Wheels: A Driver’s Dream

This summer, there’s a good chance we may be wearing qipaos, cheongsams and Zhongshan suits—even if we’ve never heard of them before. The reason has nothing to do with visiting diplomats from China or the newest blockbuster; instead, look to the remarkable influence of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute (and its annual benefit gala) on fashion trends.

The museum has become the “ideal place to explore the rich complexity of the innovative work of a designer like Charles James,” says the museum’s CEO, Thomas Campbell, referring to last year’s popular show Charles James: Beyond Fashion. The exhibit not only resurrected the name and reputation of the great American couturier but reminded viewers of how James’ sculptural creations could flatter the body.

True, the Costume Institute has been putting on fashion-related exhibitions for over 50 years, including such landmark shows as The World of Balenciaga, Rock Style and Extreme Beauty: The Body Transformed. But its beautifully curated displays have risen to prominence in the last decade, and the result has been a renewed two-way conversation between consumers and the fashion industry. For example, by August 2011, a record-shattering 661,000 visitors had taken in the aptly-named Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty, leading to a newfound understanding of—or for some, an introduction to—the intricate creations of the late British designer.

Meanwhile, the Met’s annual benefit has become one of the most photographed events of the year, attracting such superstars as David Bowie, Madonna and Sarah Jessica Parker, who wowed the crowd last year in an extravagantly trained black-and-white dress by Oscar de la Renta. (The benefits are overseen by Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, for whom the Met’s Anna Wintour Costume Center is named.) This year, expect Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence to stand out (literally and figuratively) on the Met’s steps as one of the co-chairs of the May 4 benefit, which precedes the opening of China: Through the Looking Glass. The show will run from May 5 to August 16.

Under the guidance of curators Harold Koda and Andrew Bolton, and the artistic direction of filmmaker Wong Kar-wai, this groundbreaking exhibition will feature more than 100 pieces of ready-towear, avant-garde clothing and haute couture (including pieces by Giorgio Armani, Tom Ford, Marc Jacobs, Karl Lagerfeld, Paul Smith, Yves St. Laurent and Vivienne Westwood) set alongside Chinese costumes, paintings, porcelains and film stills.

“From the earliest period of European contact with China in the 16th century, the West has been enchanted with imagery from the East, providing inspiration for many designers, whose fashions are infused at every turn with romance, nostalgia and make-believe,” says Bolton, who is eager to take all of us through this particular looking glass to provide new reflections on the world of Easterninspired fashion.

Start making room in your closet.

THROUGH THE MET’S LOOKING GLASS

FASHION AS ART OR ART AS FASHION? BY BRIAN SCOTT LIPTON