Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History

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Costume in The Metropolitan Museum of Art

• 
  Round gown, ca. 1795
  Italian
  Silk, linen

  Purchase, Irene Lewisohn Bequest, 1979 (1979.20a–f)

• 
  Corset, 1891
  Maison Léoty (French, late 19th century)
  Silk

  Gift of Miss Marion Hague, 1945 (C.I.45.27)

• 
  Evening dress, 1898–1900
  House of Worth (French, 1858–1956)
  Silk

  Gift of Eva Drexel Dahlgren, 1976 (1976.258.1a,b)

• 
  Day ensemble, ca. 1927
  Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel (French, 1883–1971)
  Silk, wool, metal

  Purchase, The New-York Historical Society by Exchange Fund, 1984 (1984.28a-c)

• 
  Evening dress, 1928
  Louiseboulanger (French, 1878–1950)
  Silk, feathers

  Gift of Mrs. Wolcott Blair, 1973 (1973.6a,b)

• 
  Ankle-strap sandal, 1938
  Designed by Salvatore Ferragamo (Italian, 1898–1960)
  Leather, cork, metal

  L. 9 in. (22.9 cm)
  Gift of Salvatore Ferragamo, 1973 (1973.282.2)

• 
  Evening dress, spring/summer 1938
  Madeleine Vionnet (French, 1876–1975)
  Rayon

  Gift of Madeleine Vionnet, 1952 (C.I.52.18.4)

• 
  Evening ensemble, 1939
  Elsa Schiaparelli (Italian, 1890–1973)
  Orange silk organza with metallic stripes and orange silk

  Gift of Mrs. Harrison Williams, Lady Mendl, and Mrs. Ector Munn, 1946 (C.I.46.4.10a–c)

• 
  Evening dress, 1939
  Jeanne Lanvin (French, 1867–1946)
  Steel-gray silk taffeta embroidered with metallic sequins and pink beads

  Gift of Mrs. Harrison Williams, Lady Mendl, and Mrs. Ector Munn, 1946 (C.I.46.4.18a,b)

• 
  "Bar" suit and jacket, spring/summer 1947
  Christian Dior (French, 1905–1957); Christian Dior Haute Couture (French, founded 1947)
  Silk shantung
  

  Gift of Mrs. John Chambers Hughes, 1958 (C.I.58.34.30)

  Skirt, executed in 1969 from a 1947 design
  Reproduction of a skirt designed by Christian Dior (French, 1905–1957); reproduction of a skirt designed for Christian Dior Haute Couture (French, founded 1947)
  Wool
  

  Gift of Christian Dior, 1969 (C.I.69.40)

• 
  Evening dress, ca. 1959
  Cristobal Balenciaga (Spanish, 1895–1972)
  Pink silk gazar with matching pink feathers

  Gift of Louise Rorimer Dushkin, 1980 (1980.338.6)

• 
  Evening gown, 1958
  Madame Grès (Alix Barton) (French, 1903–1993)
  White silk jersey

  Gift of Mrs. Leon L. Roos, 1973 (1973.104.2)

• 
  Beachwear (bathing suit), 1964
  Rudi Gernreich (American, born Austria, 1922–1985)
  Wool, elastic

  Gift of Betty Furness, 1986 (1986.517.13)

• 
  "Mondrian" day dress, autumn 1965
  Yves Saint Laurent (French, born Algeria, 1936)
  Wool jersey in color blocks of white, red, blue, black, and yellow

  Gift of Mrs. William Rand, 1969 (C.I.69.23)

• 
  Dress, ca. 1966–67
  American
  Paper printed with allover pattern of Campbell Soup cans in black, red, and gold

  Purchase, Isabel Shults Fund, Martin and Caryl Horwitz Gift and Hearst Corporation Gifts, 1995 (1995.178.3)

• 
  "Bondage" suit, 1976
  Vivienne Westwood (British, born 1941); Malcolm McLaren (British, born 1941)
  Black cotton with metal fittings
  

  Purchase, Irene Lewisohn Bequest, 2003 (2004.15a,b)

  "Bondage" pants, late 1970s
  Vivienne Westwood (British, born 1941); Malcolm McLaren (British, born 1946)
  Black cotton sateen with two-piece matching black wool over-kilt
  

  Purchase, Richard Martin Bequest, 2003 (2003.479a–c)

• 
  Evening gown, spring/summer 1991
  Gianni Versace (Italian, 1946–1997), for Versace Couture (Italian, founded 1992)
  Polychrome printed silk with multicolored rhinestone and glass bead embroidery

  Gift of Gianni Versace, 1993 (1993.52.4)

• 
  Dress, spring/summer 1997
  Rei Kawakubo (Japanese, born 1942), for Comme des Garçons (French, founded 1969)
  Gray and white gingham checked nylon and elasticine blend

  Gift of Barneys New York, 1998 (1998.516.1a,b)

• 
  "Airplane" Dress, spring/summer 2000 (remade 2006)
  Hussein Chalayan (British, born Cyprus, 1970)
  Fiberglass, metal, cotton, synthetic; L. at center back 37 in. (94 cm)
  Purchase, Friends of The Costume Institute Gifts, 2006 (2006.251a–c)

• 
  Dress, spring/summer 2003
  Alexander McQueen (British, 1969–2010)
  Shredded ivory silk chiffon and tiered silk organza

  Purchase, Gould Family Foundation Gift, 2003 (2003.462)

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The Costume Institute houses a collection of more than 35,000 costumes and accessories spanning five continents and just as many centuries, arguably the greatest such collection in the world. The matrix of The Costume Institute was established with The Museum of Costume Art, an independent entity formed in 1937. Led by Neighborhood Playhouse founder Irene Lewisohn, The Museum of Costume Art benefited from gifts from Irene Lewisohn and her sister Alice Lewisohn Crowley and from theatrical designers Aline Bernstein and Lee Simonson, among others.

No other museum in the world supports such an ambitious suite of exhibitions on fashion.

Related

Timelines (18)

• Arabian Peninsula and the Eastern Mediterranean, 1900 A.D.–present
• Central Africa, 1900 A.D.–present
• Florence and Central Italy, 1600–1800 A.D.
• France, 1600–1800 A.D.
• France, 1800–1900 A.D.
• France, 1900 A.D.–present
• Great Britain and Ireland, 1000–1400 A.D.
• Great Britain and Ireland, 1600–1800 A.D.
• Great Britain and Ireland, 1900 A.D.–present
• Iberian Peninsula, 1600–1800 A.D.
• Italian Peninsula, 1900 A.D.–present
• Japan, 1900 A.D.–present
• Low Countries, 1900 A.D.–present
• Rome and Southern Italy, 1600–1800 A.D.
• Southern Europe, 1800–1900 A.D.
• The United States and Canada, 1800–1900 A.D.
• The United States and Canada, 1900 A.D.–present
• Venice and Northern Italy, 1600–1800 A.D.

Primary Thematic Essays (5)

• Cristobal Balenciaga (1895–1972)
• Dress Rehearsal: The Origins of The Costume Institute
• Elsa Schiaparelli (1890–1973)
• Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel (1883–1971) and the House of Chanel
• Haute Couture

Other Thematic Essays (29)

• American Ingenuity: Sportswear, 1930s–1970s
• Art and Love in the Italian Renaissance
• The Bikini
• Charles Frederick Worth (1825–1895) and The House of Worth
• Charles James (1906–1978)
• The Chiton, Peplos, and Himation in Modern Dress
• The Chopine
• Christian Dior (1905–1957)
• Classical Art and Modern Dress
• Classicism in Modern Dress
• Contemporary Deconstructions of Classical Dress
• Dressing for the Cocktail Hour
• Eighteenth–Century European Dress
• Eighteenth–Century Silhouette and Support
• The Greek Key and Divine Attributes in Modern Dress
• Jacopo dal Ponte, called Bassano (ca. 1510–1592)
• Japanese Fashion in the Twentieth Century
• The Kilt
• Le Colis de Trianon–Versailles and The Paris Openings
• List of Rulers of Europe
• Made in Italy: Italian Fashion from 1950 to Now
• The Materials and Techniques of English Embroidery of the Late Tudor and Stuart Eras
• Nineteenth–Century Silhouette and Support
• Noh Costume
• Orientalism: Visions of the East in Western Dress
• Presidents of the United States of America
• Shoes in The Costume Institute
• Twentieth–Century Silhouette and Support
• Vivienne Westwood (born 1941) and the Postmodern Legacy of Punk Style

Maps (4)

• Europe, 1800–1900 a.d.
• Europe, 1900 a.d.–present
• World, 1800–1900 a.d.
• World, 1900 a.d.–present

Index Terms (47)

Artist

• Balenciaga, Cristobal (French, born Spain, 1895–1972)
• Chalayan, Hussein (British, born Cyprus, 1970)
• Chanel, Gabrielle "Coco" (French, 1883–1971)
• Commes des Garçons (French, founded 1969)
• Dior, Christian (French, 1905–1957)
• Ferragamo, Salvatore (Italian, 1898–1960)
• Gernreich, Rudi (American, born Austria, 1922–1985)
• House of Chanel (French, founded 1913)
• House of Worth (French, 1858–1956)
• Kawakubo, Rei (Japanese, born 1942)
• Lanvin, Jeanne (French, 1867–1946)
• Louisboulanger (French, 1878–1950)
• Madame Grès (French, 1903–1993)
• Maison Léoty (French, late 19th century)
• McLaren, Malcolm (British, born 1946)
• McQueen, Alexander (British, 1969–2010)
• Mondrian, Piet (Dutch, 1872–1944)
• Norell, Norman (American, 1900–1972)
• Saint Laurent, Yves (French, born Algeria, 1936)
• Schiaparelli, Elsa (French, born Italy, 1890–1973)
• Versace, Gianni (Italian, 1946–1997)
• Vionnet, Madeleine (French, 1876–1975)
• Warhol, Andy (American, 1930–1987)
• Westwood, Vivienne (British, born 1941)
• Worth, Charles Frederick (French, born England, 1825–1895)

Geography/Place

• Nineteenth–Century Art from the United States
• Nineteenth–Century European Art
• Seventeenth– and Eighteenth–Century European Art
• Twentieth–Century Art from the United States
• Twentieth–Century European Art

Material and Technique

• Textile in Silk from Europe

Object

• Accessories for Clothing
• Children's Clothing
• Coat / Outerwear
• Dress
• Men's Clothing
• Other Types of Clothing
• Shoes
• Suit
• Undergarments
• Women's Clothing from Central and North Asia
• Women's Clothing from East Asia
• Women's Clothing from North America

Subject Matter/Theme

• Spring
• Summer
• Textile with Seasonal Imagery
• Women Artists from Europe

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In 1946, The Museum of Costume Art merged with The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and funds were raised within the fashion industry to support it. The Costume Institute became a department in 1959. Diana Vreeland, who served as Special Consultant from 1972 until her death in 1989, created a spectacular suite of costume exhibitions—including The World of Balenciaga (1973), Romantic and Glamorous Hollywood Design (1974), The Glory of Russian Costume (1976), and Vanity Fair (1977)—that galvanized audiences and set the international standard for the opulent exhibition of costume, chiefly based on loan items.

The Costume Institute continued to present exhibitions that achieved the defining stature of the earlier Vreeland shows in developing analytical ideas about fashion from the Institute's collections. These have included: Infra-Apparel (1993), which examined the role of undergarments and clothing's propensity to disclose its underlying structure; Orientalism: Visions of the East in Western Dress (1994); and Haute Couture (1995). In addition, there have been monographic exhibitions such as Madame Grès (1994), Christian Dior (1996), and Gianni Versace (1997).

Today, The Costume Institute's 5,000 square feet of galleries (refurbished in 1992) display two exhibitions a year, based on the Institute's peerless collection. Since Harold Koda arrived to lead the Institute into the new century as Curator-in-Charge, exhibitions have continued to break new ground and include: Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the 18th Century (2004); Goddess (2003); Extreme Beauty: The Body Transformed (2002); and Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years (2001), guest-curated by Hamish Bowles, European editor-at-large of Vogue. Additionally, Andrew Bolton, Associate Curator (formerly of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London), has contributed his fresh voice with exhibitions such as Blithe Spirit: The Windsor Set (2002) and Bravehearts: Men in Skirts (2003).

The vast holdings of The Costume Institute run the gamut from the father of couture, Charles Frederick Worth, to the mother of chic, Coco Chanel; from '60s pop iconography and paper dresses (1995.178.3) to '70s punk innovator Vivienne Westwood; and from modern visionaries such as Elsa Schiaparelli and Rudi Gernreich to postmodern designers like Rei Kawakubo and twenty-first-century maverick Alexander McQueen (2003.462). No other museum in the world supports such an ambitious suite of exhibitions on fashion. Significantly, possessing the greatest collection of costume in the world is taken as a responsibility of exhibition, interpretation, and research by the staff of The Costume Institute.

As it would be impossible to imagine art in the twenty-first century in New York without The Metropolitan Museum of Art's presence as keystone and touchstone to ideas and sensibility, modern American and international fashion has come to be based upon The Costume Institute's exhibitions and research capacity as the preeminent institution of its kind in the world.

The Costume Institute, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Citation The Costume Institute. "Costume in The Metropolitan Museum of Art". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/cost/hd_cost.htm (October 2004) Further Reading Bolton, Andrew. Bravehearts: Men in Skirts. Exhibition catalogue. London: V&A Publications, 2003. Bowles, Hamish, ed. Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years: Selections from the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum. Exhibition catalogue. Boston: Bulfinch Press/Little, Brown, 2001. Koda, Harold. Extreme Beauty: The Body Transformed. Exhibition catalogue. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001. Koda, Harold, and Andrew Bolton. Chanel. Exhibition catalogue. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2005. Koda, Harold, and Andrew Bolton. Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the Eighteenth Century. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2006. Martin, Richard. Gianni Versace. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1997. Martin, Richard, and Harold Koda. Christian Dior. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996. Martin, Richard, and Harold Koda. Haute Couture. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1995. Martin, Richard, and Harold Koda. Infra-apparel. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1993. Martin, Richard, and Harold Koda. Orientalism: Visions of the East in Western Dress. Exhibition catalogue. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1994. Related exhibitions and online features Special Exhibitions (including upcoming, current, and past exhibitions) Dress Rehearsal: Origins of the Costume Institute The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion

These related Museum Bulletin or Journal articles may or may not represent the most current scholarship. Druesedow, Jean L. "In Style: Celebrating Fifty Years of The Costume Institute." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 45, no. 2 (Fall, 1987). JSTOR | PDF | Supplemental PDFs "Director's Note" PDF "Introduction" PDF Lawrence, Elizabeth N., and Adolph S. Cavallo. "Sleuthing at the Seams." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 30, no. 1 (August–September, 1971). JSTOR | PDF Moore, Deedee. "Inspiration & Information: The Costume Institute." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 30, no. 1 (August–September, 1971). JSTOR | PDF Newton, Stella Mary. "Homage to a Poet." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 30, no. 1 (August–September, 1971). JSTOR | PDF Cavallo, Adolph S. and Katharine Stoddert. "Fashion Plate: An Opening Exhibition for the New Costume Institute." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 30, no. 1 (August–September, 1971). JSTOR | PDF "The Costume Institute." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 30, no. 1 (August–September, 1971). JSTOR | PDF | Supplemental PDFs "Director's Note" PDF Nevinson, John L. "Clothes and the Historian." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 30, no. 1 (August–September, 1971). JSTOR | PDF Norell, Norman, Louise Nevelson, Irene Sharaff, Alwin Nikolais and Andre Courreges. "Is Fashion An Art?" The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 26, no. 3 (November, 1967). JSTOR | PDF Byrne, Janet S. "Fashion Plates." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 26, no. 3 (November, 1967). JSTOR | PDF Laver, James. "Fashion, Art and Beauty." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 26, no. 3 (November, 1967). JSTOR | PDF Weissman, Polaire. "The Art of Fashion." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 26, no. 3 (November, 1967). JSTOR | PDF Standen, Edith Appleton. "The Bulrushes in the Waves." Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New ser., v. 14, no. 8 (April, 1956) JSTOR | PDF