{"id":132259,"date":"2026-05-31T13:34:00","date_gmt":"2026-05-31T17:34:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/?post_type=bu-article&#038;p=132259"},"modified":"2026-08-17T09:45:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T13:45:12","slug":"conversation-raissa-bretana-coleen-scott","status":"publish","type":"bu-article","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/magazine\/articles\/2026\/conversation-raissa-bretana-coleen-scott\/","title":{"rendered":"Conversation: Raissa Breta\u00f1a and Coleen Scott"},"content":{"rendered":"\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-leadin magazine-block-editorial-leadin is-style-image-to-text has-media has-media-focus-center-middle has-secondary-theme\">\n\t\t<div class=\"container-lockup\">\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-leadin-media\">\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<img width=\"2662\" height=\"2000\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Raissa-Bretana-Coleen-Scott-Conversation.jpg\" class=\"\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Raissa-Bretana-Coleen-Scott-Conversation.jpg 2662w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Raissa-Bretana-Coleen-Scott-Conversation-636x478.jpg 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Raissa-Bretana-Coleen-Scott-Conversation-1024x769.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Raissa-Bretana-Coleen-Scott-Conversation-768x577.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Raissa-Bretana-Coleen-Scott-Conversation-1536x1154.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Raissa-Bretana-Coleen-Scott-Conversation-2048x1539.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Raissa-Bretana-Coleen-Scott-Conversation-1331x1000.jpg 1331w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2662px) 100vw, 2662px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-leadin-caption wp-prepress-component-caption\">Raissa Breta\u00f1a (CFA&#8217;13) (left), Chris Sorensen; and Coleen Scott (CFA&#8217;04), Ben Trivett<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container-words-outer\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container-words-inner\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"head\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tConversation\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h4 class=\"deck\">Fashion Historians Raissa Breta\u00f1a (CFA&#8217;13) and Coleen Scott (CFA&#8217;04) on the Golden Age of Hollywood and their lifelong passion for costume design<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar js-block-editorial-metabar magazine-prepress-layout-metabar\">\n\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-date\">May 31, 2026<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-credits\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul data-credit-type=\"By\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/magazine\/authors\/john-orourke\/\">John O&#8217;Rourke<\/a><\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-share js-bu-prepress-share-tools\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-twitter\"><span>Twitter<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-facebook\"><span>Facebook<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-action\"><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-introparagraph magazine-block-editorial-introparagraph is-style-dropcap-default has-dropcap has-dropcap-color-secondary\"><div class=\"wp-block-editorial-introparagraph-content\"><p>The Golden Age of Hollywood may call to mind the biggest stars of the era\u2014Katharine Hepburn, Greta Garbo, Clark Gable\u2014or towering directors like Frank Capra and Cecil B. DeMille. But much of the glamour and allure was the result of the men and women who designed the unforgettable costumes the actors wore. Think Marlene Dietrich\u2019s androgynous tuxedo and Marilyn Monroe\u2019s billowing white halter dress.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Many of those costume designers\u2014people like Gilbert Adrian, Edith Head, Irene Sharaff, and Orry-Kelly\u2014were nearly as famous as the stars they dressed. At one time, their costumes were so popular, they were often copied and sold in department stores around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Today, fashion historians <strong>Coleen Scott<\/strong> (\u201904) and <strong>Raissa Breta\u00f1a<\/strong> (\u201913) are working to keep the legacy of Hollywood\u2019s costume designers alive. Scott, who earned an MFA in costume design at the School of Theatre, is a costume designer, head of costume technology and makeup at Santa Rosa Junior College, and the coauthor of <em>The Costumes of Hollywood: Highlights from the Collection of Motion Picture Costume Design<\/em> (Routledge, 2025). Breta\u00f1a, who earned her undergraduate degree in costume design at the School of Theatre, is a staff member at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology and has lectured widely on historical fashion and costume design. She is the coauthor of <em>Moxie: The Daring Women of Classic Hollywood<\/em> (Abbeville Press, 2024) and the forthcoming <em>Fashion of the Gilded Age<\/em> (Abbeville Press, 2026).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The two met for the first time when CFA magazine brought them together to discuss how the school helped them hone their craft and perspective and their favorite designers, stars, and outfits from Hollywood\u2019s Golden Age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer alignfull has-secondary-background-color overlap-top-75\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center has-cyan-color has-text-color\">The Conversation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-default\"><figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Crawford-Alamy_Conversation.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-132283\" width=\"400\" height=\"465\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Crawford-Alamy_Conversation.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Crawford-Alamy_Conversation-547x636.jpg 547w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Crawford-Alamy_Conversation-768x893.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><figcaption>Joan Crawford in a publicity still for <em>Mildred Pierce<\/em> (1945). Credit: PictureLux\/The Hollywood Archive\/Alamy<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Coleen Scott:<\/strong> Raissa, how did you become interested in fashion and costume design?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Raissa Breta\u00f1a:<\/strong> I\u2019ve always had an ardent love for classic film and did a lot of theater in high school [where] I designed a lot of the costumes for those productions. I grew up in Los Angeles idolizing the work of Colleen Atwood (<em>Little Women<\/em>, <em>Memoirs of a Geisha<\/em>) and Sandy Powell (<em>Shakespeare in Love<\/em>, <em>The Aviator<\/em>). I used to get my parents to drop me off at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising when they would have costume exhibits, and I would stand in front of the costumes and just marvel at them. What about you, what sparked your interest?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS:<\/strong> I was also involved in theater as a young person, and I also always liked dressing up,and the idea of playing a character with the clothes. I went to UC Santa Cruz for undergrad, and I was recruited into their costume department when they saw I could draw. I also worked as a costume studio and design assistant with their professional theater company, Shakespeare Santa Cruz. Then I worked as an assistant costume director at a theater company in the Bay Area before coming to grad school at BU for my MFA. What was your experience like at BU?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB: <\/strong>It was the costume history class I took that woke me up to this discipline of fashion history. So many of our classes took frequent field trips to the Museum of Fine Arts, and seeing the fashion exhibits there steered me into the path I\u2019m on now. My favorite class at BU was the millinery course taught by Denise Wallace-Spriggs (\u201916). That class kept me employed when I moved to New York. I survived by working at a theatrical millinery shop, making hats for musicals like <em>Wicked<\/em> and <em>Aladdin<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-photoessay magazine-block-editorial-photoessay alignwide wp-block-photoessay js-block-editorial-photoessay\"><div class=\"photo-row-tall-1-1\">\n<div class=\"photo-1\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"759\" height=\"1024\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Garbo_Conversation-759x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-132285\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Garbo_Conversation-759x1024.jpg 759w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Garbo_Conversation-471x636.jpg 471w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Garbo_Conversation-768x1037.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Garbo_Conversation-741x1000.jpg 741w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Garbo_Conversation.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 759px) 100vw, 759px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"photo-1\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"794\" height=\"1024\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Dietrich_Conversation-794x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-132284\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Dietrich_Conversation-794x1024.jpg 794w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Dietrich_Conversation-493x636.jpg 493w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Dietrich_Conversation-768x991.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Dietrich_Conversation-775x1000.jpg 775w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/PictureLux-The-Hollywood-Archive-Alamy-Dietrich_Conversation.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 794px) 100vw, 794px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:300px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer alignfull has-secondary-background-color overlap-top-250\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-caption has-magenta-color has-text-color\">Left: Greta Garbo and Ramon Novarro wearing costumes designed by Gilbert Adrian in <em>Mata Hari <\/em>(1931). PictureLux\/The Hollywood Archive\/Alamy. Right: Marlene Dietrich wearing her iconic tuxedo in <em>Morocco<\/em> (1930). Moviestore Collection Ltd\/Alamy<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS:<\/strong> I\u2019m teaching millinery right now, and Denise\u2019s hats are always a part of my presentations. I loved the fabric dyeing class too. The program is really special in that way. We\u2019ve both written about Hollywood\u2019s Golden Age. Who do you think were the most iconic stars from the period?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB: <\/strong>Joan Crawford is my main girl\u2014she epitomized glamour and movie stardom. But from a historian\u2019s perspective, I love that she was able to adapt to each decade of her career. You think of her as Joan Crawford with the broad shoulders from the 1940s, but she also really codified what the cinematic flappers looked like in the 1920s. What about you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS:<\/strong> Dietrich is a really big one for me. But Marilyn Monroe has to be in there as well and then, a little bit later, Natalie Wood. What about designers from that period?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-bu-pullquote magazine-block-bu-pullquote alignwide is-style-modern has-image has-image-focus-center-middle has-secondary-theme\"><div class=\"wp-block-bu-pullquote-inner\"><blockquote><div class=\"container-lockup\"><div class=\"container-icon-outer\"><div class=\"container-icon-inner\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"2667\" class=\"bu-blocks-background wp-image-132281\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana.jpg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana-477x636.jpg 477w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana-500x667.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana-1000x1334.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana-750x1000.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Raissa-Bretana-600x800.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><\/div><\/div><div class=\"container-text\"><hr\/><div class=\"quote-sizing\">\u201cJoan Crawford is my main girl\u2014she epitomized glamour and movie stardom. But from a historian\u2019s perspective, I love that she was able to adapt to each decade of her career.\u201d<\/div><footer class=\"caption\"><br\/><meta charset=\"utf-8\"\/>Raissa Breta\u00f1a<\/footer><hr\/><\/div><\/div><\/blockquote><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB:<\/strong> As a fashion historian, I love Adrian because he went on to have a career as a couturier after he left MGM. I love that he really exists in both spaces. I love watching the fashion show sequence from The Women and recognizing elements that were present in the latest collections from Elsa Schiaparelli.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS: <\/strong>You can\u2019t mention that period without bringing up Edith Head, because she was so prolific, but I have a real affinity for Irene Sharaff because she crossed over from doing Broadway musicals to doing the film version of the musical. I love the idea of being able to design for the live performance of a show and then translate it again for screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB:<\/strong> Edith Head is her own greatest work. I find her particularly fascinating because she was one of the few designers who wasn\u2019t interested in pursuing a career in fashion. She just wanted to tell a good story onscreen, and I have to respect her for that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-bu-pullquote magazine-block-bu-pullquote alignwide is-style-modern has-image has-image-focus-center-middle has-quaternary-theme\"><div class=\"wp-block-bu-pullquote-inner\"><blockquote><div class=\"container-lockup\"><div class=\"container-icon-outer\"><div class=\"container-icon-inner\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2000\" height=\"3005\" class=\"bu-blocks-background wp-image-132282\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Coleen-Scott.jpg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Coleen-Scott.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Coleen-Scott-423x636.jpg 423w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Coleen-Scott-682x1024.jpg 682w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Coleen-Scott-768x1154.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Coleen-Scott-1022x1536.jpg 1022w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Coleen-Scott-1363x2048.jpg 1363w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Conversation-Coleen-Scott-666x1000.jpg 666w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><\/div><\/div><div class=\"container-text\"><hr\/><div class=\"quote-sizing\">&#8220;Ruth Carter is at the tippy top right now. She\u2019s made such a mark on culture, for her Afrofuturism [designs].\u201c<\/div><footer class=\"caption\"><br\/>Coleen Scott<\/footer><hr\/><\/div><\/div><\/blockquote><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS: <\/strong>What about current designers?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB:<\/strong> Right now, I\u2019ve got to say, Paul Tazewell (<em>Wicked<\/em>) is my absolute favorite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS:<\/strong> Paul\u2019s really leading the costume design parade right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB: <\/strong>He\u2019s so meticulous. He does really detailed research, and I marvel at the breadth of his career. I feel lucky to be on this earth at the same time that he\u2019s working. How about you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS:<\/strong> Colleen Atwood was a huge influence. Sandy Powell has done brilliant things. And Ruth Carter (<em>Black Panther<\/em>, <em>Sinners<\/em>) is at the tippy top right now. She\u2019s made such a mark on culture, for her Afrofuturism. I love her. What about designers working in television right now?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB:<\/strong> I\u2019ve had the great honor of working with Lou Eyrich (<em>Glee<\/em>, <em>American Horror Story<\/em>) on quite a few shows. She\u2019s brilliant. To my knowledge, she\u2019s the only costume designer who\u2019s been elevated to the rank of producer. In addition to being so kind, she\u2019s so prolific and invested in research. Whenever she does a period show, I usually get a call. She\u2019s one of my favorite people to work with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS: <\/strong>She\u2019s a force in Hollywood with the work she\u2019s doing with Ryan Murphy. And, thinking about Paul Tazewell\u2014the refinement and detail in his work and the depth of his research\u2014he\u2019s amazing. Even the tailoring in the uniforms in <em>Wicked<\/em> was impeccable. I couldn\u2019t stop looking at all the details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-photoessay magazine-block-editorial-photoessay alignwide wp-block-photoessay js-block-editorial-photoessay\"><div class=\"photo-row-fourths-2-2\">\n<div class=\"photo-2\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Tracy-Nguyen-The-New-York-Times-Redux-Wicked_Conversation-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-132278\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Tracy-Nguyen-The-New-York-Times-Redux-Wicked_Conversation-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Tracy-Nguyen-The-New-York-Times-Redux-Wicked_Conversation-636x424.jpg 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Tracy-Nguyen-The-New-York-Times-Redux-Wicked_Conversation-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Tracy-Nguyen-The-New-York-Times-Redux-Wicked_Conversation-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Tracy-Nguyen-The-New-York-Times-Redux-Wicked_Conversation-450x300.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Tracy-Nguyen-The-New-York-Times-Redux-Wicked_Conversation-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Tracy-Nguyen-The-New-York-Times-Redux-Wicked_Conversation.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"photo-2\"><div class=\"wp-block-photoessay-media\"><figure><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Marvel-Studios-Walt-Disney-Pictures-Album-Alamy-Black-Panther_Conversation-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-132279\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Marvel-Studios-Walt-Disney-Pictures-Album-Alamy-Black-Panther_Conversation-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Marvel-Studios-Walt-Disney-Pictures-Album-Alamy-Black-Panther_Conversation-636x424.jpg 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Marvel-Studios-Walt-Disney-Pictures-Album-Alamy-Black-Panther_Conversation-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Marvel-Studios-Walt-Disney-Pictures-Album-Alamy-Black-Panther_Conversation-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Marvel-Studios-Walt-Disney-Pictures-Album-Alamy-Black-Panther_Conversation-450x300.jpg 450w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Marvel-Studios-Walt-Disney-Pictures-Album-Alamy-Black-Panther_Conversation-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/files\/2026\/07\/Marvel-Studios-Walt-Disney-Pictures-Album-Alamy-Black-Panther_Conversation.jpg 1201w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:300px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer alignfull has-secondary-background-color overlap-top-250\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center is-style-caption has-magenta-color has-text-color\">Left: Paul Tazewell, who designed the costumes for John M. Chu\u2019s screen adaptation of <em>Wicked<\/em>, is one of Scott and Breta\u00f1a\u2019s favorite contemporary Hollywood designers. Tracy Nguyen\/The New York Times\/Redux. Right:The Afrofuturistic costumes for <em>Black Panther<\/em> (2018) designed by Ruth Carter. Marvel Studios\/Walt Disney Pictures Album Alamy<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB:<\/strong> When you think about current fashion icons, who comes to mind?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS: <\/strong>I think Colman Domingo is killing it everywhere he goes. I adore all of his looks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB:<\/strong> I don\u2019t think anybody would fight me when I say Zendaya is the fashion icon of our moment, but what I think has made her such a fashion icon on the red carpet is the work of her stylist, Law Roach. He tells stories on the red carpet; what he does overlaps a lot with the work costume designers do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS: <\/strong>What are your thoughts about designers taking liberties when creating costumes for period pieces?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB: <\/strong>People think that I am a huge stickler for accuracy because I hosted a video series for <em>Glamour<\/em> in which I fact-checked period costumes, but I actually love historical anachronisms! I find that deviation from accuracy can be more interesting than accuracy itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS: <\/strong>The point is that it has to be a choice, not an accident because you didn\u2019t do your research, right? It has to be \u201cI know as much as I possibly can about this and now I\u2019m choosing to put a spin on it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB:<\/strong> That\u2019s why I love the costumes on HBO\u2019s <em>The Gilded Age<\/em> so much. Even though some of the costumes are really wild, you can tell the designers did their research. I can look at one of the show\u2019s costumes and I know that they are reinterpreting a real historical artifact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>CS: <\/strong>If there was one Hollywood costume you could have in your closet, what would it be?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>RB:<\/strong> My gut answer is the eyeball blouse that Rosalind Russell wears at the beginning of <em>The Women<\/em>. That whole ensemble is one of my favorite cinematic looks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"is-style-end-of-article\"><strong>CS:<\/strong> I\u2019d probably pick something that\u2019s head-to-toe sparkly. The red gown that Julia Roberts wears in <em>Pretty Woman<\/em> is so beautiful. And there\u2019s the gold gown Barbra Streisand wears in <em>Hello, Dolly!<\/em> That\u2019s a pretty great one.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Many of those costume designers\u2014people like Gilbert Adrian, Edith Head, Irene Sharaff, and Orry-Kelly\u2014were nearly as famous as the stars they dressed. At one time, their costumes were so popular, they were often copied and sold in department stores around the world. Today, fashion historians Coleen Scott (\u201904) and Raissa Breta\u00f1a (\u201913) are working to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14125,"featured_media":132264,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"bu_prepress_billboard":"","_bu_prepress_primary_term":"","_bu_prepress_primary_term_manual":""},"tags":[],"bu-publication":[191],"magazine-article-category":[],"magazine-topic":[366],"news-article-category":[],"news-topic":[],"bu_edition":[457],"media_type":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/132259"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/bu-article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14125"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=132259"}],"version-history":[{"count":30,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/132259\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":132521,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/132259\/revisions\/132521"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/132264"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=132259"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=132259"},{"taxonomy":"bu-publication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-publication?post=132259"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine-article-category?post=132259"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/magazine-topic?post=132259"},{"taxonomy":"news-article-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-article-category?post=132259"},{"taxonomy":"news-topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-topic?post=132259"},{"taxonomy":"bu_edition","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu_edition?post=132259"},{"taxonomy":"media_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_type?post=132259"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}