The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s costume institute hosts their annual fashion exhibition in which they adhere to a specific theme and highlight pieces that fit the theme. This year the theme was In America: A Lexicon of Fashion.
“The Costume Institute’s In America: A Lexicon of Fashion, launches a two-part exploration of fashion in the United States in the Anna Wintour Costume Center. It establishes a modern vocabulary of American fashion based on its expressive qualities.”
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
This exhibit is celebrating American fashion and its designers. The exhibition was set up with white paneled boxes and every American designer showcased their most iconic piece or the piece that best shows their style. All the mannequins were placed in the middle of the box with the garment and a word on top of their head.
“Instead of delivering a single, biting thesis, Bolton wants his exhibition to offer “a more nuanced definition of American fashion. In a way, when you walk around the show, it could be 104 different definitions, because each piece is a different expression, a different emotion.”
Vogue
It was beautiful to see all the different pieces and designers that made American fashion, but to me, it felt quite lackluster. Exhibitions are curated and transport you to that world, but this felt more like a catalog of American fashion. I feel the “wow” factor was missing from this incredible theme with so much potential. I hoped to see more historical pieces that made American fashion, rather than just seeing one piece per American designer.
However, I still recommend going see this exhibition because these designers should get all the attention and adoration. You can truly see the workmanship and design from up close while appreciating how far American fashion has come. The exhibition is very short and can feel monotonous, but I was still taken aback by the beauty of some of the pieces.
