fur-collared coats with a few pictures of the original jackets at the time. Nick pointed love all the fur coats.” (Long points out that it’s all fake.)
Royal brother Grigor (Gwilym Lee) and Peter, in their dead animal coat, attempt to rough it in the summer cottage during Catherine’s coup.
Photo: Gareth Gatrell / Courtesy of Hulu
In addition to literally reflecting Peter’s tendency to be a “damn animal” (as Catherine puts it) through a series of cat-themed prints, Long also uses artwork to convey the other hobbies and interests of the unemployed monarch.
In episode one, he stays warm in a trimmed faux fur coat (above) with parts of a hunting painting, featuring “dead pheasants” by 17th-century Dutch artist Jan Weenix painted Digital printing on linen. “This jacket basically has a dead animal carcass on it,” says Long. (Musical track.) At the end of the season, Peter wears a velvet vest decorated with the panel “Still Life with Ham, Lobster and Fruit,” by Jan Davidsz de Heem, circa 1653.” Food, and his love of it, is very important to his personality,” Long said. Touché (or “toosh”, as Peter used to say.)
Peter’s 18th century rock star aesthetic evolved in a very modern way, giving Harry Styles mind. “We’ve got some more cumbersome details. We’ve got some transparency,” Long said. “Peter is really comfortable with who he is. He wears his heart on his sleeve, really.”
As Catherine begins her history-making dynasty in imperial Russia, and navigates co-parenting with exiled Peter at home, her wardrobe continues its journey with her.
“As the episodes evolved, she wore slightly larger models,” says Long. “Is she [pregnancy develops], she looks bolder – and stronger. “
Season two of ‘The Great’ stream on Hulu on Friday, November 19
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