Glass fairy tale - window dressing

Showcases ... .As it is interesting to look at shop windows, something unusual always happens behind them, and at night those who live there mannequinsmay come to life. And I want to believe in this not only for children, but even for adults, who, somewhere in the depths of their hearts, still remain children. And a real fairy tale, one that is truly a fairy tale, appears in shop windows only with the onset of Christmas and New Year. It was at this time that all the attention of passers-by was riveted on the windows and now even those who never admit it believe in fairy tales.

Window dressing and history

Showcases appeared not so long ago, at the end of the 17th century. It was then that glass production began. Before that, the goods were simply laid out on the counters in front of the shops. The first showcases appeared in England. Initially, window dressing was done by artists and theater designers. It was only in the middle of the 19th century that the profession of a showcase decorator appeared. Showcase lighting at night began in the second half of the 19th century. Initially, kerosene lamps were used for this. In the twentieth century, they were replaced by electricity. The first showcases were in the form of boxes, but at the end of the twentieth century, they were replaced by open showcases, showcases without a back wall, glass showcases that allow you to observe what is happening in the store itself. In addition to mannequins and various decorations, real performances are also arranged in the showcases, in which real people participate. And this idea appeared at the very beginning of the twentieth century, so in the windows of handicraft shops at that time, for example, a woman could sit and knit, and in stores of goods for artists an artist could sit and paint his canvases. But, nevertheless, mannequins are more often used for window dressing. From the most common to the mechanical.

The tradition of decorating shop windows for the New Year also comes from the 19th century. Today, cities such as London, Paris and New York are known for their New Year's windows. They decorate shop windows for the New Year in Tokyo, Shanghai, Moscow, and many other cities. Famous artists, designers and even singers work to decorate the windows of the largest and most famous stores. So the Parisian department stores Galeries Lafayette and Le Printemps, always competing with each other in decorating windows for the New Year, this year were decorated in the style of a rock concert and a world tour. The famous designer Karl Lagerfeld became the author of the "world tour". He chose the theme of travel, which he loves so much, and today various capitals of the world live their special fabulous life in the windows of the Le Printemps department store. Among which are, of course, Paris, as well as Tokyo, Shanghai, New York, London and Moscow. Mechanical, handmade dolls, and numerous decorations in the decoration of these windows were made based on the Chanel collections. And in the window, which represents Paris, you can see many miniature figurines of Karl Lagerfeld himself, who climb the Eiffel Tower, while managing to photograph everything and everyone around. The showcase dedicated to Moscow is red, and against this background, ballerinas are dancing, who remind the audience of the reconstruction of the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow completed this year. However, not without a red five-pointed star.

As for the department store Galeries Lafayette, Andrew Young became the author of the decoration of its windows. He created a rock puppet band that performs in store windows. The famous Christmas tree in the heart of the Galeries Lafayette department store this year is also decorated in the style of rock music and you can see numerous guitars and neon stars on it. And also in the windows of Galeries Lafayette they give their concerts and live, far from puppet, completely real rock bands.

Dressed up for the New Year and shop windows in New York, among which the 5th Avenue stores are better known.So, for example, the windows of the Bergdorf Goodman store move the eyes of passers-by from the bridge streets to fantastic worlds and to other planets. A very shocking took part in the design of the shop windows of Barneys singer Lady GaGa.

The windows of the London Harrods store shone with Swarovski crystals, and the jewelry inside the store is also made of crystals. And the store itself is an incredible winter fairytale, a real palace snow queen, with frozen snowflakes in the form of precious stones.

There is not so much left until the New Year, and the world around is gradually turning into a fairy tale, you just need to look behind the glass, peer into the windows and believe in a miracle.