Fashion
Women Fashion Power
at The Design Museum
P
owerful women from past to
present, from Coco Chanel to
CEOs, as well as those who
reign in the worlds of royalty
and entertainment, have used
fashion to define themselves,
represent their unique personalities,
and proclaim their positions of
authority. Their individual style
choices serve as instruments for
self-expression. Suffice it to say,
fashion is an integral component
in the visual language of society.
As the title suggests, WOMEN
FASHION POWER, an exhibition at the
Design Museum in the UK, promises to
be electrifying and colorful. Visitors
will take a multi-media journey
through the display of historic pieces
of clothing, archive footage and
animated interviews with preeminent
women in fashion design.
By Renee Phillips
WOMEN FASHION POWER is designed
by the world-renowned architect Zaha
Hadid. It is co-curated by fashion
expert and commentator Colin
McDowell and Donna Loveday, Head
of Curatorial at the Design Museum.
According to the press
announcement, “WOMEN FASHION
POWER looks at how influential
women have used fashion to define
and enhance their position in the
world. The exhibition celebrates
exceptional women from the spheres
of politics, culture, business and
fashion – forward thinkers who
have had an impact on our wardrobes
and the world stage.”
Colin McDowell, one of the world’s
top fashion commentators, stated,
“This exhibition shows how women
have used different approaches to
dress in order to make statements
which are unique to them and their
personalities. Few of the women in
this exhibition would see themselves
as fashion plates or even strong
fashion followers. They create their
own wardrobes, not to be fashion
plates, but to demonstrate who
and what they are.”
The Design Museum, which opened
in 1989, is recognized as the world’s
leading museum devoted to
architecture and design. It houses
a full range of design, including
fashion, product and graphic design.
The museum has hosted exhibitions
showcasing some of the most
important pioneers of design,
including Paul Smith, Zaha Hadid,
Jonathan Ive, and Dieter Rams.
The exhibition, which runs from
October 29, 2014 through April 26,
Camila
Batmanghelidjh,
a British
businesswoman,
charity leader, and
the founder and
chief executive of
Kids Company
Architect
Zaha Hadid,
designer
of WOMEN
FASHION
POWER
Fashion
leader Zandra
Rhodes, one
of the women
in WOMEN
FASHION
POWER.
Pearl Lam, owner of Pearl Lam
Galleries, and founder of China
Art Foundation
PHOTO COURTESY PEARL LAM GALLERIES.
PHOTOGRAPH BY WILLIAM LOVEY
PHOTOGRAPH BY
GENE NOCON
2015, will showcase more than 20
contemporary women, such as Camila
Batmanghelidjh, Pearl Lam, Zandra
Rhodes, Kirsty Wark, Dame Vivienne
Westwood, Joan Burstein CBE, Shami
Chakrabarti, among other fashion
luminaries. They share their personal
style philosophy as well as their
most memorable fashion moments.
WOMEN FASHION POWER takes
a close look at the last 150 years
of women’s fashion. It reveals how
flappers, screen goddesses, hippies,
punks and power dressers of the
past have influenced trends of today.
The exhibition is enhanced by the
addition of a visual timeline that
illustrates significant political and
social milestones in 19th and 20th
century women’s history and charts
development of major styles.
Fashion icon Zandra Rhodes has
received international acclaim. She
is among those British designers
credited for putting London at
the forefront of the international
fashion scene in the 1970s. Her
inimitable signature style is
characterized by bold prints,
feminine patterns and a dramatic
use of color.
Rhodes has clothed and designed
for such diverse clients as Princess
Diana, Jackie Onassis, Elizabeth
Taylor, and Freddie Mercury of the
rock group “Queen”.
As more women are assuming
positions of authority and
leadership, WOMEN FASHION POWER
takes an important stance by
reassessing the role of fashion.
As the museum indicates, it is
important to note that fashion is
not merely a frivolous distraction,
it is “...an essential component of
the working woman’s toolkit.”
Visit the Design Museum’s website
at www.designmuseum.org
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