Diane von Furstenberg Event Was a Revelation!

by Grayling Holmes / photos by Grayling Holmes and Saint Louis Fashion Fund

Tuesday evening was a revelation in so many ways. First, viewing the spanking new, gleaming glass building in Frontenac was a sight to behold. The new St. Louis County Library and event space definitely had the WOW! factor. One would never know that it was a library, except for the sign at the west entrance, and book-laden patrons walking along the sidewalk.

Driving to the east side of the ultramodern edifice to enter the event space transported 350 guests of the Diane von Furstenberg “Woman in Charge” screening was revelation number two. The vistas walking through the doors once again filled one with amazement. With 2-story high vaulted ceilings, the sprawling space was peopled with tony guests “dressed to the nines”. A photographer took portrait-worthy pics of guests standing on a red carpet. A videographer took video of sundry guests being asked by an interviewer the proverbial “what are your wearing” question. Rejoinders ranged from “I’m wearing a vintage DVF wrap dress” to “I’m wearing a suit by Alexander McQueen or vintage Armani.”

Champagne flowed throughout. Servers greeted guests with a choice of sparkling bubbly or Chardonnay. No red wine to spill on women donning festive frocks or dapper men dressed in the latest Tom Ford design. Custom-made Diane von Furstenberg cocktail napkins laid next to fruit and cheese laden tables were.

Another revelation was the newly-christened Kranzberg Gallery. The fourth of such location for the Kranzberg’s extensive art collection, the library has more than 50 works throughout the building, many of them on display in the massive entry hall. The pieces were truly magnificent. According to Ken and Nancy Kranzberg, the artwork will be regularly changed out, as it is with their other Kranzberg Foundation galleries, to bring new and fresh pieces at which event and library patrons can enjoy and marvel.

Walking into the event space itself was the final revelatory experience to the new space. Diane’s visage was emblazoned on floor-to-ceiling screens across the ballroom-type room. Hundreds of guests peopled chairs awaiting the start of the documentary. St. Louis is one of six screenings of the documentary in the U.S. It premiered internationally in Brussels, London and Paris and premiered in the U.S. at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York. Susan Sherman, co-founder and chair emeritus of the Saint Louis Fashion Fund, is to be thanked for bringing the singular, cinematic exploration of fashion and the power of woman in business to the Gateway City. Like Diane, Susan represents the quintessential Woman in Charge.

Raucous laughter filled the room, and a few tears as Diane regaled her life and showed actual footage of her storied career, her mother’s painful tale as a holocaust survivor, and most of all her triumph as a WOMAN IN CHARGE in a world where once only men ruled. The film is a must-see. Although invitees reveled at the private screening, if you missed Tuesday’s event, it is now streaming on Hulu. It’s worth the watch of this truly poignant behind-the-scenes look into the life and times of this trailblazer.