We host a wide variety of events in our libraries, both online and in person for residents and visitors in Kensington and Chelsea. And colleagues who work for the council like to come along too.
Elrica, who works for the borough, came along to Kensington Central Library last month to hear author, Llewella Chapman, speak about her book on the history of the costumes and fashions in the James Bond films. Over to Elrica to hear more…
Who would’ve thought that Kensington and Chelsea would be the place to be for Bond-related events? It wasn’t that long ago when we had the world premiere of No Time To Die at the Royal Albert Hall. Recently, I’ve had the pleasure of attending Llewella Chapman’s book launch at Kensington Central Library. Fashioning James Bond is Chapman’s contribution that analyses how womenswear and menswear within the Bond films as iconic as the screenplay themselves.
In her talk, she explained that there are three core themes that she approached the subject matter: the agency of the actors and actresses, as well as the costume designers behind-the-scenes; the hidden labour involved in developing the costumes; and the costumes themselves. Her being a trained costume designer, she has a first-hand understanding of the work involved to use clothing to make characters more visible than others, and that there is a lot of decision-making that is not always credited.
Chapman explained how it took around seven years to conduct her research; her book is a scholarly synthesis of a variety of in-person and online archives and sources. It shows that there is a great history to be unravelled in how and what decisions were made that led to some of the most ‘iconic cinema graphics’. I was amazed at the wealth of information she read and analysed in order to write her book, more so given that she used the ‘old-school’ notebook and paper method to note down her insights.
I am excited to read her piece of work, more so being able to have had the chance to see Chapman speak so openly. During the pandemic, we have not had the opportunity to attend in-person book talks, and I am grateful for hearing Chapman speak. It was evident from her talk of the passion she holds for the Bond costumes and the people that were able to make them become the ‘icons’ themselves.
If you missed the event, don’t worry as Llewella Chapman is back on Friday 11 February to tell us how James Bond got his style from the tailors of Westminster. There’s more info and you can book a place on Eventbrite.
Many thanks to Elrica for coming along and her blog post, we’re glad she enjoyed the event! If you’d like to keep up to date with what’s happening in our libraries do subscribe to our monthly newsletter.
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