What would our MoMu Collection be without the generous donations from fashion enthusiast! This afternoon we got a visit from Geert Bruloot, co-owner of the Antwerp shoe store Coccodrillo with a car trunk full of designer shoes from previous seasons that will now be included in our MoMu Collection!
Here are some highlights of this new acquisition.
Photo:Balenciaga Techno stilettos F/W2007
Maison Martin Margiela ‘Fragile’ tape pumps S/S2006
Prada Flower heels S/S2008
Nicholas Kirkwood S/S2009, the British designer that also creates the catwalkshoes for Rodarte, Peter Pilotto,…
Azzedine Alaïa Steel heeled wedge sandal S/S2010
Maison Martin Margiela Nail heel pump F/W2008
Maison Martin Margiela Leather sunken platform pump S/S2011
Marc Jacobs Reverse heel S/S2008
Maison Martin Margiela Horse print boots F/W2008
Thank you Coccodrillo for your support!
We were very hapy to spot the Walter Van Beirendonck catalogue in the latest issue of AD – Architectural Digest Spain! The exhibition catalogue features in a shoot of the interior of Sacha Walckhoff, creative director at Christian Lacroix.
When we do a photoshoot of MoMu collection pieces for an exhibition catalogue, it nearly feels like a real fashion shoot: there’s a studio, a photographer, people who arrange the costume (a bit like stylists) and an art-director (or two). The only person missing is a model: we use mannequins instead because the clothes in our collection cannot be worn by humans, since this is too damaging for the fragile textiles.
The use of mannequins for a shoot has advantages (there’s never a bad hairday, and once a pose is good, the manneuin can stay like that for hours) but it also causes problems: the lack of limbs make the piece very static, and it is very hard to make it look expressive or life-like, it is hard to bring any natural movement into clothes. For this shoot, all the dresses have different sizes and body forms, because the silhouettes come out of such different eras, in which the female form, or how it was manipulated in fashion, changed. The corsets and crinolines are all very specific to a certain shape, hence the mannequins were all cut to fit the dress. Then they are covered and filled with extra padding, so the photoshoot took a lot of preparation for some 40+ silhouettes, and this is only half the amount of garments in the exhibition.
Once the first few photos, in which the lighting has to be carefully adjusted (every crinkle and crease in the fabric seems to grow larger on camera), are done, the rythm of shots grows quicker. we have to stay very attentive to detail, however, as every silhouette is a new challenge, with interesting details but sometimes also signs of decay, that have to be camouflaged without manipulating the piece too much.
Nevertheless, it is a very exciting challenge to make the historical silhouettes come alive on the photograph, putting the title of the exhibition ‘Living fashion’ into practice.
