Angelina Jolie makes her fashion design debut with Suleika Jaouad Batiste's upcycled silk Oscars gown

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Published on Wednesday, 30 November -0001 00:00

Written by Daily Mail

       Angelina Jolie officially made her fashion design debut by creating Suleika Jaouad Batiste's silver-pleated gown at the 96th Annual Academy Awards on Sunday. 'The dress was designed by the one and only Angelina Jolie,' the 35-year-old best-selling author announced to CTV's Etalk on the red carpet. '[It was] her first time designing a dress for the red carpet, and she invited the amazing artist Chaz Guest to paint a symphony on the back of it.' Indeed, Chaz Guest admitted he 'was nervous' to paint a portrait of five-time Grammy winner Jon Batiste conducting his first symphony because he's used to painting on canvases not 100% upcycled silk. 'I didn't want to mess up! But I put on Jon's music, and didn't think, and went with the full inspiration and moved as fast as I could,' the 62-year-old artist told Vogue on Sunday.'I used a technique of painting that is quite known in Japan: It's called sumi-e, and it's an ancient way of drawing, with sumi ink.' The 48-year-old Atelier Jolie founder - who also selected Suleika's Neil Lane jewelry - added: 'I wanted a look inspired by Suleika's creativity and her love. She is a painter, and so it felt right to have her gown used as a canvas.' Angelina has a 'deep admiration' for Batiste after watching her battle with acute myeloid leukemia, which returned after a decade in remission, in Matthew Heineman's critically-acclaimed Netflix documentary American Symphony. 'American Symphony shows one of the great artist pairings and love stories of our time,' Jolie gushed. 'We can all learn from them about how to approach love, art, and the challenges life brings. They say in the film, "freedom and family." There really isn't anything more important.'
       Due to the risk of exposure, the New York Times columnist - who underwent a bone marrow transplant - had to spend many weeks apart from her talented 37-year-old husband, whom she originally met as a teenager at band camp. 'Lullabies became his way of enveloping me with care, love, and presence from a distance,' Suleika explained. 'To see that lullaby become a full-fledged song [titled It Never Went Away], become a part of a film, and then go on to be nominated at the Oscars, shows how much things can change in two years.' The We Dare to Dream producer added: '[She's a] brilliant creative force who inspires everyone who knows her. I would have dressed her for anything she needed. It should never be about the dress, but how anything worn feels like an extension of the person.' It's been nearly a year since Angelina founded her fashion house with a focus on sustainability and upcycling. Unfortunately for the married couple of two years, Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell's Barbie track What Was I Made For? wound up winning Oscar gold for best original song. The Color Purple actor - who previously won the Oscar in 2020 for scoring Soul - is next scheduled to perform a sold-out concert this Tuesday at Canada's Massey Hall in Toronto. Last December, Jolie confirmed to The Wall Street Journal that she'll soon reprise her Maleficent role for a third Disney film. Last October, the former Hollywood wild child filmed her role as the legendary opera singer Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín's seventies-set biopic Maria, which will mark her first acting role since Chloé Zhao's dismally-reviewed 2021 MCU flick Eternals. It's been a year since Angelina was attached to produce and star opposite Halle Berry in Roseanne Liang's action thriller Maude v Maude for Warner Bros., but it's unclear what the status is at this point. It's also unclear when audiences will see Jolie's fifth feature directorial effort Without Blood starring Salma Hayek and Demián Bichir, which is a big-screen adaptation of the 2002 Alessandro Baricco novel. On the personal front, the humanitarian is mother to six children - son Maddox, 22; son Pax, 20; daughter Zahara, 19; daughter Shiloh, 17; and fraternal twins Vivienne and Knox, 15 - from her two-year marriage to ex-husband #3 Brad Pitt, which ended in 2016.

source : Daily mail