I am a pushover for costume exhibits and Christian Lacroix’s Histoires de Mode nearly knocked me to the ground. Give me some flounces, frills and feathers and I am a happy camper. Lacroix provided them in spades.
The new show at the Musee de Decoratifs is one of the best I’ve seen in years. The museum in the past few seasons has had some innovative, clever costume shows including the Jean Paul Gaultier/Regine Chopinot: Le DéFilé and Balenciaga Paris shows, but thanks to Lacroix, it has surpassed itself by light years with this eye popping visual orgy of color, pattern, and exquisite craftsmanship.
Consisting of 30 vitrines on 2 floors, the timeline is from the late 1800’s till the present. The almost overwhelming exhibit starts with the basics, the first 2 vitrines only showing white clothes on hangers on a simple rolling rack. Then the carnival of color and texture starts in the following room with a series of categories with names of patchwork, historique, noir, lame, fleurs coloeurs, texture, and mixages and each one was fantastically showing off it’s name. The usual suspect designers including Givenchy, Paco Rabanne, Yves St. Laurent, Chanel, Vionnet, Dior, Pierre Cardin, Balenciaga, Lanvin, Gres, Martin Mangiela, and many more too numerous to mention, were well represented.
The cherry on the cake of the exhibit was 3 of Lacroix’s creations in front of each vitrine, thus still giving him a much deserved retrospective of his master works and showing his genius. I tried singling out some favorites/standouts but it was like trying to pick your favorite color M&M.
Lacroix himself was there giving interviews, surprisingly dressed in a dark jacket and jeans, as I was expecting him to dress as flamboyantly as his creations.
In addition to being one of the most brilliant designers and couturiers of our time, Lacroix can now add great curator to his resume.
Christian Lacroix, Histories de Mode
Le Musee de Decoratifs
107 Rue de Rivoli
Tuesdays to Fridays from 11AMto 6PM
Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m
Open till 9PM on Thursdays.Closed on Mondays
Metro: Palais Royal/Musee de Louvre
Till April 27,2008
http://www.lesartsdecoratifs.fr/
Lacroix,the genius
I am pleased as punch to announce the launch of Eye Prefer Paris Tours, which are 3-hour walking tours I will personally be leading. The Eye Prefer Paris Tour
includes many of the places I have written about such as small museums & galleries, restaurants, cafes & food markets, secret addresses, fashion & home boutiques, parks, and much more.
I look forward to meeting you on my tours and it will be my pleasure and delight to show you my insiders Paris.
Check it out at www.eyepreferparistours.com
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