Paper tiger

A magnificent tent fit for a Bedouin chief, its walls of diaphanous gauze, the floor strewn with rugs and cushions and, standing around, robes and dresses in the most delicate fabrics, dresses without wearers, their flow and folds reminiscent of the drapery of classical statuary. The scene is majestic and yet restful; it could be a recreation of Old Araby or the set for scenes among the Dothraki in Game of Thrones.

But in fact it’s all a recreation by a Brussels artist. And everything you see, from the wall hangings to the Murano-glass beads studding an opulent gown, is made of paper.

Fortuny: A World of Paper is an exhibition of work by Isabelle de Borchgrave in a space adjoining her atelier in the Brussels commune of Ixelles. A tribute to the artist and designer Mariano Fortuny (1871-1949), it’s a stunning example of how fantasy, atmosphere and nostalgia can be turned into three-dimensional art.

Fortuny was born in Granada, Spain, the son of a painter. His parents collected materials of all sorts, including textiles and metalwork, and the boy inherited this fascination. After living in Paris and Venice, he became one of the most versatile artists of the turn-of-the-20th century: painter, photographer, sculptor and designer. A friend of Marcel Proust, his imagination turned towards the East, from the simple pleated elegance of his Grecian-inspired signature gown to the rich Oriental tableaux recreated here.

De Borchgrave, who describes Fortuny as her “spiritual father”, was born a countess into old nobility and studied at the Centre for Decorative Arts and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels. She moved into clothes and interior design, and finally into paper costumes. Since then, she has staged exhibitions based on Renaissance fashions, the Ballets Russes, the wardrobes of Elizabeth I and Empress Eugénie, and even a recreation of the wedding gown of Jackie Kennedy for a museum in Boston.

Visitors to the current exhibition will also get a glimpse of her workshop, where she and her staff create her designs, starting with the plain paper that comes in four-kilometre rolls and passing through the various stages of cutting, folding, sculpting and painting, each piece handmade and unique, each more breath-taking than the last.

Studio Isabelle de Borchgrave, 73A Chaussée de Vleurgat, www.isabelledeborchgrave.com (guided visits of the studio are available for groups)

This article first appeared in Flanders Today