Four times a year, Paris welcomes onto its famed runways some of the most gifted and creative fashion designers from around the globe. While each collection showcases the individual themes and artistic visions of the designers, the runways also serve as a lens through which the designers analyze the relationship between fashion and art.
From the simple elegance of Chanel to the dizzying extravagance of Dior, the displays at "Fashion Show: Paris Collections 2006" at the Museum of Fine Arts strives to illustrate the purpose of and the motives behind each designer's collection. In the world of high fashion, clothes offer more than the comfort of a favorite pair of jeans or a fuzzy sweater. Clothing designed for the runway defies preconceived notions of fashion and seeks to challenge the role of fashion as defined by society. These designers blur the line between fashion and art, testing the limits of fashion itself.
In collaboration with 10 fashion houses, "Fashion Show: Paris Collections 2006," on display until Mar. 18, 2007, features eight to 10 designs per designer from the 2006 runways. The exhibit begins with displays from the Fall 2006 ready-to-wear lines (clothes that the designer will recreate in standard sizes for sale in selected shops). Designers with ready-to-wear lines include Yohji Yamamoto, the duo Viktor & Rolf, Hussein Chalayan, Rochas and Azzedine Ala?a.
Maison Martin Margiela's "artisanal collection," comprised of clothes created by hand of completely reworked or transformed fabrics, accessories, and clothing, serves as an essential aid in examining fashion as art. The exhibit culminates with the couture collections from Dior, Valentino, Christian Lacroix and Chanel. These collections contain "made-to-measure" clothes: following the runway show, a designer will recreate a custom design to fit the buyer. For the designers of couture, there are few limits. One look at the intense reds and dramatic structural designs of Dior and you will question what does, in fact, define "fashion."
While the clothes themselves are wonders, the design of the exhibit heightens the visual experience. The curators at the MFA designed the displays so that each mimics the environment in which the designer originally presented the collection. From the subdued tones of the Yamamoto display to the glossy red walls and mirrored floor of the dramatic Dior display, the exhibit captures the "feel" of each collection.
Perhaps the most eccentric and playful of all is the Christian Lacroix display; scattered bright red flowers decorate the platform, while a huge black and white wall mural of the countryside serves as the background. A mini disco ball shoots rays of light in every direction.
A state-of-the-art sound system confines various musical scores to the areas of their respective displays so that the tunes of Dior will not interfere with your appreciation of the Valentino collection.
Videos of the 2006 runway shows accompany the music and carefully crafted displays of all the collections, with the exception of Azzedine Ala?a. Since designers devote enormous attention to the themes of their shows, diligently working to achieve the perfect impression with makeup, accessories and an overall "look" for the collection, a few minutes spent watching the runway films will provide a much deeper understanding of each designer's goal. The films prove that fashion is not solely about the design and craftsmanship of the clothes themselves, but that both the presentation of the clothes and the visual of how they come to life also play a major role in understanding the purpose of fashion.
The descriptions of the collections, provided by the MFA, state that Yamamoto's designs reflect fluidity; they are meant to move with the female body. Simply looking at the clothes draped on the mannequins does not do justice to Yamamoto's genius; in order to comprehend, you must see how the drapes and loose layers move with the models and how this movement creates volume and a sense of lightness. Similarly, Olivier Theyskens (a designer for Rochas) drew his inspiration from chimney sweeps and billowy clouds of smoke. The clothes come to life on film; gowns flutter and float as the models walk the runway. Yet in the Christian Lacroix collection, the runway film is definitely secondary because the clothes themselves are so entrancing. The intricate embroidery and attention to the tiniest of details illustrates the amount of time and thought that goes into each and every piece of clothing.
With such a wonderful collection of clothes from today's top designers, "Fashion Show" is one exhibit at the MFA definitely worth your T fare, especially since admission is free to all Tufts students. Although the clothes alone may mesmerize you, do try to read both the information about the designers as well as the book "Fashion Show" on display. Both will provide a thorough insight into what inspires the designers to create such amazing works of art.
