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A couple days ago, i had the opportunity to check out two relevant exhibits at a couple of favorite NYC museums, the Museum at FIT and the Forbes Galleries. Both museums have free admission and I have yet to see an exhibit at either that wasn't worth the walk-through time.
FIT's current offering is Eco-Fashion: Going Green, which is a fascinating look at ethical issues through the lens of fashion history. The exhibit covers the past three centuries of fashion, showing various garments which illustrate one or more of six thematic foci: recycling, fiber origin, dyeing/production, craftsmanship, labor issues, and humane animal products. Many of the garments from previous centuries exemplify transgressive practice, such as the shirtwaist representing the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, or the 1865 day dress dyed with toxic dye chemicals; not all, however.
Some of the antique pieces signified amazing repurposing ingenuity, like the Victorian men's dressing gown made from a crazy quilt, or the dresses which had been remade into newer styles several times over. A couple of the craftwork-specific highlights: a 19th-c. reticule made from an 18th-c. embroidered waistcoat (also representing repurposing), and an intricately laid-out 19th-c. feathered cape featuring dozens of types of feathers arranged to create a complex pattern (representing poor treatment of animals, unfortunately). Eco-Fashion is on display through November 13, 2010.
I primarily check out the Forbes for their Jewelry Gallery, which right now features an exhibit called The Vintage Woman: A Century of Costume Jewelry in America 1910-2010. This exhibit juxtaposes portrait photography of glamourous, successful women of all ages wearing stunning examples of fine-craft costume jewelry with displays of the jewelry itself. Much of the displays contain amazing parures featuring motifs from the utterly abstract to the natural and fantastical, from flowers to dragons and gargoyles. All of the pieces shown are truly excellent representations of jewelry artisanship, despite their glass stones in pot metal settings--nothing is what you'd peg as "cheap jewelry." A small exhibition but well worth the effort.
Some other fun exhibits at the Forbes include their massive collection of toy soldiers and model ships, the tiny hyper-realistic stone flowers, and highlights from their massive photography collection. Also, you can't miss the fun kinetic sculpture in the lobby. We watched it for about 30 minutes!
FIT's current offering is Eco-Fashion: Going Green, which is a fascinating look at ethical issues through the lens of fashion history. The exhibit covers the past three centuries of fashion, showing various garments which illustrate one or more of six thematic foci: recycling, fiber origin, dyeing/production, craftsmanship, labor issues, and humane animal products. Many of the garments from previous centuries exemplify transgressive practice, such as the shirtwaist representing the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, or the 1865 day dress dyed with toxic dye chemicals; not all, however.
Some of the antique pieces signified amazing repurposing ingenuity, like the Victorian men's dressing gown made from a crazy quilt, or the dresses which had been remade into newer styles several times over. A couple of the craftwork-specific highlights: a 19th-c. reticule made from an 18th-c. embroidered waistcoat (also representing repurposing), and an intricately laid-out 19th-c. feathered cape featuring dozens of types of feathers arranged to create a complex pattern (representing poor treatment of animals, unfortunately). Eco-Fashion is on display through November 13, 2010.
I primarily check out the Forbes for their Jewelry Gallery, which right now features an exhibit called The Vintage Woman: A Century of Costume Jewelry in America 1910-2010. This exhibit juxtaposes portrait photography of glamourous, successful women of all ages wearing stunning examples of fine-craft costume jewelry with displays of the jewelry itself. Much of the displays contain amazing parures featuring motifs from the utterly abstract to the natural and fantastical, from flowers to dragons and gargoyles. All of the pieces shown are truly excellent representations of jewelry artisanship, despite their glass stones in pot metal settings--nothing is what you'd peg as "cheap jewelry." A small exhibition but well worth the effort.
Some other fun exhibits at the Forbes include their massive collection of toy soldiers and model ships, the tiny hyper-realistic stone flowers, and highlights from their massive photography collection. Also, you can't miss the fun kinetic sculpture in the lobby. We watched it for about 30 minutes!
