Of all the exquisite pageantries to behold at last Thursday’s SCAD Atlanta Scholarship Gala and Art Auction, one of the most shining displays was that of the fashions of C.Z. Guest, a 20th century socialite famed as much for her philanthropy as her acquaintances with such luminaries as Truman Capote, Ernest Hemingway and, through her marriage to polo champion Windsor Guest, his cousin Winston Churchill. Notably, she was also a friend of top designers, and over the years she amassed a collection of garments and accessories as extensive as it was inspired. 

Cornelia Guest, 2010 SCAD Atlanta Scholarship Gala Honorary Chair

Guest’s decision to choose SCAD was not taken lightly. She already admired the university’s equestrian program and had donated horses to it, so when it came time to find a final resting place for many of her mother’s finest clothes, she didn’t want them hanging in a closet or collecting dust in just any museum.

A silk brocade evening dress by Mainbocher (1890-1976), part of the C.Z. Guest Costume Collection at SCAD, on display at the SCAD Atlanta Scholarship Gala April 8, 2010. SCAD Photo/John McKinnon

A gold/silver tinsel lame and silk chiffon evening ensemble by Mainbocher (1890-1976) part of the C.Z. Guest Costume Collection at SCAD, on display at the SCAD Atlanta Scholarship Gala April 8, 2010. SCAD Photo/John McKinnon

The framboise evening coat by Mainbocher (1890-1976) part of the C.Z. Guest Costume Collection at SCAD, on display at the SCAD Atlanta Scholarship Gala April 8, 2010. SCAD Photo/John McKinnon

Other design houses represented in the collection include Oscar de la Renta, Chanel, Lagerfeld, Balmain, Valentino, Yves Saint Laurent, Bill Blass and Givenchy, as well as two silk Delphos-style gowns designed by Mario Fortuny, which are still considered some of the rarest and most sought after in fashion because of the intricate pleating process Fortuny patented, but that has been lost through the decades. “You always wrap them; never hang them,” Guest notes. “These were wrapped in boxes of my mother’s and I’ll never forget the day I pulled out a box thinking ‘I wonder what’s in here,’ and it was Fortuny! Some really wonderful surprises came with going through these clothes.” 

A silk chiffon evening dress by Paco Rabanne (born 1934 in Spain) worn by Cornelia Guest, part of the C.Z. Guest Costume Collection at SCAD, on display at the SCAD Atlanta Scholarship Gala April 8, 2010. SCAD Photo/John McKinnon

“Tonight when I walked into the gala, and as I was talking to the students upstairs earlier and seeing the clothes on display this afternoon, and meeting Summer, who cares for them, I knew that I had made the right decision,” Guest explains. “President [Paula] Wallace is amazing. Everyone at SCAD is amazing. I’m so happy to be a part of it.”

C.Z. Guest’s fashions can be viewed in the Mélange d’Art Sélect exhibition at the SCAD Museum of Art at the Savannah College of Art and Design, Kiah Hall, 227 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Savannah, Georgia. (912) 525-7191; scad.edu/museum