The word 'eccentric' should be examined - if not, re-examined. Appearance alone does not an eccentric make but instead, knowledge, individuality, poise, bearing, daring and a sense of, as the poet WB Yeats wrote, 'What is past, passing, or to come.'
Not all designers are visionaries although, of course, many are. They address the past to better understand the present - and future. Fancifully, it might seem, that talented creators have been even asked (or told) that they must do what they, well...must do. Naturally, timing is all, the time of birth is all, the response to the situation of their creating - guided by Time...Is all. But is it always necessary that every drop of the juice of joy of creativity must be drained to have fashion editors weep into their kerchiefs and head back to the office to write rave reviews? What happened to playfulness, fun and games, imagination? Rhodes knows...She doesn't just wear her heart on her sleeve.
Zandra Rhodes is nothing short of a divine maverick and yet, constant within and because of this. One might say that people are born at the right or wrong time but to make time their own with their feeling and power of expression is a kind of genius. Often, the power of sensuality is easily overlooked. In fact, in fashion terms, one might say that there is much sexuality but little discernible Sensuality.
Zandra Rhodes is a multi-talented artist whose very presence lights up any space. Choosing pink as her signature hue, she creates dreams to wear - diaphanous gowns and floating dresses redolent of the street-stage drama of the King's Road in the late '60s and throughout the 70s. It was the jolie laide Vogue editor, Diana Vreeland who once famously quipped...'Pink is the Navy Blue of India' - and it is quite true. Rhodes' love of the sub continent is well documented. Her understanding of the culture, the history, the persistent power of perception of the then and now, more than appreciable.
Some harsh critics may opine that the 70s in particular was 'the decade that style forgot.' I have always thought that the 1980s could claim this accolade. And rightly so! The gripe about the 70s is nonsense. Look out of your window today for confirmation. Travel if you must, by train or bus to see 'sartorial' suicide committed every day. But to create wispy, willowy spirits out of dream-fabrics, as the unique Ossie Clark did, and others too like Thea Porter and Bastet, shows the handiwork of the painters of dreams. And who wouldn't want to be clad in dreams...?
Zandra Rhodes' eye for detail is, The I Paper said, 'wildly maximalist, absolutely fabulous.' Indeed, she has appeared in several television shows from the cult series, 'Absolutely Fabulous', known more familiarly as 'Ab Fab.' Co-star to Jennifer Saunders, Joanna Lumley is more than a fan and describes Zandra Rhodes as 'a fabulous style icon and creative genius.'
This genius meant that she could explore ideas in her mind and world which were not always commercially successful but caught the eye of so many celebrities who appreciated her verve. Elizabeth Taylor, Diana Ross, Bianca Jagger, Debbie Harry, and Diana, Princess of Wales knew and felt her magical way of conjuring fabric - and colour into dreams. No one can forget Freddie Mercury. How could they? And it was Rhodes who created his show-stopping stage-hopping Arctic white pleated cape in the early 1970s. She says...'He looked like a flamboyant bird.' And adds...'That top helped Freddie blossom into the showman he wanted to be.'
Rhodes might be referred to by many as a 'Punk Couturier'. Her silk chiffon creations, for instance, were often neatly holed and the 'wounds' thereof, healed by a ring of beads, so that every tear seemed decorative and revolutionary. Were they eyes or mouths? Then there were the beaded safety pins which she remembers that each one took some 15 minutes per pin - 'and there might be twenty to thirty on each dress.' The beads were dyed by hand too.
The whole aspect of the Rhodes vision might be said to have been formed in an atelier rather than a conventional design studio. Every designer, perhaps, is seeking an individual expression - but not always. Many have made mountains of cash on the concept of anonymity which won't scare the horses. But in Rhodes' case, this was the last thing on her mind. To walk abroad in a panoply of rainbows was to live. To wear fabric as a 'second skin' was sensual and yet also somewhat demanding.
I once interviewed a Japanese designer who opined that he cut fabric as little as possible. For to him it was as slicing into skin. The respect and understanding of fabric is key. Jean Muir had her love affair with fluid jersey. Gianni Versace might be not so easily remembered had he not celebrated antique gold on black architectural prints and Etro? Where would Etro be without its love and understanding of Indian Paisley - swirling like multifaceted, multi-coloured slices of imagination - based on the ancient past but still so relevant?
Her love of creation also instigated the launch of her internationally known Fashion and Textile Museum close to her apartment and was delighted by the genius of Ricardo Legorreta, the highly influential Mexican architect, whom she says, 'represented colour and purity.' He is known for his blocks of orange, ochre, yellow and as Rhodes shares, 'best of all - hot pink.' She wanted her space to be 'flamboyant and vivid.' And it certainly is - bursting as a bloom through the red brick and grey obfuscation of the surrounding buildings.
I have met Ms Rhodes on so many occasions. And indeed, interviewed her. Each time, she does not disappoint - from her wildly hued hair to her flair for being there. Her smile, her laughter is infectious and her memory at une age certain as sharp as the needles she uses in her studio. Her work as a costumier is well known and her energy unbelievable.
Perhaps the first time I met her was at an artist's apartment set within what used to be a Victorian milliners' workshop. The hostess had thoughtfully set each place with a vinyl plate mat by Zandra Rhodes in black and rose pink with motif-faces - so familiar as perhaps self portraits.
I was invited to interview her at L'Escargot, Soho, London by one Brian Clivaz - a maverick genius in his own way, who established Home House as a club. And on a gloriously sunny day, there we were. Sitting next to her, I was in a rose pink silk Indian tunic with Santa Maria Novella - Peau d'Espagne spritz as an olfactory 'scarf'! We chatted before any formality began. Most convivially.
Needless to say, every seat had been booked in the restaurant's private Emerald Room, overlooking the bustling street with its shouts and taxi screeches - the daily grind of one of the world's most iconic streets. This was also the occasion of the launch of Rhodes' autobiography, Iconic, with Ella Alexander, a journalist and Harper's Bazaar's Contributing Editor.
The Observer describes Rhodes' book as a 'vibrant account of the era-defining designer', The Times calls it 'Vivid and compelling' and The Lady, referring to Rhodes' designs said that 'every piece tells a memorable tale.' And indeed it does. Celebrity apart, Rhodes magnetised imagination and indeed, desire to parade in dreams.
It was Vivienne Westwood who said to me once that 'you will have a much more interesting life if you wear interesting clothes.' I am not sure that Westwood and Rhodes had been friends and something seemed to warn me off from asking the question. For, although very different, in one sense, they were ploughing the same furrow. There was an equal fearlessness.
Rhodes does name-check many designers in her book - Karl Lagerfeld, Biba, Thierry Mugler, Marc Jacobs, David Shilling, Christian Lacroix, Kansai Yamamoto, Anna Sui, Roger Vivier and yes...Vivienne Westwood!
But it is where 'art' becomes 'fashion' that one suspects Rhodes' empire was at its most comfortable - hence, her deep friendship and love for the British jewellery maker and sculptor Andrew Logan who created the iconic bust of her in the last year of the 1970s. It is rare, not even possible, that when she is out and about, she does not sport some aspect of his smashed 'mosaic mirror' brooches, rings and bangles.
His work and hers seem to chime most harmonically. Set mostly in black resin and accompanied by a gold felt tip autograph on the underside, Logan's work has also become iconic. Indeed, at a recent studio sale at her Bermondsey apartment she occupied one side of the room with her chiffons and devoré scarves and he the other, with his glistening gems.
Rhodes was passionate about the 'Glam Rock' era, citing the legendary Marc Bolan of T.Rex and his influential stylist, Chelita Secunda, credited with, amongst the glitter and glitz, adding silver sparkle tears to the 'bopping elf's' face. Glam was all about theatrics and Rhodes was, too.
Certainly there are references to a bohemian Nouveau/Deco verve - which was beloved by the 70s but Rhodes updated this and made it her own. It is no wonder that the USA fell in love with her. She spends much time in America and happily so. Her schedule is 'a tout vitesse' - even now.
As she writes in Iconic -
'Fashion changes incredibly quickly, which is why one must always jump at an opportunity as soon as it presents itself.'
But arguably, one might add that are Zandra Rhodes' designs part of the fashion world - or her world? Fashion versus Style...? She may namecheck 'Fashion' on the cover of her book but this is too modest!
There can never be a contest.
ICONIC (My Life in Fashion in 50 Objects) is published by Penguin Books.