pap(i)er fashion - exhibition @ museum bellerive, zürich

 

until august 1st, 2010, a brillant exhibition put together by atopos. shows how fashion has used paper since the 60s. there is an amazing collection of designer dresses on the ground floor. the craftsmanship is incredible. I adored the japanesse designers. I would have liked to see even more originals. dresses hang from the ceilings on hangers, giving the impression of  an upside down forest. the 1st floor has dresses made to promote a brand, candidates to the USA 1968 election. in a room which were once washrooms (the sinks are still there) examples of paper clothes in their original wrapping, panties, party dresses...are exhibited in paper cabinets. there are 2 short films by marcus tomlinson - pen to paper & paper disorder. you can watch the films by looking through a small opening in the door, like peeping through a keyhole. I particularly liked paper disorder which I found poetic. it ends with a little girl's head appearing out of a flower. the paper petals peal back. both films are visible on youtube.

höschgasse 3, zürich - tram 2/4, stop : höschgasse / www.museum-bellerive.ch link

photos : museum's entrance / promotional poster

collars for the modern gentleman, michael cepress, USA 2006 (using the yellow pages)

this is the cover of the book RRRIPP!! paper fashion, edited by atopos (literally meaning out of the ordinary, eccentric. an international non-profit organisation founded in 2003 to realise innovativeprojects bringing together contemporay arts, fashion & design) it has everything shown at the exhibition & much more.

   

bob dylan, poster dress, USA 1967 / the souper dress, after warhol, USA 1968 / the big ones for 1968, universal fashions

      

pen to paper, stills from marcus tomlinson's film, UK 2003 / pleats dress, miyake inc., JP 2007 /origami top, sandra backlund, 2010

"in 1966, a promotional stunt by the scott paper company quickly flooded the USA & EU. the paper fashion of the swinging sixties was born. funny & modern, these clothes reflected the zeitgeist, the spirits of those times. pop and op art themes, logos, news paper prints and even the election candidates of 1968 decorated these clothes. today, paper once again enlivens the world of fashion with ideas on poetry, recycling & textile substitutes. in addition to historical objects, the exhibition also shows works by paco rabanne, a. f. vandervorst & issey miyake"