Monday, June 9, 2008

Brides and Genteel De-Cake

I’m not a fan of wedding clothes, or, well, elaborate weddings, as I’ve written here in the past.

(I got married quietly in a fitted black Willi Smith tuxedo jacket worn as a dress.) There was never any paging through bridal magazines, no imaginings of a white, frothy day.

Truth be told, wedding visuals are a tad too “perfect” for me, because I like a genteel-y decaying edge.

Perhaps I’m a postmodern Miss Havisham, but I’m drawn to tattered lace, peeling white paint on romantic shutters, and three-day-old cake, preferably with the frosting flowers starting to melt down the sides.

But don’t say “shabby chic,” because that’s too commercial; indeed, too designed.

Genteel decay is, to my mind, the savvier cousin to genteel poverty: there’s no implication of a ruptured cash flow, there’s instead the sense of preservation—of lovingly wearing or using something time and again. (And only the gâteau has an expiration date.)

So when I saw "Ryman's Brides" by Marlene Dumas, a South African painter, in W magazine, I was intrigued, then smitten. I like its moody lack of clarity, its haunting bridal features, and its splotchy icing-sugar dresses.

Anyone for day-after cake?

7 comments:

Elizabeth said...

I'm with you. Perfection always bothered me.

riz said...

Haven't checked out the latest W but I will...
so very McQueen-ish methinks... I can't stand wedding attire either!

Anonymous said...

Day after cake? Yum ;P

P.S. I did the crazy white wedding with husband #1. Toned it down with husband #2. (All before the age of 30, mind you!)

Imelda Matt - The Despotic Queen of Shoes said...

Only if the icing has hardened. There's something confusing and dark about this picture. Perfect because I'm heading home this weekend for a wedding!

Carla said...

Your description of genteel decay is delightful. Wow!

Kelly said...

genteel decay. Perfect description.

Mary-Laure said...

Great post!
Miss Havisham is one of best characters in literature - I am a Dickens lover and worshiper.
I so very agree with you about how tiresome those frothy cliched wedddings are...