Confirmed: Costume Institute Turns to China for 2015
By Laura Gurfein Sep 12, 2014, 11:00am EDT
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John Galliano for Dior, fall/winter 1997-1998; Photo by Nick Knight, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, via WWD
Turns out like the rumors are true: WWD confirms that the spring 2015 Costume Institute exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art will be dedicated to Chinese fashion—and so much more. "Chinese Whispers: Tales of the East in Art, Film and Fashion" is a collaborative effort with the museum's Department of Asian Art, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary—so the exhibit will cover both the Anna Wintour Costume Center and the Chinese Galleries.
The latter exhibition space will feature more than 100 ready-to-wear pieces and couture gowns from Chinese designers, ranging from the 1700s to today, while the Costume Center will display Chinese-inspired pieces from the likes of Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen, Tom Ford for Yves Saint Laurent, Jean Paul Gaultier, Marc Jacobs for Louis Vuitton, and Valentino's Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli.
"The West's interest in China seems to be intensifying, and China's cultural influence on the West also seems to have reached new heights," Costume Institute curator Andrew Bolton told the paper about staging the exhibit now.
"Chinese Whispers" will open to the public on May 7th, 2015 and coincide with the annual, star-studded Met Ball gala. Co-chairs for the benefit include Anna Wintour, Jennifer Lawrence, Wendi Murdoch, Chinese actress Gong Li, and Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer (her company is sponsoring the exhibit, with additional funds coming from Condé Nast).
And as for the exhibit's name? WWD writes that it's from an old "parlor game" played in the time of the British Empire that's similar to Telephone. "It's a nice way to explain that a lot of the motifs and cultural images are often lost in translation," Bolton added.
· Costume Institute to Focus on China [WWD]
· From Ball Gowns to Mourning: The Met's Next Fashion Exhibit [Racked NY]
· Inside the Anna Wintour Costume Center's Charles James Exhibit [Racked NY]
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