An exhibition exploring five centuries of fashion and adornment at Chatsworth House.
Hamish Bowles, international editor at American Vogue, has curated the landmark exhibition with creative direction and design by Patrick Kinmonth and Antonio Monfreda, the duo behind some of the most memorable fashion exhibitions of recent years.
Fashion pieces displayed included livery, uniforms, coronation robes and fancy-dress costumes, demonstrating the breadth of fashion and adornment from the Devonshire Collection throughout the generations. The House Style exhibition demonstrates the power of fashion, bringing to life individuals from the Cavendish family, who have called Chatsworth home since 1549.
Layering art history, fashion, jewellery, archival material, design and textiles, the exhibition was organised by theme. Notable features included couture designed by Jean Phillipe Worth and Christian Dior, together with influential contemporary garments from designers such as Gucci, Helmut Lang, Margiela, Vivienne Westwood, Erdem, Alexander McQueen, Christopher Kane and Vetements.
The exhibition also featured personal collections of the Cavendish family, including items belonging to the current Duke and Duchess of Devonshire.
Having spend the summer and first months of the course exploring high-end, luxury fashion, I thought the exhibition would be a great insight in to how fashion has evolved and developed through time. It was interesting to see, similarly to graphic design, how past trends and styles are brought back in to contemporary work and just how clear it is to see when faced with such heritage pieces. Also, the exhibition provided opportunity for me to take in the interior of Chatsworth house, this subject being another of my key interests.
In addition to the fashion and interiors on display, were a range of books dating back to as far as the 1800s. With editorial and publication design a major interest within my practice, it was amazing to see such dated pieces still in such good condition - some even featuring gilded edges (something I have explored within my practice also). It shows how long print and physical books have sustained in society; Books are timeless artefacts.
Overall, the abundance of detail and craftsmanship - from the fashion to the interior of Chatsworth - were hugely inspirational. I don't think such craftsmanship is evident in today's society, or at least is not so regular, and therefore to be able to appreciate it in original form is a great privilege to me and my practice.
Photographs from the exhibition follow:
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