Aug 7, 2007

'Rome' built in a display

Barney's features creations from HBO series

Associated Press

Hollywood tends to favor revisionist history - at least when it comes to fashion, says Barney's New York creative director Simon Doonan. But to his well-trained eye, the HBO series "Rome" and the outfits created by April Ferry look pretty authentic.

Costumes from "Rome" are on display at the Barney's in Beverly Hills through Aug. 13, coinciding with the release of the DVD of the show's second season, which chronicles what happened to the empire in 44 BC just after Julius Caesar was assassinated.

"We wanted to avoid the windows with a cheesy museum diorama with a man and woman in a toga, so we recreated the costume and prop room of the 'Rome' series, with weaponry, gorgeous togas. We tried to capture the madness of a prop and costume house," Doonan said.

Don't expect to see haute couture. The clothes are made to work on TV, Doonan says, so the look of the armored breast-plates is more important than using the finest fabrics and attention to the smallest detail.

Everyone knows that "retro" clothes - mostly styles from the different periods of the 20th century - continue to influence fashion today, but "historical" clothes from long ago rarely have the chance to come to life again, says Doonan.

So enjoy the windows, but don't look for designs inspired by the show to turn up inside Barney's or other modern-day temples of fashion.

"You're not going to see women running down Melrose (Avenue) in togas," Doonan says.