Gucci MuseoGucci 90

More than nine decades of Gucci evening wear, handbags and suitcases can be viewed at the Gucci Museo in Florence

24   Horizon September 2014

TRAVEL FASHION MUSEUMS

BACK IN STYLE

Explore bygone trends and creative highlights with a stroll through the world’s top fashion museums

/Text Josephine McKenna

David Bowie Is

30 2011Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty

60

GUCCI MUSEO Gucci 1921

GucciGucci Museo 14

Palazzo della Mercanzia

F ashion history has been having a moment in the spotlight, with significant ensembles being put on display in major museums. Last year, London’s Victoria and Albert Museum sold more than 300,000 tickets to the exhibition David Bowie Is, which displayed many of the flamboyant singer’s memorable costumes. Similarly, in 2011 more than 600,000 people lined up at New York’s Met-ropolitan Museum of Art to see the retrospective Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty. The exhibi-tion was one of the museum’s most popular ever, highlighting fashion’s wide appeal. And around the world, galleries specialising in fashion show their best wares on a permanent basis, offering a look at some of the most elaborate and recognisable outfits ever worn.

GUCCI MUSEO FLORENCE Gucci began as a small leather-saddle business in Florence in 1921. Today it is one of the world’s

September 2014 Horizon   25September 2014 Horizon   25

The Museum at FITImpact: 50

Years of the CFDA

The Museum at FIT’s Impact: 50 years of the

CFDA, was the first exhibition to celebrate the American fashion

trade organisation

IMAG

ES. S

now

boo

t: Zo

u Zh

eng

– Xi

nhua

Pre

ss/C

orbi

s/IC

. Pa

lais

Gal

liera

: Get

ty Im

ages

90Gucci Museo 2011

Patrizio di MarcoGucci

Hilary Swank Naomi Watts

Gucciwww.guccimuseo.com

THE MUSEUM AT FIT Fashion Institute of

Technology50,000

18

2002 London Fashion

Alexander McQueen Vivienne Westwood

Costume Society of AmericaExposed: A History of Lingerie

70Juel Park 1940

Dance & Fashion

100www.fitnyc.edu/museum

PALAIS GALLIERA Palais Galliera

Galliera Marie Brignole-Sale7,000 30

Dior Chanel Saint Laurent

leading luxury brands and Gucci Museo celebrates its more than nine decades of design, featuring day and evening wear, and bags, which fill three floors of the 14th-century Palazzo della Mercanzia.

“Our aim has been to create a destination expe-rience where people can appreciate our history and understand how innovative Gucci is today,” said Patrizio di Marco, Chief Executive at Gucci, in 2011 when the museum opened.

The museum’s permanent collection includes gowns worn by Hilary Swank and Naomi Watts, as well as photos and video of stars such as Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor sporting the brand.www.guccimuseo.com IM

AGES

. Dre

sses

: Fai

rchi

ld P

hoto

Ser

vice/

Cond

é N

ast/

Corb

is/IC

26   Horizon September 2014

FASHION MUSEUMSTRAVEL

Palais Galliera 7,000The Palais Galliera in Paris offers temporary exhibitions from its more than 7,000-piece archive

IMAG

ES. S

now

boo

t: Zo

u Zh

eng

– Xi

nhua

Pre

ss/C

orbi

s/IC

. Pa

lais

Gal

liera

: Get

ty Im

ages

SIMONE HANDBAG MUSEUM SEOULSimone 300 1920

CartierSchiaparelli Paco Rabanne 1968

The Simone Handbag Museum has a striking collection of about 300 handbags. Visitors can see a jewelled Cartier purse from the 1920s, a Schiaparelli bag owned by the Duchess of Windsor and Paco Rabanne’s 1968 chain mail handbag inspired by butchers’ metal aprons.

www.simonehandbagmuseum.co.kr

BATA SHOE MUSEUM TORONTO Sonja Bata

Bata 13,000

Sonja Bata, an architect and avid world traveller, had such an incredible collection of shoes that

it formed the basis for the Bata Shoe Muse-um. Its 13,000 exhibits range from Chinese bound-foot shoes and ancient Egyptian sandals to old snow boots.

www.batashoemuseum.com

ACCESSORY SPECIALISTS

September 2014 Horizon   27

IMAG

ES. B

eige

dre

ss: V

ictor

ia a

nd A

lber

t Mus

eum

, Lon

don.

Fas

hion

sho

w: N

eri F

adig

ati.

Q

ueen

Pao

la: M

ark R

ende

rs –

Get

ty Im

ages

.

Paris Grace Kelly

11 2 Fashion in France, 1947-1957

DiorBonbon

www.palaisgalliera.paris.fr

17 1930 20

Wedding Dresses 1775-2014 2015 3 15

Gwen Stefani

www.vam.ac.uk

MODE MUSEUM MoMu Mode Museum

2002 25,000MoMu

9 25MoMu Now

30Dries Van Noten2015 2 13 MoMu

www.momu.be

MUSEO DEL TRAJE Museo del Traje

16

10 2,500

1890

Paola Mode Museum Delvaux

A corded silk wedding dress dating from 1890 (right) at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum

Queen Paola of Belgium (below) visits the Mode Museum’s exhibition on Belgian luxury brand Delvaux

28   Horizon September 2014

FASHION MUSEUMSTRAVEL

IMAG

ES. B

eige

dre

ss: V

ictor

ia a

nd A

lber

t Mus

eum

, Lon

don.

Fas

hion

sho

w: N

eri F

adig

ati.

Q

ueen

Pao

la: M

ark R

ende

rs –

Get

ty Im

ages

.

1955Sala Bianca Pitti Palace

A 1955 fashion show at the Sala Bianca Pitti Palace in Florence was revisited by the Victoria and Albert Museum

New Zealand Fashion Museum

STYLE FILES

THE MUSEUM AT FIT NEW YORKThe museum at New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology is the city’s only facility dedicated solely to fashion exhibitions. Inside are 50,000 garments and accessories, the oldest of which date back to the 18th century. Through exhibitions, publications and public programmes, the museum aims to help the public learn about fashion.

One of its most popular shows was London Fash-ion, which in 2002 showcased the best of British style with works by designer Alexander McQueen, as well as Vivienne Westwood, who strongly influ-enced punk and new-wave fashion. Hugely popular with the public, the show also scored the museum an award from the Costume Society of America.

Among its current exhibitions is Exposed: A His-tory of Lingerie, which features more than 70 items and includes a 1940s nightgown by Juel Park, a Hollywood designer whose clients included Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor. Meanwhile, Dance & Fashion explores the relationship between the two art forms with more than 100 pieces on show. www.fitnyc.edu/museum

PALAIS GALLIERA PARISHoused in the Palais Galliera – once the home of Marie Brignole-Sale, the Duchess of Galliera – this museum’s exhibitions are rotating displays of stunning pieces taken from its archive. In the vaults are more than 7,000 items from 30 Paris couture houses including Dior, Chanel and Saint Laurent Paris.

The New Zealand Fashion Museum is an

online museum and charitable trust that

shares stories and images related to the

country’s fashion. The public is invited to

upload photos to the archive, with the online

exhibits ranging from historical swimwear to

contemporary evening gowns.

www.nzfashionmuseum.org.nz

September 2014 Horizon   29

IMAG

ES. M

ode

Mus

eum

: Boy

Kor

teka

as. P

unk c

loth

ing:

Bira

na E

. Hea

rd –

Cor

bis/

IC

20 Paco Rabanne Cristóbal Balenciaga Manuel Pertegaz

www.museodeltraje.mcu.es

THE COSTUME INSTITUTE Costume Institute 1937

35,00015

Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years PUNK: Chaos to Couture

2011Alexander McQueen Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty

www.metmuseum.org

The museum also features outfits from Princess Grace of Monaco and the Duchess of Windsor.

Until 2 November, visitors can see Fashion in France, 1947-1957. The exhibition pays tribute to this exciting time, when Dior launched his brand’s first collection, ushering in a new era in fashion. Look out for his original Bonbon dress. www.palaisgalliera.paris.fr

VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM LONDONThe fashion collection at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum spans four centuries and includes rare 17th-century gowns, 1930s evening wear and couture from the late-20th century.

Romantics won’t want to miss Wedding Dresses 1775-2014. Running until 15 March, 2015, the exhi-bition presents examples of this special-occasion attire curated from the museum’s own collection,

30   Horizon September 2014

FASHION MUSEUMSTRAVEL

IMAG

ES. M

ode

Mus

eum

: Boy

Kor

teka

as. P

unk c

loth

ing:

Bira

na E

. Hea

rd –

Cor

bis/

IC

THE MUSEUM AT FITExposed: A History of Lingerie

2014 11 15 Until 15 November, 2014

Dance & Fashion

2014 9 13 2015 1 3

13 September, 2014- 3 January, 2015

PALAIS GALLIERAFashion in France, 1947-1957

2014 11 2Until 2 November, 2014

VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUMWedding Dresses 1775-2014

2015 3 15Until 15 March, 2015

MODE MUSEUM MoMu Now

2014 9 25 2015 1 4

25 September, 2014- 4 January, 2015

NOW SHOWING

Mode Museum The Birds of Paradise

20131970

The Birds of Paradise exhibition at Mode Museum in Antwerp (far left) celebrates the application of plumes and feathers in fashionThe fashion of the 1970s punk movement was the focus for an exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2013 (left)

along with loans from designers and individuals. On display, for example, is the silvery outfit worn by Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, when she married Prince Charles, and the wedding dress with a splash of hot pink worn by pop singer Gwen Stefani.www.vam.ac.uk

MODE MUSEUM ANTWERPNicknamed MoMu, the dynamic Mode Museum in Antwerp opened in 2002. Starting on 25 Sep-tember, the museum showcases MoMu Now, an exhibition of newly added items to its 25,000-piece collection. While other fashion museums stress historic garments, MoMu focuses on contemporary Belgian designers.

Belgian fashion has evolved dramatically in the past 30 years, with Dries Van Noten as one of its biggest names. An exhibition put together by Van

Noten is scheduled to begin on 13 February, 2015, in which he offers insight into his creative processes.www.momu.be

MUSEO DEL TRAJE MADRIDMadrid’s costume museum, the Museo del Traje, presents the history of Spanish traditional dress from as far back as the 16th century. One of Madrid’s lesser-known attractions, the museum is a 10-minute drive or a short metro ride from the centre of the city.

Its collection of historic clothing includes 2,500 pieces, covering classic black mantillas and delicately embroidered vests from Spain’s past. Also on display are more modern works, made by Spanish fashion greats of the 20th century such as Paco Rabanne, Cristóbal Balenciaga and Manuel Pertegaz. museodeltraje.mcu.es

THE COSTUME INSTITUTE NEW YORK Founded in 1937, the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art has more than 35,000 pieces dating from the 15th century.

Previous exhibitions have run the gamut from Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years to PUNK: Chaos to Couture – themes that manage to get the public talking and queuing up outside. The 2011 exhibition Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty, staged shortly after the designer’s death, saw the museum receive record-breaking numbers of visitors on its final two days. This retrospective was so popular that it will also be shown at the Vic-toria and Albert Museum in London next year. www.metmuseum.org

September 2014 Horizon   31