Who wears what? This is the question put by the Palais Galliera’s Anatomy of a Collection exhibition. Ranging from court wear to work overalls and from celebrities to unknowns, the exhibition draws on the Galliera collection for around a hundred garments and accessories illustrating fashion from the 18th century to the present day.
From among all the corsets in the Museum’s storerooms, Anatomy of a Collection is presenting Marie-Antoinette’s; and from among all the blouses, one that belonged to a First World War nurse whose name has not come down to us.
Also, the habit of Dauphin, Napoleon jacket, the dress of the Empress Josephine, the jacket amazon Cléo de Merode, workman’s pants, the dress George Sand collar Sarah Bernhardt, Zouave uniform, T-strap Mistinguett convict suit hat-shoe Gala, work apron, Audrey Hepburn pieces, Elsa Schiaparelli coat, dress of the Duchess of Windsor, pajama night Tilda Swinton …a hundred pieces with or without pedigree identify those who have litters.
Curated by Olivier Saillard, Director of the Musée Galliera and the team of curators of tmusée de la Mode de la Ville de Paris, Anatomy of a Collection is a selection of garments with historical associations that reflects the essence of the collection and the complex task of attribution demanded by each of these heritage pieces.
An invitation to discover all the rich variety of the Museum’s holdings.
