Museums and Fashion exhibits:The line between education and being "in bed" with fashion corperations

As a history student interested in a career working in a museum, I found this article by the Wall Street Journal. Indeed, an article focused on museums in the Wall Street Journal indicates that the one of the arguments this article makes about the money being poured in the museums by the modern fashion industry; seemingly to same as a marketing scheme. Some museums see the funding as a honest chance to develop new exhibits while others, as one curator put it, as climbing "into bed" with corporations. While it is true, that clothes from every era in history can be education material for that time period...when should the cut off date be for using fashion to educate? Most an artifact be x number of years old before it can be featured in a museum? What would curators against this trend say to a modern fashion company sponsoring an exhibit of their clothes, but the clothes were all a few decades old? Would that be acceptable, since those items are no longer on the market? Or would it still be seen as a marketing ploy? Are the museums that do take up the offer to have an exhibit paid for trying to fight for patrons as much as the company by featuring new, hipper, objects? Or are they as well seeing dollar sings? Just today I saw an ad for the Metropolitan Museums new exhibit on fashion. This made me wonder in a new way, if popular events such as the Met Gala, where the Hollywood stars come and dress in crazy costumes, could also be a marketing scheme. This link will lead to the article and discuss these current issues of historical preservation and modern marketing further: Wall Street Journal Article: http://online.wsj.com/articles/are-museums-selling-out-1402617631
Link to the Met Museum fashion exhibit May - August 2014:http://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2014/charles-james-beyond-fashion

Simple garment, complex meanings for society: Stays in 18th Century Britain

This short article is well written and a good read on the social implications of Stays in 18th Century fashion in England. A Stay was a garment was worn by women under there dresses. It's job was to support the bust and cover it but also give it some "perk." This simple garment had practical uses, but as can be found here, very deep social implications and connotations. Everything from class, wealth, morals, honor und physical health, or the lack there of, of all these things. For example, a woman without a Stay was seen as loose. In this garment one can find profound insight into the ideas of femininity, from women themselves and from men.
The link underneath will lead to the article: http://18centurybodies.wordpress.com/2013/06/05/stays-in-eighteenth-century-britain/


 A picture of a Stay

Day 28: Sunny in Istanbul

While studying abroad in Germany I spent 4 days in beautiful Istanbul, Turkey over Easter break. Such a beautiful place. I loved experiencing the Eastern and Islamic cultures and not knowing 1 word of the language! Defineitly one of the top places I have visited in the world. Already on the flight my classmates and I were planning a return trip in 10 or so years :)

 

Roundneck sea blue cotton tee, light cotton pants with soft mustard yellow field and light blue and salmon octagon pattern, white and soft brown leather sandals, white winged earrings. 

 

There were many things I thoroughly enjoyed discovering and seeing on my trip. Hands down one of the things I fell in love with was the Turkish ceramics, tiles and Iznik pottery. If I was not a college student on a budget, I would have bought enough to fill a room. The eye pooping colors are stunning and the patterns are plainly intricate yet simple. I have decided someday I want my kitchen or bathroom to feature these beautiful creations.

 

 

Pictures taken at the Topkapi Palace (above) A definite must see on any visit. It is the largest palace in Istanbul and was the main residence for the Ottoman Sultans for around 400 years (circa 1465-1856). This a link to their website. Just google search of the whole city of worth the pictures! http://topkapisarayi.gov.tr/en 

 

 

 The Grand Bazaar of Istanbul, one of the oldest and largest in the world. 61 covered streets and over 3,000 shops. I sampled and bought some genuine Turkish Delight to take home. Excellently yummy. Pictured below.
 

 

Fashion of the Future!...according to fashion designers in 1939

Wedding dresses made of glass, dresses that can have pieces easily zippered on and off for morning, afternoon or evening wear and "another designer goes so far as to say skirts will disappear entirely" -

 this last particular statement is partially true; women today in western societies do often wear pants more often than skirts. The fact that this prediction seems "far out there" speaks for the ideals of the time period and shows it seems a common firm belief that women belong in skirts. Another segment I found interesting was the "morning, afternoon, or evening wear." While today we may change into something a little nicer before going out to dinner, the notion of needing to have three separate outfits for one day if foreign and a little too demanding. This segment shows there were expected and most likely practiced rules for what type of clothing one could wear and at what time of day. For many college students such as myself, jeans, a T-shirt and Converse do just fine.

When we say vintage fashion, we mean 3,000 old years vintage

The pants below were found in west China and date back to 1122-926 BC. In Archaeology, dating objects, especially when this old, can be tricky. A ballpark figure with in a couple hundred years is good. This short blog relates fashion reasons of why we adopted the trousers: to protect our legs and nether regions as we rode horses. Once we as humans invented the bridle we could harness horses and their usefulness in many new ways. Thus, of course, a fashion development was in order to celebrate. The blog below explains more. Reading it made me excited for my Near-east Archaeology class I have scheduled for the Fall when I get back to the States from Germany!

http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/30759

40's Fashion, Dior never befor seen photos of the "New Look"

Check out the link to see some great photos of the birth of Dior's "New Look." This new look featured a nipped in waist on coats/tops and a full skirt falling just below the mid calf. Number 9 is my favorite, a group of young women crowded around an older Mr. Dior giving him "thank you" kisses on the cheek...I would too :)

 

http://life.time.com/culture/christian-dior-rare-photos-birth-of-the-new-look/#1 

This second link is to "Voguepedia" or a fashion dictionary by non other than Vogue. It gives a wonderful description of the style, how it emerged and social conditions around it. In some regards the style was quite controversial. History and fashion go hand in hand.
http://www.vogue.com/voguepedia/New_Look

"Let them eat cake" - The designer behind the gorgeous gowns of Marie Antionette

"One of Marie Antoinette’s many claims to historical fame was her inordinately large collection of opulent, dramatic gowns. Her legendary wardrobe has been criticized and envied to no end. Today’s episode is about the woman who created much of that finery: Rose Bertin, a milliner with humble origins who became stylist to royalty." -Stuff you Missed in History


One of my very favorite podcast, "Stuff You Missed in History", recently recorded a story about the life of Rose Bertin. I love how this story shows how clothes are used by one person to make definite statement of power and rule, while for the other it provides their livelihood. Below is a link to the episode. While on my travels here in Germany and the Czech Republic I ran across more than one old museum, castle or library that had artifacts from Marie Antoinette's personal life. For example, I visited the famous Stahov Monastery and library in Prague to which Marie donated several gifts.

http://www.missedinhistory.com/blog/missed-in-history-rose-bertin/

 http://www.strahovskyklaster.cz/webmagazine/home.asp?idk=257