Costume design for a Playmate in harlequin attire
Dry and wet pastel crayon, pencil, gouache on handmade double-layered kraft paper
19 x 26 cm; 7.5 x 10.25 in
Verso: Pencil sketch of an alternative design for a ruff
Playmate
Details of headdress, coiffure, make-up, neck apparel and yoke
Tiered transparent PVC cuff over unitard sleeve
For the Girl, Barry Kay created a plain knee-length dress loosely based on a sculpture by Auguste Rodin, consisting of a white bodice and a pale violet pleated skirt.
To contrast the outfit, he dressed her Playmates as harlequins in white long-sleeved unitards with elaborately constructed yokes. As a pronounced feature accentuating the costumes, he applied tiered cuffs worn over unitard sleeves, as well as ruffled and tiered peplums alternatingly fitted over billowing knickerbockers. The cuffs and peplums were made of transparent polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and, along with the unitards, decorated with hand-painted twining floral motifs, echoing Kay’s setting of a transparent inflatable tree and its winding foliage.
Barry kay (r) accompanied by Barry Kay Archive founder Michael Werner (l). Bottom right a short note in which Barry thanks Michael for giving him the camera that allowed him to create (among other projects) ‘As a Woman’.