American Women at the Met Costume Institute

By Lexi Green
June 4, 2010

Every May, fans and fashion lovers alike hold their breath as actors, models, designers and celebrities glide up the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s red carpeted steps for the Costume Institute’s annual Gala. (This year, Jessica Biel, one of 725 guests, arrived in a sinewy old Hollywood-esque Ralph Lauren dress, while Katy Perry came in a number that literally lit-up.) Most of us are more interested in the extravagant outfits worn by the attendees and how they manage to sartorially match the exhibition’s annual theme, rather than the exhibition itself. But American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity, up at the Met through August 15, is truly worthy of a closer look. We were lucky enough to sit down with the Costume Institute’s Curator, Andrew Bolton, to find out how this year's exhibition came together.

Bolton focused on American female fashion archetypes—from the 1890s Heiress and Gibson Girl, to the early 1900s Bohemian, to the Suffragist and Patriot of the 1910s, to the Flapper of the 1920s, and finally to the Screen Siren of the 1930s. Bolton tells us that he came up with the idea for featuring the American Woman while pulling from the Brooklyn Museum Costume Institute’s archive, much of which was brought over to the Met and makes up this year’s show. “As I started looking through the collection, it was evident that there was this mass media representation of the American woman from the late 19th century to the early 20th century. Looking deeper I found that the earlier costumes really display the European influence of style on the American’s woman. Then as you move in time, you see how the American woman embraced her own style. “

According to Bolton, it takes about nine months for a normal Costume Institute exhibition to come together. The American Woman exhibition took a full year. Planning not only includes costume selection, but also the massive sets, representing each stylistic change, created by production designer Nathan Crowley. Each mannequin also wears a wig stitched by wig designer Julien D’Ys. “He’s the Michelangelo of the wig world,” Bolton tells us, “Julien always works the hair styles to the context of the period and costumes we are showing. For example, for the Flapper section he hand-glued Swarovski crystals to the wigs, which not only gives them this very glittery effect, but also matches the beautiful embroidery of the dresses."

When we asked Bolton what his favorite style was from this year’s exhibition, he told us he couldn’t quite choose, “but what I love is the move from these very corseted American woman in the Heiress section to this look of following the contours of the female shape within the Screen Siren section, with absolutely no under-structure.”

For those looking to make a similar progression in their own wardrobes, and show your pride for the American style, you can find similar looks to those on display at the Costume Institute here on eBay.