Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination

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Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination was the 2018 high fashion art exhibition of the Anna Wintour Costume Center, a wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MMA) which houses the collection of the Costume Institute.^[1][2][3]

The exhibition was held from May 10, 2018, to Oct 8, 2018. 1,659,647 people viewed the exhibit, making it the most visited exhibition in the museum's history.^[4] The theme for the Met Gala in 2018, May 7, was "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination" and the goal was to highlight the influence of religion and liturgical vestments on fashion from designers such as Donatella Versace, and Cristóbal Balenciaga. Heavenly Bodies was quoted to be a tribute to Andrew Bolton's exhibition, which displays fashion inspired by Catholicism and extraordinary treasures from the Vatican archives ( Bolton et. al, 2018), as religion and religious practices have inspired a lot of art work. Heavenly Bodies was a form of modern and contemporary perspective of fashion in the eyes of Catholicism.

About over 40 pieces from the Vatican were featured on display. ^[5] Many of these central pieces were on loan from the Sistine Chapel sacristy and have never been seen outside of the Vatican walls. The papal garb was not even included in the 1983 Met blockbuster, “The Vatican Collections: The Papacy and Art.” ^[6]

Exhibition overview

The exhibition features over 40 ecclesiastical masterworks,^[7] looks deriving from the Sistine Chapel sacristy ranging from the 18th to the early 20th century. Displays of these garments were showcased throughout multiple locations in the museum to "evoke the concept and practice of pilgrimage."^[8] Garments in the Mary and Michael Jaharis Galleries of Byzantine Art were inspired by the religious art and architecture of the Byzantine era. Fabric colors represent different forms of power; for example, the pope wears white, indicating the purity of the soul; cardinals wear red for their authority, and the bishops wear purple for their leadership and the protection they offer. Therefore, fashion, concerning catholic imagination, represents the culture of the power and rules of that societal influence on others.^[9]

The exhibition was divided into two locations: The Met Fifth Avenue and The Met Cloisters. The Met Fifth Avenue featured a range of couture and ready to wear pieces from designers who were inspired by Catholic art, architecture, and liturgy. It included garments from renowned designers such as Dolce and Gabbana, Versace, Jean Paul Gaultier, and many others.

Priest David Tracy contributed an essay to the catalogue of the exhibition.

Met Gala

Although Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination was its own exhibition, the show was a part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art that form a costume ball every year. The reasoning behind the yearly tradition is "dedicated to raising funds for the Met’s Costume Institute." as Vogue states. While raising money for the institute, the gala does not miss out on a different theme every year to showcase various costume and fashion interpretations of the theme given, resulting in Heavenly Bodies being the 2018 theme.

The theme of Heavenly Bodies for the Met was a powerful theme that had tons of praise. Vogue states, "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination, Designed to create a dialogue between fashion and the masterworks of religious art in the museum’s holdings, the show will be presented in a trinity of locations." Celebrities pay tribute to the theme by collaborating with designers to make a one-of-a-kind piece to wear to the Met. Some honorable mentions include Rihanna's stunning white dress and headpiece, Ariana Grande's over-the-top dress, and lastly, Blake Lively's big, red, and silver dress.

Exhibition designers

The designers who contributed to the exhibition included:^[10]

• A.F.Vandevorst
• Azzedine Alaïa
• Cristobal Balenciaga
• Geoffrey Beene
• Marc Bohan (for House of Dior)
• Thom Browne
• Roberto Capucci
• Jean-Charles de Castelbajac
• Gabrielle Chanel
• Sorelle Fontana
• Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana (for Dolce & Gabbana)
• John Galliano (for House of Dior and his own label)
• Jean Paul Gaultier
• Robert Goossens (for Chanel and Yves Saint Laurent)
• Craig Green
• Madame Grès (Alix Barton)
• Demna Gvasalia (for Balenciaga)
• Rosella Jardini (for Moschino)
• Stephen Jones
• Christian Lacroix
• Karl Lagerfeld (for House of Chanel)
• Jeanne Lanvin
• Shaun Leane
• Henri Matisse
• Claire McCardell
• Laura and Kate Mulleavy (for Rodarte)
• Thierry Mugler
• Rick Owens
• Carli Pearson (for Cimone)
• Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli (for Valentino)
• Pierpaolo Piccioli (for Valentino)
• Stefano Pilati (for Saint Laurent)
• Gareth Pugh
• Yves Saint Laurent
• Elsa Schiaparelli
• Raf Simons (for his own label and House of Dior)
• Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren (for Viktor & Rolf)
• Olivier Theyskens
• Riccardo Tisci
• Jun Takahashi (for Undercover)
• Thea Bregazzi and Justin Thornton (for Preen)
• Philip Treacy
• Duke Fulco di Verdura (for Gabrielle Chanel)
• Donatella Versace (for Versace)
• Gianni Versace
• Valentina

Religion and Fashion

Some designers have hosted their shows in crutches, cathedrals, or inspiration from nuns. Using religion as an inspiration for fashion has brought backlash for some designers. Jean Paul Gaultier’s SS07 Couture was an ode to Catholicism. Some designers may find Catholicism and Catholic art as a symbol and parallel to decadence, lavishness, and reference to the Renaissance period. Some designers are more subtle with their references, like using the color Cardinal red in their pieces. This color is associated with Christ’s death. Designs seen in Dolce & Gabbbana’s autumn/winter 2013 line also have an Italian Catholic inspiration by using black, elegant lace and jewelry with crucifixes. Some artists like Beyoncé and Kim Kardashian have also had pregnancy photoshoots in which their clothing alludes to the image of the Virgin Mary.^[11] The event featured around 150 pieces and in those were a papal vestment that was lent by the Sistine Chapel. During the red carpet many wore crowns, wings and Vatican yellow and papel red in order to have religion into their attire.^[12]

References