Fairy Tale Fashion
Visiting FIT was a really great experience because it gave me the chance to have a look around some of the university and partially see what an American college looks like. My university also offers an exchange with FIT in second year, which I am extremely interested in applying for with the hope of one day studying in my favourite city in the world.
To fill you in on the exhibitions I saw during my time in New York, I thought I would start with my favourite out of the three, which was 'Fairy Tale Fashion'. The exhibition consists of the works of leading designers who have put their usual fashion forward oriented garments to a side and have instead, majestically channelled various fairy tales to capture a mixture of high end fashion and fictional fantasy. We were so lucky to have actually seen this exhibition as it had just opened whilst we were in New York on the day before we left! As a fan of fairy tales myself, especially those by Hans Christian Anderson and the Brothers Grimm, I could not wait to see how some of my all-time favourite designer brands had personified stories such as the Little Mermaid and Cinderella through their garments, filling the Special exhibition gallery of FIT with a magical atmosphere.
Walking around this gallery at FIT was something I could have only dreamed of as a child. Even during my childhood growing up with all these fairy tales, I knew from a young age that I wanted to go into fashion one day and to see something that collaborated two of my passions from my younger days and now was amazing.
Although each gown was remarkable in its own way and it was hard for me to even make a decision, here are a few of my favourite garments taken from the exhibition.
Rodarte Spring 2015
(The Little Mermaid)
Thierry Mugler ensemble, 1987
(The Little Mermaid)
(from left to right)
Yoshiki Hishinuma 2001
Alexander McQueen 'Platos Atlantis' Spring 2010
Giles evening gown Spring 2015
(The Fairies)
Zuhair Murad haute couture creation Spring 2015
(Sleeping Beauty)
1980s dress by Zandra Rhodes
(Cinderella)
Mary Katrantzou Fall 2012
(Beauty and the Beast)
Jean Paul Gaultier two piece ensemble Fall 2002
(The Snow Queen)
Denim: Fashion Frontier
Located in the Fashion and Textile History Gallery of FIT, Denim: Fashion Frontier, offers an exhibition surrounding a material that many of us wear on a daily basis and almost forget about the importance it holds in our wardrobes. Especially, on those 'I have nothing to wear' days, because really, anyone can pull off a pair of denim jeans if they want to!
The exhibition studies the history of denim, dating all the way back to the 19th century when the material first hit the fashion scene, up to the couture's of today that designers have made to channel a work wear casual trend to modernise a look once associated with the western culture or predominantly, menswear.
Throughout the exhibition you will find brands such as Levi Strauss and Co, Ralph Lauren, Elsa Shiaparelli and Yves Saint Laurent, who have all used the denim textile in an interesting or dynamic way to apply their own twist to the fashionable silhouette.
It also visually studies the different subcultures that have used denim to pave their identity such as the wartime female workers culture personified by the fictional character, Rosie the Riveter, the post-war 1950's American biker gang and the hippie culture with their bell bottom jeans and patchwork denim.
My favourite look was the similar jacket to the Storm Rider denim jacket that was famously worn by Marilyn Monroe during the filming of the 1961 movie 'The Misfits'. I thought the jacket was so iconic because through Monroe's wear of this garment, she led the way for many other women to experiment with their femininity and beauty by incorporating male attires into their wardrobes.
Marilyn Monroe on the set of the 1961 movie 'The Misfits' wearing a Storm Rider Denim Jacket.
Blue denim jacket, 1959 USA
Just a few more of my favourites....
from left to right
Sacai Spring 2015 (Chitose Abe) Japan
Chloe Spring 2015 (Claire Weight Keller) France
Dries Van Noten Spring 2015 Belgium
(From left to right)
Reproduction of Claire McCardell 'Popover' dress 1942 USA
Denim Jumpsuit 1942-1945 USA, gift of David Toser, 2007
Roberto Cavalli Spring 2003 Italy
Claire McCardell Beach Essemble 1945 USA
The Art of Style- Jacqueline de Ribes
So I was really excited to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art and I would be lying if I did not admit that one of the main reasons was to have my gossip girl moment on the steps, where Blair Waldorf aka Queen B and her minions sat and ate lunch. Apart from this obviously important reason, an even bigger reason was that the Met was also showcasing an exhibition called 'The Art of Style' in their Anna Wintour Costume Centre to celebrate the life of the international fashion icon, Jacqueline De Ribes. (You may have read my blog about this exact exhibition in 'Places to Visit in New York' so this was another thing I could definitely tick off my list!)
The exhibition consisted of approximately sixty dresses, both haute couture and ready to wear, that were worn by De Ribes from 1962 up to the present day to demonstrate her ever changing fashion aesthetic. Her fascinating gowns were the sort of clothes a girl could only fantasise about due to the use of gorgeous fabrics and detail that not only painted a picture of elegance but told a story about De Ribe's personal and professional life.
Her gowns were flourished in outstanding bright hues and vivid embellishment that were then complimented with gigantic rhinestone multi-coloured earrings to communicate De Ribe's bold and lively personality through the use of materials.
Here are a few images of my favourite gowns from the exhibitions!
(photo credits: own photography)
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