The Great afterGatsby
GLAMOUR EXPO OF 30S FASHION AT MUSEUM OF COSTUME AND LACE, BRUSSELS
Texto / Jing Yi Foto / Giancarlo Rocconi - www.laevinio.com
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s one of the most important places for Art Deco and Modernism, it seems that there isn’t a more suitable city than Brussels for hosting such an expo. Stepping into the museum, the dimmed light, sombre ambience and the opening display make me realize that this is not about the fashion of the roaring 20s right after the first world war, when Gatsby’s love of life wearing bob and flat cut dresses, this is about the following turbulent inter-war years, when “the desire for sobrie-
ty was offset by the sophistication of the cut and finish, creating the glamourous look so typical of the 1930s”. Women are the absolute leading roles of the expo – it is almost entirely set according to the different occasions of women’s life back then: jour/soir, wedding ceremony or seaside vacation, even at the most intimate moment. Bigtime couture houses’ names pop out in various showcases, from the still thriving ones such as CHANEL and LANVIN to the short-
lived Madeleine Vionnet and local Belgian houses like Hirsch. Kid’s fashion is also included in some parts of the expo. In fact, claimed to be a kid-friendly expo, the little ones could not only dress up their own dolls with 30s style fabrics, but could also dress themselves up with authentic vintage garments at the top floor of the museum. A corner of the 1st floor is dedicated to Akarova, born in Brussels, “one of the leading figures in
avant-garde dance in the inter-war years”. Her artistic achievements extended also to the fashion domain as she created her own costumes and accessories. Talking about accessories, women back then wouldn’t walk out of their houses without a proper hat, pair of gloves and handbag; as for shoes, you will find that the character “Mary-Jane” with Spanish heels were still popular during the 30s. All these details contributed to complete a more elegance and sophisticated look of the era.
The expo ends with a stunning evening dress by Nicolas Woit, a Belgian designer based in Brussels. Looking at this 2014 interpretation of the glamorous 30s fashion, shall we say that the beauty of fashion may well lie in reincarnation?
Duration 3 April 2014-1 February 2015 Location Museum of Costume and Lace Rue de la Violette 12 1000 Brussels Tel: 02 213 44 50 Email: musea@brucity.be Entrance fee €4 for adults; €3 for students; free for children under 6.