Review: Documentary 'Antonio Lopez 1970: Sex Fashion & Disco' captures wild times of influential illustrator

By Katie Walsh

Sept. 20, 2018 12:50 PM PT

In the documentary “Antonio Lopez 1970: Sex Fashion & Disco,” filmmaker James Crump shines a light on one of the lesser-known, but nonetheless influential figures from the wild fashion, art and media revolution of the late ’60s and early ’70s.

A flamboyant Nuyorican who collaborated with art director Juan Ramos, Lopez was a whirling dervish of fun, play and pleasure. More than a fashion illustrator who transformed the staid form into an explosion of color and curvy lines, Lopez had an eye for talent, beauty and the “it” factor. He discovered and cultivated models such as Pat Cleveland, Tina Chow, Jerry Hall, Jessica Lange, Grace Jones and Factory Girls Donna Jordan and Jane Forth. He and Ramos partied and worked with Karl Lagerfeld in Paris, collaborating on designs, and taught Vogue creative director Grace Coddington the art of styling.

A warm remembrance of Antonio’s sensual spirit, and a celebration of his work, the film is also a vibrant period portrait of New York’s creative scenesters from a time when hippies cruised Central Park by day and the club Max’s Kansas City by night. While the film seeks to put Antonio’s name on the same level as the boldfaced names he rubbed elbows with, it is a stark, sorrowful reminder of the many artistic geniuses cut down in their prime by AIDS.

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