The clothes are not what they seem. How does David Lynch turn the characters in his films into true style icons?

The man, whose work we dedicate our material today, wanted to be an artist, but he became a director in order to revive his canvases, he shot more than a dozen cult films, but did not receive a single Oscar, he laid the foundations of a new era of cinema, but he confused the audience so much that it turned out to be impossible to unravel. Of course, we are talking about David Lynch, the genius of cinematic absurdity who turns 78 today.

Each film by the American director is a surreal expression that exists outside of time and space. He skillfully drags people into the world of his own fantasies, does not answer the audience’s questions, and makes you want to watch the movie like a dream and wonder “What did the author want to say?” And this is probably Lynch’s main “trick”, for which sophisticated film fans and influential critics love him so much.

True, it is worth noting that all the director’s projects are “connected” from the first seconds not only with a complex plot, but also with very fashionable (by all standards) visuals. We talked about its features in the first part of the material. Yes, yes, a long reading is not enough to understand the work of David Lynch. Moreover, in the visual style article, you will learn the meaning of the colors in the director’s films and how time flows in his universe. And we offer to delve even deeper into the mysterious film world of David Lynch and find out how he turns his characters into real style icons.

“twin peaks”

Agent Dale Cooper

There’s a myth that after the release of Twin Peaks, viewers started drinking more coffee and eating cherry pie. Men also started combing their hair back and wearing trench coats like Dale Cooper. This myth is not supported by any statistics, but no one dares to argue with the fact that the charming FBI agent has become a style icon for a whole generation.

Kyle MacLachlan’s character is wearing a full outfit in every shot. He always wears tailored trousers, classic boots, and a beige trench coat with accented shoulders. The only change in his appearance was a tie and a nice cup of coffee. Meanwhile, Agent Cooper is believed to be David Lynch’s alter ego.

For example, Dale always buttoned his shirt. The director followed suit, explaining that he didn’t feel safe with the top button open.

josie packard

In every David Lynch film project, there is a character who stands out strongly from the general picture and seems incompatible with the simple and naive environment in which the plot unfolds. And if in “Blue Velvet” the singer was Dorothy Vallens, then in “Twin Peaks” this role went to the owner of the sawmill Josie Packard.

The character was inspired by Chinese-born Hollywood star Anna May Wong, who rose to fame with her role in the 1932 film Shanghai Express. Josie inherited from him silk blouses, jackets with exaggerated shoulders, pearl threads and the famous sad look.

Audrey Horne

Audrey Horne’s style references the 1950s era. But why? To understand the problem, you need to turn to the biography of David Lynch. The director himself has repeatedly said that his ideas about beauty were formed in childhood. And that was only in the early 1950s. This is largely why Lynch often turns to the femme fatale image and transforms the heroines of his films into the femme fatales of Hollywood’s golden age.

So, Audrey Horne has arched eyebrows, a highlighted mole on her temple (as if copied from Marilyn Monroe), a haunting, charming appearance, and a unique, suggestive voice. As for Audrey’s style, she almost completely follows the trends of the mid-20th century – she wears high-waisted skirts, red shoes with small heels, blouses and magnificent dresses.

“Blue velvet”

Dorothy Vallens

The mysterious singer Dorothy Vallens is another femme fatale from the David Lynch universe and a character who stands out as much as possible in the overall picture of the small town of Lumberton. She personifies temptation and mystery.

The visuals created by costume designer Patricia Norris help achieve this effect. In one of the scenes, actress Isabella Rossellini wears the same blue velvet dress over her naked body. And if you remember that the color blue in David Lynch’s universe means mystery, you can easily guess that Dorothy’s evening dress hints at the viewer exactly the secrets that the girl is keeping.

The same goes for stage images; These are always black. However, at the end of the film, Norris shows his hero’s freedom by making him wear jeans and a plaid shirt to show his inner transformation.

“Wild at heart”

Lula Pace’s Luck

It was designed by costume designer Amy Stofsky for the 1990 film Wild at Heart. David Lynch’s cult film became his debut and a lucky ticket to the world of cinema. Despite the director’s love for the 1950s, Amy transformed the film’s main characters into 1980s style icons. Laura Dern’s character, the charismatic Lula Pace Fortune, wears tight dresses, leggings, low-cut tops, bodysuits, lace tights, sexy slips, and huge hoop earrings. But the aesthetics of the 1950s could not be avoided. Laura Dern associates her heroine with Marilyn Monroe. They really had something in common; both girls loved strappy dresses.

The dominant colors in the painting are thought to be red and hot pink. The first directs us to the beginning of the story, the second represents the passion between Sailor and Lulu. Remember the bright pink-lit stage in the club where Nicolas Cage’s hero sings to his chosen song. Or the low-cut coral dress that Laura Dern wears at the end of the movie. Let’s not forget Lula’s red shoes that Dorothy used when she wanted to return home in the movie “The Wizard of Oz”.

Sailor Ripley

“What is this stupid jacket?” – a man in the club asks Sailor. “This is a snakeskin jacket. “It symbolizes my individuality and my belief in personal freedom,” the hero replies without hesitation, implying to the audience how important this garment is in terms of the perception of his style. The jacket is indeed considered one of the symbols of the movie “Wild at Heart”. However, he did not appear on set, thanks to costume designer Amy Stofsky. The cult item belonged to Nicolas Cage. They say that when the director saw the jacket, he immediately decided that Sailor should wear it. By the way, after filming, the actor gave it to Laura Dern.

The impact of Lynch’s films on the fashion industry

Designers and creative directors of big brands are often inspired by cinema. And David Lynch’s films seem to be held in high esteem by the entire fashion community. This proves once again that the director has managed to bring all the ingredients together correctly to create style icons that exist outside of time. For example, in 2016, Raf Simons released a collection for his brand codenamed Nightmares and Dreams, a reference to David Lynch’s dream world, and models walked the catwalk to the music of Angelo Badalamenti (the director’s favorite composer).

Six months ago, Rei Kawakubo presented her “Blue Velvet” vision in the COMME des GARÇONS spring-summer 2016 collection. Intricately cut avant-garde dresses in dark blue appeared on the catwalk, and the same song was in the background. She has portrayed Dorothy Vallens on stage many times.

By the way, the director himself works a lot with representatives of the fashion industry. Thus, in 2014, we saw the result of David Lynch’s collaboration with Kenzo creative directors Humberto Leon and Carol Lim, who admired the work of the master. Together they created both the musical accompaniment and the decor of the show. At Fashion Week, models found themselves inside a real black tent filled with optical illusions and the famous black and white zigzags.

The fashion world witnessed another famous work by David Lynch in 2010. The director then shot a short film for Dior, Lady Blue Shanghai, for which he wrote the script and part of the musical component. By the way, Marion Cotillard starred in the movie.

The list of direct and indirect references to the work of David Lynch could go on for a very long time. And we are sure that more than one generation of designers will turn to complex films with non-linear plots for inspiration. So we will see more than one reincarnation of Agent Cooper, Audrey Horne or Sailor Ripley.