Illuminating Fashion: Dress in the Art of Medieval France and the Netherlands
Review by STAN PARCHIN
May 21, 2011
|
| Jacques de Longuyon. Vows of the Peacock (detail: Fesonas and Cassiel the Baudrain Playing Chess {with Nude Marginal Commentary}) (ca. 1345-50)). Tournai, Belgium. Pierpont Morgan Library. |
|
| Josephus Master and Bedford Master (?). Gaston III Phoebus, Livre de la chasse (detail: Training the Huntsmen) (shortly before 1407?). Paris, France. Pierpont Morgan Library. |
|
| Loyset Liédet and His Workshop. Epistolary and Apocalypse of Charles the Bold (detail: The Whore of Babylon Dresses the Part) (ca. 1470). Bruges, Belgium. Pierpont Morgan Library. |
|
| Recreation of the Houpeland of Catherine of Cleves, Duchess of Guelders. Museum Het Valkhof. © Stichting Woud der Verwachting. Photograph by Stef Verstraaten. |
Courtly attire's evolution in northern Europe during the Late Middle Ages and the Early Renaissance is treated regally in Illuminating Fashion: Dress in the Art of Medieval France and the Netherlands. This fascinating special exhibition at New York's Morgan Library & Museum from May 20 to September 4, 2011 displays finely painted miniatures and printed images from more than 50 illuminated manuscripts and books. Drawn entirely from the institution's renowned collections and rarely seen, they're suitably complemented by four replicas of period apparel, each expertly crafted by modern-day artisans who used authentic materials in their reproductions.
As an ensemble, the works on view aptly describe the richly layered and often complex history of clothing from late medieval times to the advent of the Renaissance in two related regions north of the Alps. Described by Roger S. Wieck, the Morgan's Curator of Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts, the objects on view illustrate the social, cultural and political influences on fashion from the eve of the tumultuous Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) between the English and French realms to beyond the accession of King François I (r. 1515-47), France's stylish Valois monarch.
Late Medieval Fashion in Art
The calamitous Hundred Years' War, the Black Death's decimation of Europe's population and France's late 15th- and early 16th-century military forays into Italy significantly affected French and Netherlandish secular clothing styles. Over the course of nearly 200 years, manuscript illuminators and book illustrators vividly captured the changing tides in taste for attire in their detailed images, each arranged chronologically in the installation's eight sections.
Fashion Revolution, 1330-50 describes how advances in tailoring and the use of multiple buttons transformed the High Middle Ages' largely unstructured garments into tighter and form-fitting clothing, exemplified by the man's cote hardy and the woman's surcot.
Peacocks of the Mid-Century, 1430-60 illustrates how the houpeland, characterized by its enormous sleeves and skirt, was replaced by the full- or knee-length gown.
Dawn of the Renaissance, 1515 and Beyond describes the Italianate style of courtly dress encouraged by King François I, the patron of genius Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519).
Fashion, Costume and Replicas
Illuminating Fashion... distinguishes between clothing worn by late medieval Europeans and imaginary costumes portrayed in illuminated manuscripts. It explains the role of apparel in revealing one's identity and social status.
The installation greatly benefits from four full-scale reproductions of period garb, meticulously hand-sewn outfits that incorporate expensive silk velvet, gold brocade, linen, straw and ermine. Outstanding amongst them is the Recreation of the Houpeland of Catherine of Cleves, Duchess of Guelders, on loan from the Netherlands' Museum Het Valkhof.
Visitors to this extraordinary presentation are advised to bring a magnifying glass with them. In this way, they can better appreciate the distinct elements of fashion described by Dr. Wieck in his customarily informative wall texts and object labels.
Sources
Huizinga, Johan. The Waning of the Middle Ages: A Study of the Forms of Life, Thought and Art in France and the Netherlands in the Dawn of the Renaissance. New York: Doubleday Anchor Books, 1954.
Wieck, Roger S. and Anne H. van Buren. Illuminating Fashion: Dress in the Art of Medieval France and the Netherlands (exh. cat.). New York: Morgan Library & Museum, 2011.