The Model as Muse On The Radar

Have you read my story on The Costume Institute's spring 2009 exhibition at the Met? It came out last Sunday, On The Radar (Thanks for the photo of the front page Grace!). If you haven't, please do! If only to indulge a pregnant woman's wishes, hahaha! (Hey, I got out of bed at 10 am just for this, I braved the swine flu scare and a slight drizzle to be able to share this with y'all! Good thing Berry was such a doll and never gave me any discomfort. I think she enjoys these fashion-y things as much as I do! Heehee!)

No but seriously, any fashion lover would adore this exhibition! It is a must see if you happen to be in Manhattan from now until August 6, 2009. Here's a sneak preview of what you will see, and I really wish I could have lingered longer because I was there an hour before the press preview ended so I didn't really have much time to absorb everything. I took pictures as fast as I could before they closed, with not enough time to really look at the clothing and photos as long as I would like to. That goes without saying, I will probably go back one of these days because these pictures aren't enough for me, heehee!

But this will do, consider it a teaser of what to expect when you step into this fashion wonderland!

Vintage magazine (mostly Vogue) covers (back when models made it to the cover, these days, it almost always about celebrities, celebrities and more celebrities) and iconic images of Twiggy, Veruschka, Kate and co.















A walk down fashion memory lane...from the glamorous 50s...




the swinging 60s...



the disco-dancing "Studio 54" 70s...



"Nothing comes between me and my Calvins" 80s...

plus closet classics from 80s designing icons Armani, Lola Karl, etc...


early 90s grunge giving way to...



minimalist looks from Prada, Donna Karan, Helmut Lang, etc during the late 1990s ...


plus a spooky installation of mannequins hung from the ceiling in silk stretch mesh evening gowns by Giorgio di Sant' Angelo...


The last gallery reminds us of how the supermodel has faded into the background, by juxtaposing the anonymous nurses from Marc Jacobs and Richard Prince's collaboration for Louis Vuitton...



...against the flamboyant, extravagant, ostentatious, "look-at-me" era of the supermodels, as represented here by Dior by John Galliano's ballgowns...


While this exhibition seems to track the rise and decline of the model as muse, and makes the viewer reminisce about the fashion model's heyday, sad thoughts are put to the side once you step into the on-site shop for...Shopping Time!


The book selection alone is worth going back for!!!





Plus of course, take advantage of the chance to stock up on some cheap knick knacks to add to your generic pasalubong stash! Hehehe!



Here's a tip for this Marc Jacobs lipstick pen though! If you go to the Marc by Marc Jacobs store on Bleecker Street, you can get this for just $1.50 each! Mucho cheapo!