High Style: The Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection, open at the Legion of Honor through July 19, explores the glamour and sophistication of one of the world’s preeminent costume collections. These fashions worn by American women reflect the nation’s tastes and transformations over the course of the 20th century. This is a rare opportunity to view the evolution of fashion from 1910 to 1980 through more than 60 costumes, as well as accessories and related fashion sketches.
High Style captures key points in 20th-century fashion design with rare pieces from French couture houses, including examples by Jeanne Lanvin, Elsa Schiaparelli, Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel, and Hubert de Givenchy. The presentation also features pioneering American designers of the 1930s and 1940s such as Charles James, Elizabeth Hawes, Sally Victor, and Gilbert Adrian. The selection of haute couture and ready-to-wear garments showcases the stunning craftsmanship and flamboyance of fashion in this era.
Highlights include Schiaparelli’s iconic surrealist necklace of brightly colored tin insects from 1938, six masterfully engineered James ball gowns from the 1950s, and Adrian’s striking tiger-striped silk ball gown from 1949.
All images courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
