Exhibition

Power Mode: The Force of Fashion

10 Dec 2019 – 9 May 2020

Regular hours

Tuesday
12:00 – 20:00
Wednesday
12:00 – 20:00
Thursday
12:00 – 20:00
Friday
12:00 – 20:00
Saturday
10:00 – 17:00

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About

Today, we see a multitude of sartorial power symbols, from “power suits” to “power heels.” But what makes a garment “powerful”? According to sociologist and political theorist Steven Lukes: “We speak and write about power, in innumerable situations, and we usually know, or think we know, perfectly well what we mean ... And yet, among those who have reflected on the matter, there is no agreement about how to define
it, how to conceive it, how to study it, and, if it can be measured, how to measure it.”

If we think of power in terms of kinetic force (for example, electrical power or a person’s physical power over another), clearly an inanimate item of clothing does not have actual power. The force of fashion is symbolic. It is social. It lies in the sphere of interpersonal relations and cultural dynamics. There is no single, universally accepted definition of power. Power means different things to different people at different times. As such, its connection to fashion is multifaceted, and a multifaceted approach is necessary for considering the role fashion plays in power dynamics both historically and today.

The exhibition is organized into five thematic sections, each devoted to a particular type of sartorial “power.” In each section, men’s and women’s clothing are considered side by side, and pieces from as early as the eighteenth century are juxtaposed with looks from contemporary collections.

The first section considers military uniforms and their transformation into fashion items. Modern military uniforms combine tailoring with an elaborate code of patches, braiding, stripes, colors, and metalwork that makes the solider a walking extension of the state’s power. In fashion, a company logo replaces the state’s seal, but uniform-inspired silhouettes, colors, textiles, buttons, etc., become visual shorthand for the power, strength, and authority of the military. It is the power of association.

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