The MTV VMAs it was the first major award show of the season took place over the weekend. Dazzled by the looks on the next generation of superstars, we couldn’t help but take a moment and reflect on the power of the nineties red carpet.
Where and how did it originate? From OTT glamour provided by Bob Mackie—who earlier made his name dreaming up Cher’s getups in the eighties—to single-sleeves pre-Givenchy, the decade before the aughts was rife with a mash-up of Dynasty-level grandeur sans the drama.
The ever-changing nineties, meanwhile, remained defiantly indefinable: It’s hard to pin down a single A-list outfit that encapsulates the entire decade. And yet its red carpet was rife with memorable looks.
Kim Basinger in her own design
At the Academy Awards, 1990
Best known for her role in Batman, the actress decided to forgo convention and try her hand at designing her own ensemble.
Photo: Ron Galella / WireImage
Madonna in Bob Mackie and Harry Winston
At the Academy Awards, 1991
Attending the ceremony with pop superstar Michael Jackson, the only figure Madonna could channel was one greater than the two of them combined: Marilyn Monroe. And as the late actress sang, "Diamonds are a girl’s best friend."
Photo: David Mcgough / DMI / The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Jodie Foster in Giorgio Armani
At the Academy Awards, 1992
Winning her second Oscar for her role in The Silence of the Lambs, the young actress began a splendid sartorial relationship with the Italian designer.
Photo: Ron Galella, Ltd. / WireImage
Mariah Carey
35th Annual Grammy Awards, 1993
Before she became Mimi, Carey focused on classic silhouettes with a hint of sex appeal, like this scarlet slip dress.
Photo: KMazur / WireImage
Elizabeth Hurley in Versace
At the London premiere of Four Weddings and a Funeral, 1994
There were no other dresses that mattered when the model stepped out in Versace’s Safety Pin dress.
Photo: Dave Benett / Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Uma Thurman in Prada
At the Academy Awards, 1995
The moment that Thurman became a star is when designer (and then costume designer) Barbara Tfank slipped an icy blue dress from Prada onto the budding actress.
Photo: David McGough/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Sharon Stone in Gap and Valentino
At the Academy Awards, 1996
All conversation was about how Stone eschewed with convention in wearing the Gap on the red carpet. Now, high-low dressing can trace its roots back to the Basic Instinct star.
Photo: Ke.Mazur / WireImage
Nicole Kidman in John Galliano for Christian Dior
At the Academy Awards, 1997
A dress from the first collection under John Galliano, the chartreuse, Asian-inspired frock is continually referenced in fashion today.
Photo: VINCE BUCCI / AFP / Getty Images
Jennifer Lopez in Gucci
VH1/Vogue Fashion Awards, 1999
The pop star was the physical embodiment of Tom Ford’s designs for the Italian house: bold with attitude and shimmering brighter than anyone else.
Photo: Getty Images
Gwyneth Paltrow in Ralph Lauren and Harry Winston
At the Academy Awards, 1999
It was a dress fit for a princess—and fittingly, the actress had her fairy tale come true when she took home Oscar gold and the Harry Winston necklace she sported.
Photo: SGranitz / WireImage
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