Pencils and Pop Culture: High Fashion at Super Bowl Half Time

Pencils and Pop Culture: High Fashion at Super Bowl Half Time

So there I was, watching the Super Bowl, nominally interested in the game itself (I was busy paying attention to the commercials), when they announced that the half-time show was upon us.

“Madonna!” the announcers bellowed.

“Mmm-hmm,” I murmured, barely looking up from my laptop.

And then it happened. From the moment the gladiator-clad back-up dancers set sandal-shod foot on the field, it was clear that it wasn’t going to be business as usual. I don’t know why Madonna decided to channel Elizabeth Taylor circa “Cleopatra,” but I’m glad she did. This year’s Super Bowl Half-Time show, courtesy of Madonna, Cee-Lo Green, Nicki Minaj, M.I.A, LMFAO, and a cast of thousands has been polarizing viewers since minute one, which has made for a lively debate across the interwebs.

When we see spectacles, rarely do we think about the human hands and minds that went into crafting it. All of Madonna’s costumes were designed by Ricardo Tisci of Givenchy, the venerable design house most known for Audrey Hepburn’s iconic black dress from “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” The sketches have been released online this week, giving us a number of insights into the design process.

For one, the sketches allow us to see the detailing on the dramatic gold cape Madge wore to kick-off the show. No computer-created imagery here; Tisci’s sketches show us the undulating panels, armorial studding and wing detailing that created a garment fit for Egyptian (or pop music) royalty.

However, the details got lost in the hoopla surrounding the show; for me, in fact, the details ran together when the garment showed up on television. The layers were lost, the details blurred by both the properties of film and by the effect of all that glitter under all of those lights. Frankly, it looked a bit cheap, though dazzlingly so. Think a bed spread from the Liberace Home Design line.

The other costumes showed up more clearly on screen, largely due to the fact that the gold embroidery showed up more clearly on the black silk cady fabric used to construct the base. Granted, the final design (a long black coatdress with black metallic detailing) looked a bit as though Darth Vader had taken to designing evening wear, but the craftsmanship of the garment was highlighted by the contrast in textures, with metallic accents contrasting against the matte black fabric.

Whether you loved it or hated it, Madonna gave one of the most over-the-top halftime shows in Super Bowl history. I’m not entirely sure who thought that a day dedicated to a grunting, sweating contact sport needed to be saluted with “Vogue,” but damn if Madonna didn’t sell it from the Cleopatra-inspired opening number to the full-out gospel choir and Cee Lo-infused finale. What did it have to do with football? Heck if I know. But it did spark discussion, debate and offered a master class on the art and nuance of design.