Schiaparelli and Prada Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Elsa Schiaparelli and Miuccia Prada's contributions to art and design were honoured with a new multi media exhibit at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute.  A star studded Gala benefit event celebrated the opening night. The exhibit will run May 10 through August 19, 2012.

The Designers 

Schiaparelli (1890–1973) was an Italian fashion designer who later lived in Paris. Unlike Coco Channel who designed clothing as wear for every woman to be fashionable and  comfortable, Schiaparelli was heavily influenced by Art. Starting with knitwear, Schiaparelli's designs focused upon the concepts of Surrealists, Some of her collaborators were Salvador Dalí and Alberto Giacometti. Her client list included the heiress Daisy Fellowes and actress Mae West.  Designs reflect the surrealists influence with pieces which are heavily embellished and glamorously adorned.

Miuccia Prada, born May 10, 1949 in Milan, Italy took over the family owned business in the late 1970's.  Prada est 1913 was originally a leather bag manufacturing company. ( They still do), The clothing lines debuted in the late 1980s and flourished throughout the 1990s   and has since become one of the most sought after luxury brands in the world. 

The Exhibit  

The section of the exhibition entitled “Waist Up/Waist Down” looks at Schiaparelli’s use of decorative detailing as a response to restaurant dressing in the heyday of 1930s café society, while showing Prada’s below-the-waist focus as a symbolic expression of modernity and femininity. An accessories subsection of this gallery called “Neck Up/Knees Down” showcases Schiaparelli’s hats and Prada’s footwear. “Ugly Chic” reveals how both women subvert ideals of beauty and glamour by playing with good and bad taste through colour, prints, and textiles.    

  The Gala 

Celebrities came out dressed to the 9's. Desingers came out to honour their predecessors.  The styles and scenes could only be rivalled by Oscar night or the runways of the Fashion week frenzy.   Star power, million dollar jewels,Spanx and make-up flooded the entrance to the museum.                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

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