Curated by Thierry-Maxime Loriot
“I am not trying to seduce you,” rectifies Mrs. Robinson’s sampled voice in the opening shot of George Michael’s 1992 Too Funky music video, which unleashed the fash-ion designs of Thierry Mugler on an MTV generation not yet seduced by his outré silhouettes. Mugler’s Ziegfeld Follies–meets–Le Queen runway extravaganzas are legendary for their gag-worthy ensembles of supermodels, ’60s cinema icons, and louche figures from the demimonde. Out of the ravages of World War II emerged Dior’s “New Look,” with nipped-in waists that prettily defied austerity and fascist barbarism; Mugler tightened the corset laces further while sheathing women in protective latex and armor for an impending battle. Eschewing the format of a historical costume survey, this exhibition—comprising 130 of the couturier’s creations from 1973 to 2001—is structured around themes manifesting Mugler’s prophetic vision for a transhuman being of the future and beyond. Travels to Kunsthal Rotterdam, October 11, 2019–March 8, 2020; Kunsthalle der Hypo-Kulturstiftung, Munich, April 3–August 30, 2020.
