During our recent trip to London, Willem and I tried to pack in various textile and dress exhibitions that are currently presented in the British capital. We also wanted to see how these exhibitions present textiles and dress (getting ideas and inspiration for the TRC), and, admittedly, the venue of the exhibitions was also intriguing. Anyhow, we decided to pack three very different dress exhibitions in one day.
King Charles III in full attire at his coronation. By Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office - From Twitter account of Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=131676676
The first was at Buckingham Palace to see the coronation robes of Charles III and Camilla. The coronation took place a few months ago on the 6th May 2023. I really wanted to see the robes and other embroideries as part of our research for volume 4 of the Bloomsbury World Encyclopedia of Embroidery, which is about Scandinavia and western Europe (we hope to finish the ms within a few weeks). It includes a section on royal embroidery of various types and countries. Perhaps, if you are really interested, there is a long entry on the British coronation garments in TRC Needles. It explains their uses and manings.
But back to the Palace – it was very busy and many people were there to first see the magnificent picture gallery (various Rembrandts, a Vermeer, a van Steen, various Canalletos, etc; we already saw them some years ago, but it remains a splendid display), so it took a while to follow the queue to see the room with the coronation robes and other items.
We were a bit disappointed: very few items tucked into a relatively small space, and very crowded. The decoration of most of the garments was relativelly simple in technique and appearance. The main decoration of the screen that had been positioned around the place where Charles was actually annointed, was a tree that was basically an appliqué (computer driven, machine stitched), with a few early medieval-style individual animals and other creatures. A bit mock nineteenth century Arts and Crafts. It looked good from a distance. But perhaps it had been decided long before to keep things relatively simple.
The coronation screen. From: The Orthodox Arts Journal, 4 May 2023.
The king’s robe on show (his Robe of State) was made of crimson velvet, trimmed in ermine and with a border of gold lace. It was originally made for Charles III's grandfather, George VI. Camilla’s robe with train was visually and technically more interesting. It had a border of flowers, leaves and acorns, as well as butterflies, in surface couching using various types of gold metal thread. My favourite was a dandelion with seeds blowing in the wind. There were also the Stole Royal worn by Charles, his Coronation Glove, and Camilla's shoes, etc.
All in all interesting to see, but we would have liked to see the garments worn by other functionaries at the coronation, the liturgical vestments, and far more of the various garments Charles was wearing at the coronation, and which he was changing into, and out of all the time, such as the Supertunica (also knon as the Robe Royal) and the Imperial Mantle.
Four mannequins with their saris. The Design Museum, London. Photograph Willem Vogelsng
We then went onto the Design Museum to see an exhibition about modern saris from India, called 'The Offbeat Sari: Indian Fashion Unravelled.' The exhibition was about the sari and its many facets, from how they are made (and re-made as a part of sustainability) and worn. Some of the saris reflected the growing role of women in athletic activities, such as cricket, skateboarding, even climbing!
Detail of a Chinese-style sari from among the Parsis (Zoroastrians) in India. The Design Museum, London. Photograph Willem Vogelsang.There were saris associated with different religious groups, such as the Parsis (Zoroastrian community), and then there was the re-cycling of old saris such as an old patola (ikat) sari into a new form. There was a comment about a business-style sari outfit that looks sensible, but the sari was actually deliberately made from modern, distressed denim using mechanical and laser treatment.
There were also examples of the political use of saris, both with respect to different social groups, but also for activism with respect to saving stalks. There was also a section about different manners of making and decorating saris, such as decoratively woven, embroidered and printed forms with examples of different types of print blocks.
The exhibition was well displayed with plenty of light, with lots of space for people to move around and see things, and be inspired. We really enjoyed this exhibition, well worth seeing if you are interested in saris, present and future.
Runaway look #4. Spring/Summer 2018. Ready-to-Wear collection. Louis Vuitton. 'Crown to Couture.' Kensington Palace, London. Photograph Willem Vogelsang.And last but by no means least we went to nearby Kensington Palace to see the exhibition, 'Crown to Couture', which is basically about celebrities and sartorial statements of social and personal status (dress and identity) and how this was done in the 18th century British court and at modern red carpet events (mainly in the USA and France). I was not sure at first about these two different themes, but there are so many overlapping elements! Big, bold, rich cloth, unusual colour combinations, decorative techniques, etc. All making statements of various types.
The court and film garments included items for both men and women and stressed court rules and red carpet rules, even down to having training sessions in how to walk into a room and stroll down the red carpet. Making an entrance was important at an 18th century court, but also at the annual Met Gala in New York!.
Jeremy Scott for Moschino runway look #3 5. Mini Mantua, Ready-to-Weat Collection Spring/Summer 2020. 'Crown to Couture.' Kensington Palace, London. Photograph Willem Vogelsang.The exhibition was spread through a variety of different rooms including formal and family rooms, servant’s corridors, etc.
There was a sedan chair from the 18th century for Queen Caroline. We are still wondering how a court lady with a large skirt (court mantua) managed to get into a sedan chair, let alone how she could sit down. And there were different themes being discussed and illustrated with actual garments and objects, from undergarments, make-up attributes, wigs, ethnic and political statements, to simply being over the top!
Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood, 23 July 2023
