March 18

Last day! Some have no heads, some have heads looking downward with blank expressions, some have their heads covered with mesh masks. They are the 100 or so slender, white mannequins who are taking up the space at the Gund Gallery at the Museum of Fine Arts through March 18. And they’re wearing some of the most gorgeous dresses, vests and clothing combinations you’d want to see. Ten design houses are represented – Chanel, Christian Lacroix, Azzedine Alaia and Valentino, to name but four – and they represent a slice of the 2006/2007 collections from these houses.
“We were the first museum to have a textile and fashion arts department back in 1930,” said MFA Director Malcolm Rogers, addressing the press at a pre-opening tour. This, exhibit, he hailed “as a first for Boston. … We have a passion to bring objects that have been neglected by other museums.”
In some ways, “Fashion Show: Paris Collections 2006” echoes the Ralph Lauren cars and the guitars exhibit the MFA has hosted in recent years: It presents objects you might not necessarily consider art as you walk in, but objects you will most certainly consider art as you walk through. The cars and guitars were skewed toward men, of course, and this one is more female-centered. Which means, ladies, if your husband dragged you to the sports cars, you drag him to this haute couture display. Really, he won’t mind. All of these whiz-bang exhibits are intended to bring new and younger faces to the MFA, to make the museum an even more vital part of the contemporary art world. (And don’t forget the competition looming sometime when the new Institute of Contemporary Art opens … someday.)
   

These collections were all modeled on the runway in Paris – and videos of those models accompany the mannequins - but as Didier Grumback, President of the French Fashion Federation, said, “They express fashion all over the world, which can be French, Japanese or Belgium.”
Curator Pam Parmal noted Fashion Show “evolved at a dizzying pace in the past year” and that “Paris has been the center of fashion and luxury trades for 300 years.”
Primary colors: Black, white, red, silver. There’s one wedding gown dipped in silver, never meant to be worn by a human in the Viktor & Rolf collection. It’s the only one made. And their spokesman, Bram Claassen couldn’t even guess at the cost, though he said her bouquet cost 5000 Euros to make and the whole ensemble might equal the price of “a very, very expensive car, and don’t be stingy about the accessories.” This piece, he said, was “all about the art.” The plaque on the wall said the collection conveyed “an aura of untouchable and rigid beauty.”
Yohji Yamamoto went for, as the plaque read, “masculine on the outside and feminine on the inside,” with the over-sized clothing.  John Galliano’s creations for Christian Dior were bright, fluffy and flowery – “dramatic, and organized around an imaginary and, at times, hallucinatory story line.” (That’s what the plaque on the wall said.) One mannequin had a silk tulle dress, a burgundy linen jacket, a leather coat and leather motorcycle boots. Chanel’s Karl Lagerfeld, as almost always, emphasized black and white; Christian Lacroix’s collection, including a stunning, multiply-layered wedding dress, was out of a fairytale. The Lacroix spokesperson said they had a lot of “red, white and black – quite a bit of graphic-ness and contrast.” Azzedine Alaia is noted for clothes that stick like a second skin, but here there was more fur and fluffiness. We were told Olivier Theyskens creations for Rochas, not colorful pieces, “combines dark edginess with romanticism.” We thought them almost androgynous and stark.
The most radical collection was behind plexi-glass. Maison Martin Margiela created pieces out of found objects from vintage stores, flea markets and garage sales. There were striking vests, one made out of bottle caps and another out of playing cards – and a very sexy red tunic made red vintage faux flowers.
Of the designers in the show, Bram Claassen said, “We know each other. I think this is more about respect. It’s not about competition. We respect anyone who makes new clothes every six months.”
To attend: Same day tickets may be available, but it’s a good idea to secure a ticket for a date and time, and be admitted at half-hour intervals. Price: $23. Check website for hours and special, fashion-related events.

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