Fabulous! FIDM Museum Acquisitions Exhibition

I stopped by FIDM a couple of days ago to see the Fabulous! exhibit and boy, was it named well!  My favorite adjective aptly describes this grand tour of Western fashion from the 1800s to the present.  Although I can number the exhibitions I have seen at FIDM on one hand, this one was by far the best and I think they may give LACMA some competition if they continue to produce exhibits of this quality.

I thought I'd share some of the amazing fashions that I saw, though these images will barely scratch the surface of some of the interesting items the museum has collected.  For example, there were two charming wax boudoir dolls from the early 20th century and some amazing (and rather nauseating) chapeaus made from avian taxidermy.

I wish that amateur photographs by everyday people were allowed, but alas, I've gleaned the following from the web to take you on this mini field-trip.

  photo courtesy Peter Wintersteller/abimages

A sumptuous reception dress with jet beads and lace by Charles Worth:

courtesy FIDM Museum blog

 

 Alexander McQueen's beautiful Peacock Dress:

 

photo courtesy Peter Wintersteller/abimages, via Nick Verreos blog

A silk jersey dress designed by Halston, the print is by Andy Warhol:

 

An extreme pair of men's platform boots circa 1972 or 1973:

courtesy FIDM Museum blog

Mae West's 10-inch platform shoes and her footprint
(she was quite short!):

via Nick Verreos blog 

And one of my personal favorites, a stylish WWII-era propaganda textile dress
made by a home sewist:

courtesy FIDM Museum blog

The dress was sewn from bright patriotic fabric that was produced as a fundraiser for the

British-American ambulance corps circa 1941 or 1942. To read it properly you would need would need to view the dress in a mirror. The fabric states, "There Will Always be an England":

courtesy FIDM Museum blog

If you're local, or will be visiting Los Angeles in the next couple of months, don't miss this exhibit.  I may just visit again myself!