May 16, 2023 |
Open April 22 through August 13, MoMu: Fashion Museum Antwerp presents Man Ray and Fashion – a new exhibition centred around the work of American surrealist visual artist and photographer Man Ray. The exhibition comes in collaboration with the Réunion des musées nationaux – Grand Palais (RMN-GP) and the City of Marseille – and works to curate a space where art and fashion arrive side by side.
Explored through the lens of fashion, MoMu unites Man Ray’s iconic photography and artwork with fashion silhouettes from both established and contemporary designers, bridging together Ray’s cultural and artistic influences that continue to shape and inspire designers to this day. An innovator in his field, Man Ray’s flair for humour, technical ingenuity and surrealist winks-of-the-eye brought art and fashion closer together. His impact holds strongest in Belgian contemporary design, whose inclination to surrealism prevails in their fashion influence.
Across the space, platforms present statuesque garments and silhouettes inspired by Ray’s designs, alongside some of the most celebrated and iconic artworks from Man Ray’s archive, made possible by the support of numerous lenders, gathering over 80 photographs from private collectors, fashion houses and museums. The space takes viewers through an in-depth, immersive journey, connecting the artist to designers and brand including Chanel, Lanvin, Madeleine Vionnet, Saint Laurent, Martin Margiela, Oliver Theyskens and Dries Van Noten. Cast under spotlights, frames and projections of Ray’s most famous stills such as Glass Tears, 1932, and Le Violon d’Ingres, 1924, adorn the walls, illuminating the gallery. The exhibition so perfectly captures the elegance and ambiance of the early 20th century, all while unfolding and reflecting on Ray’s journey of influence through to the modern day, and capturing the overlap between fashion and art.
Man Ray’s emergence into the fashion-photography scene can be defined by his arrival in Paris in 1921, where his immersion into the world of Surrealism through friends such as Francis Picabia and André Breton led to an early career in commercial commissions and portraiture. After a failed exhibit at the Librairie Six (a bookstore) in December 1921, Ray turned to other options to make his career work. Using a small storeroom within the Grand Hôtel des Écoles to develop his photographs, Ray’s early shift from image making to photographic portraits was considered amateur at best. In an era where fashion was defined primarily by illustrations, as seen in Vogue, Ray struggled to capture the imagination and elegance that could be rendered in drawings. Photography, limited by its single optical angle, struggled to have relevance in the fashion landscape. However, through time, Ray’s exploration of seduction and liberation of the female body resulted in a breaking away from traditional fashion illustration and paved the way for photographic and technological innovation. Man Ray, a daring experimenter, no longer limited himself to combining art and fashion. Having been published in Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and Vanity Fair at the time, his significant contribution to the Dada and Surrealist movements, although his ties to each were informal, resulted in Ray becoming one of the most pivotal and well-respected creatives of the century.
To explore the renowned artist and his impact on the contemporary fashion landscape, find tickets here. Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 6pm (closed Monday).
Photography courtesy of Man Ray.
