The curator at the Brooklyn Museum of Art introduced Jean Paul Gaultier yesterday as being “trés Brooklyn” which made the designer chuckle as he unveiled his retrospective at the museum. With 130 haute couture and ready to wear ensembles, this theatrically staged installation is a fitting tribute to the creative genius of Jean Paul Gaultier.
From the rooms filled with the spherical cone creations made famous by Madonna on her “Blonde Ambition” tour in 1990 (which Madonna graciously lent just for this show), to a huge gallery room filled with punk influenced fashion, this show is in many ways much more spectacular that the Met’s costume institute exhibitions of late.
Many of the mannequins, including the one of Gaultier himself, have real live faces that move. It almost made us jump when we first realized the mannequins eyes were moving and mouths were talking in the most realistic way imaginable. This somehow injected life in to each and every mannequin, taking them from something stiff and unmoving, to something cheeky, fun and clever, perfectly capturing the essence of the designer himself.
The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier. From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk. Brooklyn Museum of Art. 200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, NY 11238. Tel: 719 638 5000. October 25th 2013 – February 23, 2014
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