page_title: Clare West (costume designer)
section_title: Career
hierarchical_section_title: Clare West (costume designer) / Career
caption_attribution_description: English: The "octopus gown" designed by Clare West and worn by Bebe Daniels in The Affairs of Anatol
context_page_description: Clare West born Clara Belle Smith was one of the first costume designers in Hollywood. She did notable work in the films of D. W. Griffith and Cecil B. DeMille. Recognising the importance of film costume in haute couture, some regard her as a predecessor in the American Look.
context_section_description: West began her career spending two years designing costumes for Intolerance (released 1916) in collaboration with French designer Paul Iribe. The Babylonian costumes of the film were believed to have inspired fashion trends with an April 1917 Photoplay article entitled "Back to Babylon for New Fashions". West's impressive work led her to be given the title of "Studio Designer" at Triangle Film Corporation.  Intolerance was believed to be the first Hollywood film to feature costumes designed for every cast member, including extras.
  West went straight into Griffith's The Birth of a Nation (1915) with her designs for more cinematic Ku Klux Klan costumes inspiring the current dress of the KKK.
  West went into a ten-film collaboration with Cecil B. DeMille where the producer/director stated "I want clothes that will make people gasp when they see them...don't design anything anybody could possibly buy in a store"
  In 1923, West was contracted to Norma Talmadge and Constance Talmadge who played the "Mountain Girl" in Intolerance.
  West's final film was DeMille's The Road to Yesterday (1925).
caption: "Octopus gown" designed by West and worn by Bebe Daniels in The Affairs of Anatol (1921)
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