YES, this exhibit review post is a year late. Sometimes time moves too quickly, I don’t make the rules. (I did see this year’s exhibit the other day, so you can expect that post a lot sooner (haha, am I lying? Nobody knows).) Thoughts below!
The 2024 Costume Exhibit at The Met, NYC
Absolutely loved the 2024 exhibit. The items were lit very well against a white background (why would they ever deviate from this idea?) and the entire exhibit made great use of the space. It’s true that I don’t (and never will) like when they display things too high up (see above photo), but since there were so many pieces to display I suppose I’ll allow it this one time.
I’ll never forget the Alexander McQueen exhibit from 2011 (Savage Beauty). I wish I had this site back then so I could have documented how gorgeous and well done it all was. (This oyster dress is burned in my memory forever.)
There was a “smell experience” also within the exhibit that was a good idea in theory but didn’t really land in execution. But that didn’t bother me (surprisingly?) because I respect effort.
Oldest line in the book
Love this idea
I’m patiently waiting for the day that The Met decides to do a wedding costume exhibit. Can. you. imagine. the. decadence. You’d need a whole wing of the museum to do it properly, too. None of this up-high nonsense. I want to see TRAINS. Can someone please put me in charge of something.
I didn’t realize cocktail aprons were ever a thing and now I need one (below).
Reminded me of how much I loved that Collina Strada bodysuit from the 2022 exhibit.
I don’t know if that’s supposed to be hilarious (above) but it is and I love it.
Bug dress!
Okay, I love this rose dress. I mean, I kinda already designed it but as a headpiece.
French ball gown, 1957
Why aren’t we all wearing more capes?
It’s wild that an H&M dress (below) is in this exhibit but I do love that it’s recycled from shoreline plastic waste. Considering how much harm this company has already done to the planet, this seems… dense.
There’s something so timeless about a Dior gown. Just the definitely of elegance, I love them so much.
I recognize these two Dior dresses (above and below) from the 2016 Manus X Machina exhibit.
A man whispered, “I’ll have the branzino” to his wife while looking at this dress (above) and I’ll be honest, I really laughed. So dumb. People do take this stuff so seriously sometimes, so it’s nice to hear people’s out-loud thoughts.
BRING BACK THE CLOAK.
I really love how much fun the Iris van Herpen pieces are. I remember seeing her work for the first time in the 2020 About Time exhibit (online, since it was 2020). I mean, look at how whimsical this one is.
There was an entire room devoted to poppies, which I didn’t love. I mean I get it, poppies are associated with remembrance and eternal sleep so it does fit the theme - but I wasn’t in love with the pieces used.
Will forever adore any sort of draping.
Sidenote: I loooove this wig coat with my whole heart.
Nothing better than a big bouncy dress and I love Oliver Theyskens. Look at this other breathtaking gown he made.
Would die for a Rodarte gown. I still have dreams about the one I saw from the In America: A Lexicon of Fashion exhibit from 2022 (seen here). Oh! And can’t forget this gorgeous dress from the Women Dressing Women exhibit in 2024.
Properly lit and positioned garments make me swoon, I’m sorry
Okay, look at how much fun this gown is.
Note: this exhibit was on view at The Met from May 10 – September 2, 2024.
And since you’re here, I’ll show you what the rooftop exhibit was at The Met for 2024 as well:
Petrit Halilaj, Abetare, The Met Rooftop, 2024
Petrit Halilaj, Abetare, The Met Rooftop, 2024
Petrit Halilaj, Abetare, The Met Rooftop, 2024
Past fashion exhibits I’ve seen at The Met:
2023 - Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty
2022 - In America (Part Two): An Anthology of Fashion
2021 - In America (Part One): A Lexicon of Fashion (as well as the updated Part One that a few months later)
2018 - Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination (not a full post, but a brief summary)
2016 - Manus x Machine: Fashion in an Age of Technology
I’ve also written about the Thierry Muglar exhibit as well as the Christian Dior one (both at the Brooklyn Museum).