Met Gala Exhibit: In America An Anthology of Fashion

 

What is American fashion? The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute has been exploring what that means since its inception. Like many museums, many fashion exhibits have been a celebration of the elite paying tribute to themselves. That has also been my top criticism for exhibits of recent years like China: Through the Looking Glass and Punk:Chaos to Couture.

I was pleasantly surprised at In America: An Anthology of Fashion. The show was a series of vignettes curated by successful directors like Sophia Coppola, Chloe Zhao, and Regina King. Many of the vignettes highlighted accomplished dressmakers (before they were called designers) of color who created some of the most famous garments in American history. What do they usually have in common? They were women of color, who were rarely recognized publicly or treated with disrespect.

Ann Lowe, who only in recent years had her name celebrated, was the go-to maker of Jackie O’s famous wedding gown and counted high society’s leading brides and debutantes as clients. However, Jacqueline Onassis, when asked who made her dress, would callously just say “a colored dressmaker”.

Mary Todd Lincoln’s inaugural gown was made by Elizabeth Keckley, who was once a slave, then a trusted companion in the White House, then an author and activist. Fannie Criss Payne was also featured. She was a Virginia modiste who turned to dressmaking because it was one of the few businesses a woman of color could legally start in the late 1800s. 

It wasn't all dark history though. The most joyous vignette was the dancing, floating mannequins Tom Ford curated depiction of the Battle of Versailles. This 1973 moment in fashion history where American designers traveled to France to declare themselves a design force to be recognized on an international scale. Designers Bill Blass, Stephen Burrows, Halston, Anne Klein, and Oscar de la Renta brought models and collections in tow to show the world that Europe did NOT have a lock on style. The event was recently dramatized in Netflix's Halston series starring Ewan Mcgregor.

While the fashion world as a whole is far from progressive. Seeing the talent involved (both as exhibit and curator) gives me hope that it is inching forward, however slowly. Giving credit where it was due, centuries later, at least is a start.

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Met Gala 2017 Exhibit: Rei Kawakubo / Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between

I'm sure you have already inhaled all of the Met Gala red carpet photos. Yes, Rihanna KILLED it in that 3D Rei Kawakubo Comme de Garcons dress. That dress was also in the exhibit that actually is the reason for what the industry calls "Fashion Prom." The reason it was so spectacular was that it was an example of the artistic, intellectual fashion genius that is designer Rei Kawakubo.

I am always more interested in the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume exhibit than the gala that celebrates it. Rei Kawakubo / Comme des Garcons: Art of the In-Between had about 150 looks, each more interesting than 95% of the dresses I saw on the Met Gala red carpet.

Kawakubo, in the last four decades that are covered in the show, changed how fashion was viewed. Instead of clothing designed to be flattering to the body, she redefined how the human silhouette was viewed by distorting it. Instead of constructed tailoring, she was one of the driving forces behind the DE-construction trend of the 1990s. The designer also introduced radical manufacturing techniques, pairings of near impossible materials and redefined fashion as an art form. 

This exhibit was certainly less theatrical in presentation than both the China Through the Looking Glass show and Alexander McQueen. I completely agree that the best showcase for these incredible wearable art pieces was to keep it stark and minimal to let the clothing shine. One assumes these are tough pieces for real people to wear, but many people at the exhibition preview wore their favorite Comme des Garcons pieces as fans. I asked one woman how it felt to wear these pieces. She said it was thoughtfully designed and surprisingly comfortable with hidden elastics and cozy fabric.

At the Met Gala, the winners of the red carpet are the guests who nail them AND manage to look great. Rihanna once again won the night in current Comme des Garcons. The color was great and showed off her legs. Nicki Minaj wore custom H& M that had Rei Kawakubo's face on it. Rita Ora wore a stunning Marchesa gown that was elegant but still looked edgy with the satin bows twisted and wrapped at unexpected angles. Katy Perry will no doubt earn the most memes this week. She took a chance on wearing John Galliano for Martin Margiela. This was avant-garde and unusual by a fashion bad-boy designer for an edgy label. However, the veiled look covered up Perry's usual charisma and was not flattering to her bangin' body.

Katy Perry was perfectly within theme though. Kawakubo mocked her own notions of good taste and bad taste, lumps, and bumps by designing outfits that were deliberately unflattering. It forced fashion fans to explore all of those cliches and appreciate each piece on its merits.

I really enjoyed Rei Kawakubo / Comme des Garcons: Art of the In-Between. Almost all of the pieces were new pieces at the museum for me. (Previous shows seemed to recycle looks from the past). The open plan, minimalist staging let you get up close to the pieces and really see how radical the clothing construction was.

Could you wear these looks? If they were not particularly flattering, would you still wear it for the artistic value?

Exhibit photos by Mariana Leung. Gala red carpet photos from Getty

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Manus x Machina: Fashion in the Age of Technology

You have seen all of the hyped up Met Gala outfits. Now take a look at the Manus x Machina: Fashion in the Age of Technology exhibit that inspired it all. Costume Institute head curator Andrew Bolton and Chief Design Officer of Apple Johnny Ive examined the link between crafting by hand and design innovation using technology.

In fashion, the old-school thought was that Haute Couture fashion, made by hand was the elite. A work of artisans, craft and art while machine-made clothing was cheap and for the masses. Meanwhile, every innovation in technology opens up new ideas and possibilities for taking design and fashion further, which is at odds with old-school thinking. Bolton came across a Chanel bridal ensemble (above) that he felt was a marriage of both which inspired the exhibit. Traditional Haute Couture techniques were employed in the construction, but the elaborate embroidery pattern consisted of digital design. That was hand-embellished on top.

Judging by all of the cyborg looks from the Met Gala, it was obvious a lot of people assumed that this was a futuristic fashion show. I found that while modern manufacturing was highlighted, the exhibit was more about different categories of embellishment. This subject speaks to me of course as an embellishment designer. 

Embroidery was celebrated. From classic thread work and hand knotted flowers to machine patterns. All forms of flowers from fabric manipulation of the Prada dresses to plastic laser-cut daisies of Dior to shaped metal flowers of Alexander McQueen.

Pleating as a technique was explored. Mariano Fortuny's dresses in the 1920's swept the industry in its time, then Mary McFadden in the 1980s. Issey Miyake took it further with flying saucer dress and flat garments that folded out to fully dimensional pieces. Raf Simons merged old and new with ribbon and tulle pleated skirts.

In the section on lace, there were examples of antique lace that was hand-knotted and crocheted. Then there were hand-cut lace-like patterns. In recent decades, designers are creating lace-like looks out of non-traditional materials using a laser-cut technique. Proenza Schouler created a ceramic appliqued on tulle dress that gives an appearance of traditional Guipure lace while Iris Van Harpen 3D-printed a lacy dress that looks like it morphed from a rib cage. ThreeAsFour's 3D printed creations were floating sculptures that looked like they defied gravity but still had a lace effect when worn.

The one thing I was disappointed about in this exhibit was that many of the most innovative pieces were just rolled over from the recent Beauty Triennial at the Cooper-Hewitt Museum.  I JUST saw the Iris Van Harpen iron filings dress, Maiko Takeda headpieces and Gareth Pugh drinking straw dress two weeks ago. If this is the premiere fashion exhibit of the year, it shouldn't look like a re-run. The Metropolitan Museum of Art had an entire year to put this together, they couldn't check in with the other museum?

Unlike the dramatic staging of the Alexander McQueen tribute a few years ago, the setting of this exhibit was minimal. Domed sheer scrim tents framed the key garments of the show. Some had projections of the embellishment in closeup swirling in the background. The soundtrack in the background was ethereal. The Met Museum always treats fashion as exquisite art. However, this reverence also makes it inaccessible and at times, elitist. The average citizen who hasn't studied fashion or cannot afford these designers might have trouble relating to what they see beyond an item on a pedestal. The best fashion exhibits inspire the viewer to want to wear it, want to design it, see how they can fit it into their lives.

Manus x Machina: Fashion in the Age of Technology will be at the Metropolitan Museum of Art until August 14th, 2016.

Check out Summer Fashion Exhibits Worth Travelling For
by Ms. Fabulous at Mode

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Best Looks from the Met Gala 2015

I have to admit, I awaited the procession of Met Gala 2015 red carpet looks with hope and fear. When the annual Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art first called the theme "Chinese Whispers" I could only imagine the offensive parade of misguided cultural appropriation that it would invite.

The morning of the China: Through the Looking Glass preview, I saw many an elderly, caucasian museum fan wearing awful polyester pajamas, qi paos from Pearl River Mart or other cheap souvenir shops from their travels. I didn't have much hope the night ahead.

Thankfully, the socialites and celebrities rose above. I was very impressed with how many people were able to express their love of Haute Couture and acknowledge the theme without going into poor stereotypes (that often are not even the correct ethnicity).

Met Gala guests were either red, embroidered or heavy on the head

The classic hue associated with Chinese culture was red. This was the most popular color of the night, and everyone looked stunning in it. Kris Jenner wore Balmain, Vanessa Hudgens wore a custom H&M dress, Amal Clooney was stunning in John Galliano for Margiela and Rita Ora wore Tom Ford.

Embroidery and embellishment were heavily featured on many gowns. Some took Chinese motifs literally, but may not have been executed in traditional silhouettes. Others were heavily embellished in beautiful techniques but stayed in spirit. Lizzy Caplan looked beautiful in a pink Donna Karan gown. Hailey Baldwin looked very modern in a custom short Topshop dress. Kim Kardashian had very revealing, but infinitely more flattering dress than previous Met Galas in her beaded Roberto Cavalli with a long train and architectural motifs. Bee Schaffer was in my favorite gown of the night from Alexander McQueen and Brie Larson wore Dolce & Gabbana. 

The 'IT' accessory of the night was clearly an elaborate headdress that echoed the traditions of Chinese Opera. I'm glad they were more sculptural, not too literal. The mannequins of the exhibit itself had very contemporary shapes to accompany the fashions as well. Philip Treacy must have been working overtime. Rihanna wore an enormous yellow ensemble by Guo Pei. Sarah Jessica Parker wore a Philip Treacy headdress but a custom H&M gown. Karen Elson's gold and red ensemble was from Dolce & Gabbana as was Tabitha Simmons.

So bravo socialites and celebrities. You have succeeded in looking awesome and culturally sensitive.
Until next year's Met Gala, stay fabulous!

Photos by Andrew Toth, Larry Busacca/getty

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China Through The Looking Glass, Appropriation or Tribute?

The fashion industry's greatest night will happen in a few hours. I was treated to an early preview of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume institute exhibit that will be the star of the 2015 Met Gala. China: Through The Looking Glass was one of the most spectacular fashion exhibitions I have ever seen.

The morning started with remarks by Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo, Andrew Bolton, the Costume Institute's curator and film director Wong Kar Wai, who also served as the exhibit's artistic director while reigning queen of Vogue Anna Wintour presided over the ceremony.

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The displays were stunning. Many of the museum's antique archive pieces of Chinese garb were presented alongside contemporary couturier pieces that were clearly influenced by them. Groupings included looks that took traditional motifs and embroideries as its muse. There was a beautiful room of pottery inspired gowns.

"Through the looking glass" is actually a paraphrased translation of a Chinese idiom referring to the reflection of the moon. There was a room set up to appear like a garden with a reflecting pool. The ceiling was a digitally animated moon progressing through its different phases while water droplets fell. The mirrored surface was the perfect stage to show all sides of the sculptured silhouettes of this gallery.

As a fashion fan, couture fan and Met museum fan, I loved this beautiful exhibit. However, as an Asian-American, I wondered where all of the actual Chinese contributions were? Of course, director Wong Kar Wai's participation in the exhibition was tremendous and heavily promoted. Within the exhibit itself, I found that 90% of the "fashion" looks were by Western designers. They were paired with Chinese antiques, but there was no discussion of how much China contributes to modern fashion. How many of the Western design labels who were celebrated here are produced in China? What percentage of their staff that designed, sewed, marketed and slaved to make their labels succeed were acknowledged? I have worked in all aspects of the fashion industry and Chinese talent has played a major part in every step. Where was this mentioned in the show?
Of course, no exhibition on Chinese designers could be without Vivienne Tam.  Hers is the most prominent brand to bridge traditional and modern pop culture with her innovative use of Chinese motifs. A few exceptions included dramatic pieces by Guo Pei and Laurence Hu. Otherwise, there were endless looks from Yves Saint-Laurent, Givenchy and John Galliano for Dior. While I can't argue with the beauty of the gowns themselves, John Galliano lost his position at Dior due to the embarrassment of his verbal attack using racist Asian slurs.  Design notes from Yves Saint-Laurent demonstrated how the brand appropriated the exoticism of oppressed classes using terms like coolie in their notes and slant-eyed racist sketches.

There was an entire gallery of how Yves-Saint Laurent's Opium fragrance influenced the popularity of the Asian aesthetic and a small gallery of Paul Poiret using Orientalism as his signature trend. The percentage of European and American designers appropriating Chinese culture was presented in a way that seemed to convey that the Chinese culture was only validated as a design force only after Western designers chose to appropriate it. This was in line with Hollywood's prevalent "Great White Hope" approach to movies featuring any other ethnicity as a theme (think The Last Samurai).

Actress Gong Li has also been heavily promoted in all the press releases leading up to tonight's Met Gala as co-host. No doubt there will be more Chinese nationals at this gala than ever before. However, how many Chinese guests has Anna Wintour invited before or will invite after this year?

Many of the most influential designers of today's fashion scene are Chinese, like Alexander Wang, Jason Wu, Philip Lim, Anna Sui. I saw a hat by Jason Wu, but otherwise, I did not see any other pieces representing these designers. How about the technology, the innovations, or current trends from Chinese designers that don't fall neatly into the cliche idea of "Chinoiserie"? One remarkable exception was a room dedicated to a huge gold ballgown by Guo Pei. This designer should soon be a household name for her mix of technology and old-school couturier practices. The dress took over 50 000 hours of manual labor to make.

There was a gallery of Anna May Wong, one of the very few Asian movie stars of any prominence from the early part of the 20th century. If one is looking for a gorgeous Asian classic Hollywood star to be inspired by, she would be the one. Unfortunately, she did not have much competition. There was a costume worn by her and similar gowns inspired by that era. While it looked beautiful, the thought that came to mind was how little progress we have seen for Asian actresses in light of how many years have passed since her heyday.

I'm looking forward to seeing the red carpet from tonight's Met Gala for China Through the Looking Glass. I'm hoping that there will be a contemporary representation of the history shown at the exhibit today. While artistic and fashionable, this exhibition was breathtaking, culturally, there is still a long journey ahead.

All photos by Mariana Leung

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Charles James, Beyond Fashion

What makes Charles James the most respected technician and designer of fashion?  The Metropolitan Museum of Art aims to explain this with their new exhibit, Charles James, Beyond Fashion.

While non-fashion fans may not be aware of his name and work as much as mega-brands like Chanel or Prada, anyone in the design field has probably studied his creations as a master class.  You may have heard clothing being described as "architectural" and missed the connection.  Looking at a Charles James dress, this is where you finally understand how a garment can resemble a scientifically constructed building.

The designer is most famous for his clover gowns created for special clients in his 40 year career, having first debuted in 1953.  The signature look is the way that the skirt drapes into a shape resembling a four-leaf clover.  For those of you who have never draped a soft, delicate, two dimensional fabric to cover a three-dimensional body, it might be impossible to understand what a feat of engineering this is.  As a fashion student, the legend was that these gowns were so impeccably constructed, they stood up on their own.

While I have seen many of these pieces in previous exhibits over the past 20 years, what was impressive to me about this show was the high-tech tools used to educate the viewer on the genius of Charles James.  There were large screens programmed next to each gown on the first floor gallery.  The screens displayed intricate 3D animations of each layer and pattern piece that went into each dress.
You might see each layer of horsehair, satin, lace, tulle and what their flat piece looked like (much like a Roschach test) and how it was draped and sewn into place to create the fully dimensional garment.  Robotic arms highlighted each area on the gown represented by the screen.  On the yellow satin lace gown (top photo) lace inserts were even lit from within to demonstrate its sheerness.  It also showed that in addition to the masterful shape of the lace on that skirt, there were hand-cut and stitched lace motifs added on top of the gown to give a more artistic layout and texture.

While the creativity or style sense of Charles James was undisputed. He saw himself as a problem solver and teacher.  The scrapbooks and studio part of the exhibit indicated he analyzed more effective ways to fit the human body, attempting to re-invent the modern dress form.

He was passionate about construction, innovative seaming, circle-cut gowns.  Many of his looks are iconic and never duplicated.  Some of his biomorphic designs were well ahead of their time, influencing other designers like Christian Dior, Zac Posen and Alexander McQueen.

Make sure to catch Charles James, Beyond Fashion at the Metropolitan Museum of Art before August 10, 2014.
photos by Mariana Leung

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Punk: Chaos to Couture

The city of New York roared a sartorial rebel yell last night with the opening of Punk: Chaos to Couture.  The legendary Met Gala thrown by the Metropolitan Museum of Art brings the most elite of the fashion crowd up the red carpeted steps to see the exhibit.

The punk movement was born in the mid 1970's both in New York at clubs like CBGB's and in London with Malcolm McLaren and then girlfriend, Vivienne Westwood.  The first section of the exhibit had reproductions of the gritty CBGB bathroom (I’m sure the socialites and Anna Wintour can relate to this) and simulation of iconic punk fashion boutique Seditionaries’ from Great Britain.  Degraded t-shirts with subversive messages, bondage inspired outfits held together with safety pins were in full display from Westwood and McLaren .

Speaking of safety pins, it’s hard to imagine punk fashion without the metal hardware.  If you haven’t overdosed on the volume of spikes in the retail scene the past two years, prepare for another onslaught.  Pins, studs, spikes, grommets, staples and logo embossed metallic trims were showcased on the designs of Balenciaga, Gianni Versace, Victor & Rolf, Givenchy, Moschino and Dolce & Gabbana.

Doesn’t sound very anarchistic?  This exhibition is the ultimate example of street style influencing haute couture.  There is a room of graffiti influenced fashion from the likes of Stephen Sprouse to Ann Demeulemeester.  The Alexander McQueen dress that was famously spray painted with robotic air nozzle guns on the runway was on display as well.

There was always the basic culture of DIY and artistic expression in punk fashion.  There was an interesting gallery, “Bricolage” that focused on style that was created from found objects, fashion from garbage from designers like Martin Margiela, John Galliano and Prada. While scholars referenced this as punks’ “violent” tendencies in the cutting up of materials, I saw this as contemporary and eco-friendly.  The dresses made from garbage bags, broken dishes and postage fashion is very “green”.  To me, I interpreted this as a message against mass consumption. 

The last gallery was “Destroy”.  Imagine it being screamed from the Nick Knight-made films all over the show featuring Sid Vicious.  I thought it would show lots of fashion and prestige labels being torn down from social upheaval throughout the decades.  Nope, designers like Balmain, Chanel and Yohji Yamamoto were displayed showing outfits with different techniques of distressed fabrics or deliberate sabotage in embellished holes.

“Destroying” incredibly expensive clothing with intent with the idea that it will appeal to the young market is not very punk to me.  The youth culture that started the movement was poor and was protesting the elite establishment.  However, the designers curated for this show are all incredibly successful, prestigious global brands that the 99% of the Occupy Wall Street movement cannot afford.  This also reflects the entire guest list attending the evening’s gala.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved this exhibit and these are all designers that I grew up idolizing.  In the spirit of the subject though, I would have liked to see representation from modern unknown fashion labels or designers who truly DID do business in a way that went against the grain since McLaren and Westwood. 

The couture “punk” references the themes of the 70’s and 80’s aesthetic but doesn’t ask what today’s “punk” is?  Would that be a coat made of Guy Fawkes masks?  Would it be a sculpted dress made of melted water bottles? Is it just a naked person wearing the ashes of their pink slips?  What is YOUR idea of punk?

   The exhibit runs until August 14th, 2013.

See the rest of my photos here:

(All photos by Mariana Leung)

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Red, White & Blue at the Met Gala

Monday night saw the glamorous and the patriotic grace the red carpet of the Met Gala. The Costume Institute's event brought out the top designers, socialites and celebrities to the museum in honor of the American Woman exhibit.
While the gentlemen overwhelmingly chose a classic tuxedo, the ladies on the other hand, showed the love of their country in American designers.

In Red:

Kerry Washington in Thakoon, Camilla Bell in (and with) Jason Wu

In White:

Gwen Stefani in L.A.M.B.(and hubby Gavin Rossdale), Donna Karan in Donna Karan.

In Blue:

Blake Lively in Marchesa. Oprah Winfrey in (and with) Oscar de la Renta.

Star Spangled:

Diane Von Furstenburg and Eva Longoria Parker in DVF.

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