Rock Style

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Boots, 1977. Blue leather with inset scrolls of white leather detail and high wooden heels. Worn by George Clinton. Loan, Collection of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Gift of George Clinton and Stephanie Goshorn-Clinton. (A0025.29a-b.1994).

More about This Exhibition With regard to "Rock Style," on view from December 9, 1999, through March 19, 2000, Philippe de Montebello, director of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, commented: "The Metropolitan Museum's collections and exhibitions—representing the sheer breadth of the past 5,000 years of world art—embrace the study and presentation of fashion history through The Costume Institute. This exhibition takes on one of the most recent—but, without doubt, also one of the most powerful—influences on twentieth-century culture and style, demonstrating once again that fashion remains a living art and that The Costume Institute continues to honor both the best of our history and the most expressive of contemporary culture." More about the Exhibition's Organizers and Sponsors More about the Exhibition's Themes Educational Programs

More about the Exhibition's Organizers and Sponsors
Philippe de Montebello, director of the Metropolitan Museum, continued: "Sadly, we open this exhibition without the person who initiated it, Richard Martin, who for six years led The Costume Institute with his extraordinary intelligence, unfailing eye, and mesmerizing style. 'Rock Style' is dedicated to his memory." The exhibition and this year's Costume Institute benefit—the annual black-tie dinner and dance known as the "Party of the Year," held on December 6, 1999—were made possible by Tommy Hilfiger, U.S.A., Inc. Tommy Hilfiger, honorary chairman and principal designer, Tommy Hilfiger Corporation, said: "I am very honored to be part of this unique and exciting exhibition and to be co-chairing the 'Party of the Year' with Anna Wintour and Aerin Lauder."

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More about the Exhibition's Themes
Artists represented in the exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum included Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Aretha Franklin, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie, Tina Turner, Elton John, Mama Cass, Stevie Nicks, Bruce Springsteen, Bono, David Byrne, Grace Jones, Madonna, and Björk. The exhibition was organized in five sections that addressed the synergy between rock music and fashion: "Poets and Dreamers," "Icons," "Brilliant Disguise," "Rebels," and "High Style."

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Educational Programs
At the Metropolitan, a variety of educational programs were offered in conjunction with the exhibition, including lectures, films, gallery talks, and other programs for students.

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