EVENT UPDATE: MIDNIGHT AT NOON (AND OTHER STORIES) EXHIBITION .. DAVID DOWNTON ..CLARIDGES LONDON .. SEPTEMBER 13TH TO 18TH..

JOAN COLLINS

‘A storm force of glamour and allure, Miss Joan Collins posed in a robe and a couple of million pounds’ worth of jewellery. (“You have great shoulders, Joan.” “I know!”) A minor panic when no safety pin to secure her turban could be found was the only flash point.’

 Claridge's is to host an exhibition of David's Downton's fashion illustrations to celebrate his role as the hotel's artist in residence. The showcase will run during London Fashion Week, from September 13 to 18, and will feature artwork that he has previously only shared exclusively with Vogue.co.uk.

Entitled Midnight at Noon (and Other Stories), the exhibit will feature Downton's sketches of some of the hotel's most famous and glamorous guests - including Diane von Furstenberg, Dita Von Teese, Alber Elbaz, Laura Bailey, Christian Louboutin, Joan Collins, Stephen Jones and Sir Paul Smith - in celebration of "iconic beauties, creatives and style icons", capturing the hotel's love affair with fashion.
"Being artist in residence at the most beautiful hotel in London has, as I've often said, been the gig of the century," said Downton. "I expected the luxury, of course, and the service, but who knew about the magic? Claridge's is Claridge's and everywhere else is everywhere else."
The exhibition will be held in the hotel's famed Fumoir bar - an Art Deco space designed by Basil Ionides in the Thirties-that Downton fondly refers to as his "office". Many of his subjects were sketched while sat at his favourite table in the bar.
"Over the years some of our most iconic guests have been captured on camera and we feel David's drawings add another dimension to the already established archives of Claridge's," said the hotel's general manager, Thomas Kochs. "David Downton has been a long-time friend of the hotel and we have admired his work for many years. It is a pleasure to share David's talent with our guests!