Once upon a time there was
a spectacular exhibit on fairytales that was as imaginative as its subject
matter….
I have a confession. I kept putting off writing
about the Museum at FIT’s Fairy Tale
Fashion exhibition because it’s the most difficult to capture in words. Not
that there’s not a lot to say – there’s plenty. It’s just that, well, it’s so
fabulous that almost from the minute I got there I just got lost in it, and I’m
really struggling to find a way to bring that experience to you.
The most important point I want to get across is
that this is not a costume exhibit; it is fashion. In another context most of
these garments would just be incredible pieces of clothing; although some would
definitely drop hints to their fairytale inspirations. The majority, however,
were curated to coordinate with the theme of the story they were selected to
illustrate, and when you see them in that setting you will be struck by how inevitable
the selection appears. Just like a ballerina who makes those pirouettes en
pointe look effortless, and just like the pianist who makes those intricate
runs up the keys appear as easy as drumming your fingers, pulling the right
garments from the F.I.T. archives and convincing designers and collectors to
loan those rare pieces must have taken incredible research, culling, and a
whole lot of begging.
And now…on with the show!
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| Image courtesy of MFIT |
First up is Little
Red Riding Hood. (Thanks, MFIT, for these incredible images!) After you stop
looking at the variety of, well, red riding hoods, let me draw your attention
to the lower left corner. What you’re seeing is a monitor that is showing:
Each story had its own section, and each section
had its own monitor showing a movie clip, anime selection, commercial, or
whatever best suited the fairytale being ‘told.’ Most of these were particular
favorites of mine, but I was with someone who was unfamiliar with the majority
and she was hypnotized. Every particle of this exhibit grabs your attention and
you have to pull yourself away to move on.
As for those red cloaks, you can read more about
them on the MFIT website (link at the bottom of this entry), but I want to draw
your attention to a few of the mannequins here. First, second from the left:
the wolf. Seriously, how cute is that? Now, look to the two cloaks to the
right. The one to the far right was designed by Rei Kawakubo (and was modeled
by Björk –
it looks so Björk, doesn’t it? –
in 2015 in T magazine). The
second from the right is by Dolce and Gabbana for their Fall 2014 collection.
This is pretty representative of the exhibit: Internationally known designers (both
legendary and current) mixed in with emerging names. It made for a very heady
mix.
Next up was Beauty and the Beast, or La Belle et la Bête, because the movie
clip on the monitor was from the Jean Cocteau French classic.
MFIT is more generous with their clips than I am,
but trust me – if you haven’t seen this one, you just gotta. The whole thing is
available on YouTube, but if you ever get a chance to see it in a theater…run.
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| Image courtesy of MFIT |
This showcase demonstrates another great thing
about the exhibit. You’ve got a court dress from the mid-1700s in the same
showcase as that exquisite Rodarte on the far right. Both have flowers, both
have feathers…what a difference a few centuries make!
How perfect is this Christian Louboutin shoe from
Fall 2011. The ‘fur’ is actually really dense embroidery, and the ‘claws’ are
rhinestones. They must have really added some great whimsy to a fun outfit. I
wish I knew who bought them, and what the rest of their getup looked like.
Alice In Wonderland popped up next.
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| Image courtesy of Museum at FIT |
I could spend hours at any
one of these cases, and to prove that I’d like to point out that shoe in the front:
That’s a Nicholas Kirkwood from 2010, and the
reason I bring it up is because I could swear it was in a previous MFIT exhibit
a few years ago -- maybe on shoes? – and the reason I remember it is because I
think I did spend a really, really long time staring at it. Really really, it’s
fabulous.
Okay, so let’s just breeze
by these two beauties that were stuck away in a corner…
Along the back wall were
two fairytales: The Little Mermaid,
and The Swan Maidens. First, let’s go under the sea.
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| Image courtesy of Museum at FIT |
How perfect is that Rodarte – iridescent turquoise
sequins, fishnet, etc. – for this exhibit? The silver Thierry Mugler? Charles James’
La Siréne (far left), sometimes referred to as "The Lobster," was a gift to the museum “…in memory of Lisa Kirk,” an
actress probably best known for originating the role of Bianca in Cole Porter’s
Kiss Me Kate. I’d love to know what
else her wardrobe yielded.
Now, up for air and on to the swans...
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| Image courtesy of Museum at FIT |
I mean…”breathtaking” is not used figuratively
here. There were points in this gallery where I literally gasped at the sheer
beauty in front of me, or the way a piece was used to illustrate a story. Pull
your eyes away from Jean Louis Sabaji’s feather-like pouf of a dress (no
feathers – tattered silk!) and look to its left. The black dress is Charles
James’ Swan (another gift in memory of Lisa Kirk). James has long been one of
my favorite designers, but he had a pretty checkered career and been all but forgotten before the
Metropolitan Museum brought him back into the spotlight with the Charles James: Beyond Fashion exhibit in
May 2014. I think it speaks to how revered The Fashion Institute of Technology,
their museum, and staff are; that people who hold these rare pieces bequeath them
such precious pieces of fashion history.
I’m not sure where to
stop. Do I cut myself off at The Red Shoes?
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| Image Courtesy of Museum at FIT |
And leave out this Stephen
Jones hat? Look at those teeny tiny toe shoes on there!
This is killing me!
By this time I’d passed The Wizard of Oz, which had fashion by MGM’s Adrian – no, not one
of the costumes he designed for the movie, but one of the dresses he designed
when he left MGM and opened his own couture and ready-to-wear businesses.
Here’s a Galliano…there’s a Molyneux…Oh look! A Judith Leiber apple bag is
there to poison Snow White! That sense of childlike wonder held throughout the
maze of the gallery.
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| Image Courtesy of Museum at FIT |
Cinderella!
Rapunzel! Sleeping Beauty! The Snow
Queen! And on and on and on….It was truly enchanting, like the best
fairytales.
There is a book coming out on the exhibition, but
it won’t be available until mid-April; when the exhibit itself closes. There is
a sample copy available to flip through, but sadly it doesn’t capture the magic
of the gallery. Most of the pictures are the dresses on the runway, and that
changes things. Out of the fairytale context, and without the special lighting that hits the glass shoes, shards
of mirror on dresses, or beading just so, the effect is more flat than
flattering.
Just a word here about doing your own photography
in the gallery. Textiles are delicate, and to preserve garments, accessories
and notions against fading and wear lighting is kept low in the exhibits. Most
galleries will allow you to take photographs, but NOT WITH A FLASH. First time
will get you a warning; I’m not sure how many times it takes to get yourself
ushered out but I’ve witnessed it happen at several museums. Just like you
remember to turn your phone off before the curtain goes up in a theater (you
do, right?), remember to keep your hands off the garments and take your flash
off automatic in a museum. It’s just what you do.
This entry could have been as long as Rapunzel’s
braid, but let me end here so you can go over to the MFIT website and enjoy the
rest of their pictures. Be sure to spend some time looking at the Art &
Illustration section, because there were some incredible photographs and
illustrations on display in addition to the clothing. I’ve been sad when some
of their other exhibitions ended (I really wish the Daphne Guinness collection
could have been permanent, but I guess she wanted to wear her clothes again),
but this one….I’ll be telling people about this one for years.
By the way, Fashion Week NYC starts in a few
days! Always an exciting time to be here if you’re involved in the fashion
industry in any way. My next blog entry will be what it’s like to go to an
actual fashion show (when you’re not Anna Wintour, that is). If all you've seen are
the ones in movies or on Project Runway,
well, reality is quite a bit different.
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In the meantime, how about
just a little bit more fairytale magic…
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