New York: The MET - Masterworks:
Unpacking Fashion, Exhibition. The Costume Institute’s Fall 2016 exhibition,
Masterworks: Unpacking Fashion, on view, until February 5, features significant
acquisitions of the past 10 years. The show, curated by Assistant Curator
Jessica Regan with support from Curator in Charge Andrew Bolton, explores how
the department has honed its collecting strategy to amass masterworks of the
highest aesthetic and technical quality, including iconic works by designers
who have changed the course of fashion history and advanced fashion as an art
form. Each object— primarily
women’s wear, as well as some men’s wear and a selection of accessories—is
accompanied by an in-depth explanation of its significance within the canon of
fashion history. Some newly acquired objects are paired with pieces already in
the collection to illustrate the enduring influence of certain master
couturiers and iconic historical silhouettes.
Comme Des Garcons –
Rei Kawakubo - Ensemble – 2015
Maison Margiela – John Galliano – Ensemble – 2015
French – Coat -1787-92
“While fashion is often derided for
its ephemerality, its quick responsiveness to change ensures that it is an
immediate expression of the spirit of its time—a vivid reflection of social,
cultural, and political circumstances, and of shifting ideals of beauty. The
masterworks we’ve chosen to highlight are among many we have collected in the
past decade that draw on forms, motifs, and themes of the past, reinterpreting
fashion history in ways that resonate in the present.”
Jessica Regan
British
– Robe a La Anglaise – 1747 ca.
Eighteenth-century garments are generally evaluated more for the quality of
their materials than for details of cut and construction.
Edward
Maloney
Paul
Poiret – Opera Coat - 1911
Standout fashions of the Nineteenth century, meanwhile, display exemplary
dressmaking or tailoring techniques and distinctive silhouettes.
Gilbert
Adrian – Dress – 1947
Elsa
Schiaparelli – Jean Cocteau – Evening Jacket - 1937
Masterworks of the Twentieth and Twenty-first centuries are primarily
signature works by designers who have expanded the possibilities for fashion,
whether conceptually or through innovative construction and techniques.
Viktor
and Rolf – Ball Gown – 2010
“Our mission is to present fashion
as a living art that interprets history, becomes part of the historical
process, and inspires subsequent art,” “Over the seven decades since The
Costume Institute became part of The Met in 1946, our collecting strategy has
shifted from creating a collection of Western high fashion that is encyclopedic
in breadth to one focused on acquiring a body of masterworks.”
Andrew
Bolton
Nicoletta
Santoro
Lanvin-Castillo
– Evening Dress – 1956
Charles
James – ‘Tulip’ Evening Dress – 1949
House
of Balenciaga – Cristobal Balenciaga - Dress – 1967
Philip
Tracey – Paphiopedilum Philippinense Orchid Hat – 2000
Suzy
Menkes
Zandra
Rhodes – Punk Wedding Dress – 1977
Versace
– Dress – 2016
Hussein
Chalayan – Dress – 1999
The
Idiosyncratic Fashionistas’s Valerie and David Noh
Noritaka
Tatehana – “Silver-Rose” Shoes – 2014
Chopines
– Italian - 1600
Masterworks: Unpacking
Fashion - The Harold Koda Gift
The Carl and Iris Barrel Apfel Gallery features some of the ensembles
donated by designers in honor of Harold Koda upon his retirement as Curator in
Charge of The Costume Institute in January 2016. Through
innovative and compelling exhibitions, he elevated our collective understanding
of fashion as an art form. Koda's presentations were shaped by his belief in
the power of dialogue between past and present the idea that the artistry of
the past can be enlivened by that of the present day and that the significance
of contemporary work is clarified when it is anchored in a broader historical
narrative. This influential approach was complemented by Koda's passionate
dedication to building the collection.
House
of Dior – Raf Simmons – Ensemble - 2014-15
House
of Dior – Christian Dior – “Mystere” Coat – 1947-48