Today I went to see the Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy exhibition at the Metropolitan. I got there later than I planned, then confidently strode toward the costume gallery in the basement, only to find out the show took place in the first floor.
Actual costumes and influenced works were placed in front of curved walls of relevant movie scenes and illustrations. Themes went as the iconic image of Superman, aerodynamic design with Flash, designs inspired by costumes of Spider Man and Cat Woman with the actual costume from films, and Postmodern (goth, punk, grunge) influence with Punisher.
I liked works by Alexander McQueen including the beautiful kimono football armor, and a black geometric costume at the Cat Woman exhibit. (I lost the name of the designer)
The exhibits were themed by the altered body; Patriotic Body (stars and spangles), Armored Body (with Iron Man costume), Mutated Body (with X-men).
The last one was my favorite of the show. A mannequin sample of X-men Mystic's silicone body-- her life-sized figure complete with eyes and hair, standing on a rotating platform. I couldn't stop marveling at the wonderful fetish aesthetics. Scale, fur, feather enveloping the body in curves, in bare lines to accentuate the cleavage. I loved such details as asymmetry on the legs and spiky texture on her breasts.
I also really liked the curating of the show. Taking place inside the Greek-Roman gallery, you walk past marble statues of Greco-Roman gods into the show where a classic picture of Superman greets you. Modern pop culture of fashion, comic and cinema put side by side with the classic art. Somebody said the culture of superheroes and fantasy is mythology in today's world, and the setting just embodied that sense of myth.
Another interesting element was the mirrored walls.
The gallery space was small, and the curators tried hard to maximize it. The walls of forked paths were all mirrored, and Mystic's body was placed in front of such wall to show the whole body all the time.
I watched people looking at themselves before the exhibit. Some just darted their gaze at it, some stared longer, fixing their hair, collars, bags.
At Mystic's exhibit where crowds gathered to gaze at her body, I saw a woman standing with her boyfriend. She took her eyes off before him, toward the mirror. She put her head against his shoulder and smiled at the reflection.
I felt the placing of mirror was not only effective but also appropriate for this exhibition of fashion and fantasy. For isn't fashion founded upon vanity--a person's interest in self, how he or she looks?
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