Art and Fashion Meld at the Met

“Halston, Lagerfeld, de la Renta ... What they did, what they created was better than art because you live your life in it.” So spoke Stanley Tucci’s character Nigel in The Devil Wears Prada, and so speaks the Metropolitan Museum of Art in its new exhibit “blog.mode: addressing fashion.”

The show, comprised of 65 pieces drawn from the archives of the Costume Institute and cosponsored by shoe guru Manolo Blahnik, invites the public to become involved in the process of art. The curators’ belief that criticism is tantamount to the creation of art is made clear by the wall text: “the ... visitor might take some confidence from Oscar Wilde’s observation, ‘The highest criticism, being the purest form of personal impression, is in its way more creative than creation.’” Unlike traditional exhibitions, which feature pieces sequestered from the public behind walls of glass, “blog.mode: addressing fashion” urges the museum’s visitors to take part in the show directly.

For the first time, Met visitors are able to voice their opinions on a blog devoted solely to the exhibition, either in the privacy of their own homes or in the galleries themselves at one of the computer terminals in the “blogbar.” In addition to the public, the two curators of the exhibition, Harold Koda and Andrew Bolton, as well as contemporary designers of established fashion houses, frequently make contributions to the blog.

The concept seems to be working. As one blogger stated, “Beyond the simply stunning display, I am thrilled at this unique interface—it’s entirely validating to see a world that has long been accused of elitism and antiquity wholeheartedly embrace the democracy of the blog.” In a brief visit to the Costume Institute galleries in the underground caves of the labyrinthine museum, I saw no fewer than 10 people post on the blog. The sheer number of people who have posted—some of whom have not even been to the exhibition—is staggering. One gown, designed by Olivier Theyskens for Nina Ricci, is the bearer of 186 posts.

The exhibition is highly successful in inspiring people to involve themselves in the art process via commentary on the oft-visited blog. The dichotomous nature of the exhibition, though, is difficult to ignore. One of its key elements and purposes is to appeal to a wider body of visitors and to encourage them to take part in the exhibit themselves. As stated in the opening wall text, “individuals who might avoid publicly commenting on a canvas by Picasso ... readily disclose their thoughts about a gown by Galliano. Unlike its haughty siblings, fashion, even in its most extreme ... does not estrange us from the belief in the essential aptness of our judgment.” And yet, as utopian and democratic as this artistic and sartorial vision may be, it is curious that in selecting a practicable execution of this theory, the museum would choose a collection of almost entirely unwearable and unrelatable fashion.

One example of this phenomenon was a necklace designed by Simon Costins called the “Incubus” necklace. The necklace, crafted of silver, copper, and pearls, prominently features five vials filled with anonymous human sperm dating back to 1987. The public reactions to this necklace are fascinating. Although there are those who tried to acknowledge its place in the canon of modern art, the larger portion of viewers and bloggers were repulsed. One sarcastically asked whether “there are matching bracelets and earrings,” while another simply said “Yuuuuuuuk. Ewwwwwww. Not Art.”

Another curiosity was a pair of shoes, designed by Manolo Blahnik for the Spring/Summer 2006 collection, which are called “Bhutan.” The shoes, although clearly bearing a high arch, possess no heel; the wearer simply walks on the balls of her feet. Blahnik, the sponsor of the exhibit, was fully aware of the shoes’ impracticability, and said that “this is the kind of work I love to do because it is free from commercial constraints. With shoes like these, I don’t ever think of selling”—and no one would ever think of wearing.

Undoubtedly, there are some beautiful pieces in the show. One that specifically comes to mind is the aforementioned voluminous grey silk organza ball gown, designed for Nina Ricci by Olivier Theyskens. The gown is stunning, featuring innumerable swirls of fabric ultimately creating a fey, fairy-tale ball gown of rough silk ruffles. As one blogger commented, “What’s particularly great about this dress is how it’s exemplary of fashion’s ability to be more than just a garment—this is a sculpture.” This dress did indeed exemplify the overlap of art and fashion, or the embodiment of fashion as wearable art. And, by posting his comments, the blogger fulfilled the Met’s goal of visitor participation in the creative process. Perhaps the Met has truly discovered the juncture of the MySpace generation and Museum Mile.