A survey of American fashion and its diverse identities, L'OFFICIEL looks inside the new Costume Institute exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art with Curator in Charge Andrew Bolton.

Quilting is a centuries-old global tradition that then took root in early America and has been ingrained in U.S. culture ever since. From the colonial quilts of the late 17th and early 18th centuries to the coded blankets made by enslaved Black women to assist those traveling the <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/did-quilts-hold-codes-to-the-underground-railroad" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Underground Railroad</a>, quilting has long been a means of storytelling, shaping the history and literal fabric of this country.
One quilt in particular is a focal point of the newly opened Costume Institute exhibition, <a href="https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2021/in-america" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In America: A Lexicon of Fashion</a>, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/patchwork-trend-depop-diy-tom-ford-celine" target="_blank" rel="noopener">patchwork</a> creation began by Adeline Harris Sears in 1856 uses a Tumbling Blocks pattern that creates a cube-like repetition covering the quilt with each box consisting of unique diamonds of fabric. With the quilt on view in the Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch Gallery, it&rsquo;s this formation that inspired the exhibition&mdash;both its physical layout and the symbolism behind stitching together various aspects of the American fashion identity to create one whole. The metaphor is driven home with a 1984 quote by Jesse Jackson that welcomes visitors at the opening of the exhibition upstairs that reads, &ldquo;America is not like a blanket&mdash;one piece of unbroken cloth, the same color, the same texture, the same size. America is more like a quilt&mdash;many patches, many pieces, many colors, many sizes, all woven and held together by a common thread.&rdquo;

In the exhibition, each designer is shown within their own encasement, both singling out their distinctive style and creating a sense of camaraderie with the neighboring pieces. &ldquo;If you saw this from above, it would look like the quilt with the Tumbling Blocks print&mdash;each designer has their own square or patch,&rdquo; says Andrew Bolton, the Costume Institute&rsquo;s Wendy Yu Curator in Charge.&nbsp;
Bolton was responsible for gathering the approximately 100 pieces included in the exhibition, which range from vintage sportswear from well-remembered American-born designers like Bonnie Cashin and Geoffrey Beene to contemporary ensembles from names like <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion-week/prabal-gurung-spring-summer-2022-collection-nyfw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prabal Gurung</a> and even <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/social-media-account-rihanna-runway-street-style-looks-twitter" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rihanna</a>, which reflect the diverse face of American fashion today. According to Bolton, about 40 percent of the around 80 designers featured are people of color, making this exhibition one of the most inclusive the Costume Institute has seen yet. And it&rsquo;s their creations and perspectives that drives the exhibition&rsquo;s quest in defining American fashion in today&rsquo;s world&mdash;with calls for racial equality, women&rsquo;s rights, and numerous other social justice issues impacting the U.S., these matters are synthesized by designers and creatives into their work.&nbsp;

&ldquo;The show evolved as a patchwork of the designers, hearing their voices, hearing their stories, so a lot of the issues of diversity and inclusivity are coming from them,&rdquo; Bolton explains. &ldquo;They're dealing with really sensitive issues of equity, diversity, inclusivity, and sustainability. It's really a portrait of where America is at the moment in terms of fashion, and the issues that they're dealing with are represented in their work.&rdquo;
Bolton also notes that a number of younger designers are on display in the exhibition, stating that this rising generation are &ldquo;contributing to the new renaissance of American fashion.&rdquo; Among these are Eli Russell Linnetz, whose brand ERL is represented by a gray knit interpretation of a baseball uniform that comments on collegiate Americana (the brand was also worn by <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/rihanna-2021-met-gala-after-party-red-carpet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A$AP Rocky to the Met Gala</a>), and Tremaine Emory, who explores the Black American experience through his brand Denim Tears.

Another element that adds a connective thread throughout the exhibition are the vocabulary words that are assigned to each display. Bolton wanted to explore American fashion not only through its visual identity, but also through its emotional impact. Therefore, the exhibition is organized into 12 sections aligning with an emotional quality: nostalgia, belonging, delight, joy, wonder, affinity,&nbsp;confidence, strength, desire, assurance, comfort, and consciousness. Within these sections, each individual look is given a word that further expresses the overarching emotion.&nbsp;
With this in mind, other highlights from In America include the magenta plaid silk taffeta <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/christopher-john-rogers-tiffany-interview" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christopher John Rogers</a> gown that greets visitors as they descend the stairs into the Costume Institute&rsquo;s main gallery embodying Exuberance; a trio of sparkling gold outfits by Norman Norell (Harmony), <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion-week/michael-kors-40th-anniversary-fall-winter-2021-collection" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Michael Kors</a> (Assurance), and <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/marc-jacobs-famous-friendships" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marc Jacobs</a> (Sureness) all in the section for Assurance; one of Donna Karan&rsquo;s signature power suits representing Conviction; and three iterations of a L<a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/audrey-hepburn-givenchy-little-black-dress-history" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ittle Black Dress</a> from <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/travel-living/christian-siriano-furniture-collection-1st-dibs-interview" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christian Siriano&rsquo;s</a> Spring/Summer 2018 runway that reflect fashion&rsquo;s progress of body inclusivity and stand for Appreciation.&nbsp;

Giving a multifaceted view of what American fashion looks like, In America revises the nation&rsquo;s reputation of being a melting pot. &ldquo;What a melting pot does is create a sort of homogenization of America,&rdquo; Bolton says. Instead, the patchwork metaphor better serves the various identities, communities, and expressions that make up the country. &ldquo;What the quilt does is focus on the unique cultural identities of each patch&nbsp;that are stitched together to make a bigger whole.&rdquo;
In America: A Lexicon of Fashion is on view at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City through September 5, 2022. A second part of the exhibition, In America: An Anthology of Fashion, will open at the Met in May 2022.

Gallery View, Belonging. Image: © The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

'In America: A Lexicon of Fashion' Introduces a New Sartorial Vocabulary

L'OFFICIEL USA December 2024 - Julianne Moore Cover

'In America: A Lexicon of Fashion' Introduces a New Sartorial Vocabulary

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