Looking to the past in Paris and London

The Palace of Versailles and the Musée Galliera in France present an exhibition dedicated to the influence of the 18th century on modern fashion.
From July 11th through to October 9, fifty outfits by great 20th Century designers dialogue with 18th century costume. Christian Lacroix drapes his queens with brocades lavishly gleaming with gemstones and Olivier Theyskens for Rochas summons up the ghost of Marie-Antoinette in a Hollywood film. While the elegant simplicity in black and white is played by Yves Saint Laurent, Martin Margiela transforms men’s garments into women’s. Nicolas Ghesquière for Balenciaga enhances women in little marquis dressed with lace and marquise vests embroidered with gold thread are featured from Alexander McQueen for Givenchy. Japanese designers Yohji Yamamoto and Rei Kawakubo reconstruct court dresses and riding coats, respectively. Thierry Mugler hides oversized hoops under dresses, and Jean Paul Gaultier flips them upside down. Creations by Azzedine Alaïa, Karl Lagerfeld, Maison Christian Dior and Vivienne Westwood are also included.

Two hundred years after the publication of Jane Austen’s first novel, an exhibition featuring fashion from era of Sense and Sensibility will go on display in Liverpool, UK. ‘Costume Drama: Fashion from 1790 to 1850’ explores the developments in male and female fashionable dress at a time of notable social and economic changes. It is interesting to see how social and cultural conditions influenced not just fashion trends of our own times but have done so throughout history. In the 1840s, “an emerging middle class used fashion as a means of marking its rising social status. Early Victorian clothes, especially those for men, reflected the growing economic power of those engaged in business and industry. Costume Drama: Fashion from 1790 to 1850 runs at Sudley House, Mossley Hill Road, Liverpool from Jul 15, 2011 to May 7, 2012.