Dear Shaded Viewers,
Fashion Museum of Antwerp, MoMu recently announced a series of new exhibitions, opening this October through February 2023, titled Exploding Fashion: from 2D to 3D animation, Mirror Mirror – Fashion & the Psyche and MoMu Collection.
Exploding Fashion: from 2D to 3D animation (8 October 2022 – 5 February 2023)
Showcasing a research project by Central Saint Martins, the exhibition explores how pattern-cutting in the 20th century fashion can be understood through the practices of making, unmaking and remaking.
Digitally reanimated museum objects are presented as moving images, visually narrating how the original designs were once made and how they moved on the body. For a visually-driven digital age, the study offers an examination of how a traditional design process can enter into dialogue with new concepts, illuminating haute couture and prêt-à-porter methods.
The designers presented in Exploding Fashion include Madeleine Vionnet (1912-1939), Charles James (1928-1978), Cristóbal Balenciaga (1936-1968), Halston (1957-1983) and Comme des Garçons (1973-ongoing); and their designs are from internationally renowned collections – including the likes of Palais Galliera (Paris, France), Victoria and Albert Museum (London, UK), and Kyoto Costume Institute (Japan).
Mirror Mirror – Fashion & The Psyche (8 October 2022 – 26 February 2023)
In collaboration with Museum Dr Guislain in Ghent, Belgium, the exhibition presents an in-depth examination into the connections between fashion, psychology, self-image and identity.
Mirror Mirror explores a universally shared personal experience on the relationship between our bodies and clothing. By questioning how contemporary fashion designers and artists challenge beauty ideals and exploring how clothing presents us with a mental strength and identity, visitors are taken on a journey delving into how fashion and personal style can be developed and created in isolation.
The exhibition displays artists such as Ed Atkins, Genesis Belanger, Hans Bellmer, Sarah Lucas, Paul McCarthy, Tschabalala Self, Cindy Sherman and Yasuyuki Ueno, in dialogue with creations by designers such as Balenciaga, Comme des Garçons, Molly Goddard, Kenneth Ize, Loewe, Issey Miyake, Prada, Simone Rocha and Walter Van Beirendonck.
MoMu Collection (8 October 2022 – Permanent Collection)
For the first time in MoMu’s history, the museum will permanently display a fashion collection, allowing visitors unlimited access to a variety of dynamic and inspiring archival materials, ranging from contemporary fashion to historical clothing, textiles and accessories.
Hosting an array of 35,000 pieces, the collection is the largest and most important ensemble in contemporary Belgian fashion. Shifting through eras, the collection will be presented in an annually rotated manner, continuously shifting between historical and contemporary pieces which will include creations by young designers as well.
The selection of designers presented in the first collection are Dries Van Noten, Martin Margiela, Raf Simons, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Van Saene, Helmut Lang, Yohji Yamamoto, Stephen Jones, Ann Salens, Yuima Nakazato, Noir Kei Ninomiya, Haider Ackermann, Veronique Branquinho and Patrick Van Ommeslaeghe. The work of students from the Fashion Department are also on show.