Prom dresses for a birthday party you won't forget. Benedikte of Denmark she turns 80 on April 29th and as a gift she received an exhibition dedicated to her and her relationship with fashion. The rooms of the royal castle of Koldinghus in Kolding, a town in Jutland, will host until September 1st around twenty dresses created by Jørgen Bender for the younger sister of Margrethe II.
The purpose of the exhibition which is called precisely Prinsessekjolertranslated Princess dressesis to tell through evening dresses the happiest moments of His Highness and the special bond between the couturier and Benedikte of Denmark, while offering an insight into four decades of fashion history of the Scandinavian country.
Clothes made between 1968 and 1999, the year of Jørgen Bender's death (he was born on 9 May 1938), are protected in glass cases, but two recent designer creations are also included Johnny Wichmann, pupil of the royal stylist. In fact, for years Bender has been the sartorial reference for the women of the Danish royal family, working for each of them starting from Queen Ingridthen passing through Margrethe, Anna Marie and, of course, Benedikte.
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Jørgen Bender had in turn been a pupil of another couturier much loved by the royals, Holger Bloma true legend of his time, also known for being a point of reference for Danish cinema and theatre.
In that tailor shop where queens and celebrities of the time came and went, Bender took his first steps, cultivating the dream of becoming a stylist since he was a child. At the age of 26 he took over the atelier: in 1965 his teacher died, at not even 60 years old, just a few months after having received the order of his life. On 18 September 1964 she was in fact married to Constantine of Greece Anna Maria of Denmark thus becoming queen of the Hellenes.
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The Danish royals not only proved loyal to the tailoring business that suddenly changed hands but also became close friends with Jørgen Bender. Margrethe and Benedikte in particular so much so that they both asked the tailor to design the dress for their wedding.
The wedding dress designed by Jørgen Bender for Benedikte of Denmark is the great protagonist of the exhibition. The princess herself, stopping in front of the display case that houses it, betrayed a hint of emotion when she saw it again. The **royal wedding **between Benedikte and the German prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg it was celebrated on 3 February 1968 at Fredensborg Palace, one of the residences of the royal family.
Made of white silk, the dress has an essential silhouette and is characterized by a round neckline, long sleeves and a high waist. The bodice is rather fitted while the skirt, enriched with lace inserts, is slightly flared. The only quirk: two bows on the waist to underline the tailoring of the garment.
The wedding dress effectively marks the beginning of what was a true collaboration between the princess and Jørgen Bender. She was a great fashion enthusiast, so much so that in 1965 she attended a design and tailoring course. She had a sort of muse in her mother Ingrid. For each dress there is a study that places it in a specific context, a banquet, an official portrait, a wedding.
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This is why colors or details become relevant. «Clothes are part of my equipmentlet's put it this way, I dress for what I have to do” he said at the ribbon cutting ceremony “in our family we love colors very much and we love using them even though Queen Margrethe is certainly the most colorful of us all. Colors have the ability to give happiness».
In fact, in the selection made you can see all the colors but you can also notice the embroidery, the craftsmanship and the decorations, some of which have a strategic value. One of Bender's tasks was to rethink and refurbish garments designed in previous years. A way of enhancing the wardrobe carried forward even after the death of the royal couturier.
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Benedikte from Denmark explains that it was the period following the Second World War that shaped her idea of fashion, from a quality point of view but above all from a sustainability, we would say now. “In those days we learned to recycle and that there was no point in throwing anything away,” she said. Among the modified dresses there is a particular one worn for the weddings of the grandchildren.
The first version of the floral dress on a white background was shown in 1995 on the occasion of the wedding between Pavlos, son of Anna Maria of Greece and King Constantine, and Marie-Chantal Miller while the second version was revised in 2004, therefore not by Bender, for a banquet on the eve of marriage between Margrethe's eldest son, Frederik, and Mary Donaldson. In this case we can talk about upcycling: the original sleeves were used as decoration to be placed around the waist.
Benedikte of Denmark was a fixture at court events under Margrethe's reign. Jørgen Bender's heir, Johnny Wichmann, now continues to satisfy the princess's requests. Two contemporary dresses personally selected by the royal can also be admired on display.
The first, a cape dress embroidered in ice colour, it was unlined by Benedikte in 2019, on the occasion of the dinner for his 75th birthday organized by his sovereign sister in his honour.
The other dress was worn last October 15th for the gala dinner organized for the 18th birthday of his nephew Christian. An elaborate design, full of sartorial details such as the asymmetrical neckline, the small train and the difference between the lilac bodice and the geometric patterned skirt.
Retracing a rich and happy existence by shining the spotlight on the clothes that witnessed it is a beautiful idea that pays homage to one of Denmark's most beloved personalities. Colors and sequins, a full-blown birthday party.
Source: Vanity Fair
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