Clare West (costume designer)

Clare West born Clara Belle Smith (May 10, 1889 in Missouri - died August 1, 1980 Ontario, California with some sources stating she was born 30 January 1879 and dying 13 March 1961)[1] was one of the first costume designers in Hollywood.[2] She did notable work in the films of D.W. Griffith and Cecil B. DeMille. Recognising the importance of film costume in haute couture, some regard her as a predecessor in the American Look.[3]

West in second row, seated, at far left

Career
"Octopus gown" designed by West and worn by Bebe Daniels in The Affairs of Anatol (1921)

West began her career spending two years designing costumes for Intolerance (released 1916) in collaboration with French designer Paul Iribe.[4] The Babylonian costumes of the film were believed to have inspired fashion trends with an April 1917 Photoplay article entitled "Back to Babylon for New Fashions".[5] West's impressive work led her to be given the title of "Studio Designer" at Triangle Film Corporation.[6] Intolerance was believed to be the first Hollywood film to feature costumes designed for every cast member, including extras.[7]

West went straight into Griffith's The Birth of a Nation (1915) with her designs for more cinematic Ku Klux Klan costumes inspiring the current dress of the KKK.[8]

West went into a ten film collaboration with Cecil B. DeMille where the producer/director stated "I want clothes that will make people gasp when they see them...don't design anything anybody could possibly buy in a store"[9]

In 1923 West was contracted to Norma Talmadge and Constance Talmadge who played the "Mountain Girl" in Intolerance.[10]

West's final film was DeMille's The Road to Yesterday (1925).

Post Hollywood

West opened a dress salon in Los Angeles in 1925 which did not remain open for long. A 1930 census listed her as a department store dress designer and living in a boarding house. A 1940 census listed her as a designer for Patricia Perkins Inc.

She died of a heart attack.

Personal life

West married Otis Oscar Hunley on August 24, 1898, had one child Maxwell Otis Hunley, then divorced in 1902. In 1903 West married Marshall Elmer Carriere, had three sons and divorced around 1912. Despite studio hype of her having studied fashion in New York and Paris there is no evidence of formal studies in either location, though DeMille sent here to Paris to research and purchase materiel for his The Ten Commandments (1923). In 1920 she married cinematographer Paul P. Perry but were divorced in 1922. She never married again.[11][12]

West was inducted into the Costume Designers Guild Hall of Fame in 2003.

Filmography
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References
  1. https://wfpp.cdrs.columbia.edu/pioneer/ccp-clare-west/
  2. p.181 Benstock, Shari & Ferriss, Suzanne On Fashion Rutgers University Press, 1994
  3. p.9 Munich, Adrienne Fashion in Film Indiana University Press, 2011
  4. p.152 Benstock, Shari & Ferriss, Suzanne On Fashion Rutgers University Press, 1994
  5. p. 162 Lohmann, Christoph K. Discovering Difference: Contemporary Essays in American Culture Indiana University Press, 1993
  6. McLean, Adrienne L. Costume, Makeup, and Hair Rutgers University Press, 7 Oct. 2016
  7. http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/art-and-design/seams-dreams-the-hands-behind-classic-hollywood-costumes-20141215-127per.html
  8. https://newrepublic.com/article/127242/klan-got-hood
  9. p. 68 Butchart, Amber Jane The Fashion of Film: How Cinema has Inspired Fashion Hachette UK, 8 Sep. 2016
  10. p. 124 Leese, Elizabeth Costume Design in the Movies: An Illustrated Guide to the Work of 157 Great Designers Courier Corporation, 1991
  11. Jorgensen, Jay & Scoggins, Donald L. Creating the Illusion (Turner Classic Movies): A Fashionable History of Hollywood Costume Designers Hachette UK, 6 Oct. 2015
  12. p. 219 Foote, Lisle Buster Keaton's Crew: The Team Behind His Silent Films McFarland, 31 Oct. 2014
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