The Best of Hollywood Costume Design on display through March 2nd, 2015

By Karen Ostlund

Photos by Richard Harbaugh

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences are right now showcasing  the final showing of the groundbreaking multimedia exhibition Hollywood Costume in the historic Wilshire May Company building.

  It is on view through March 2, 2015  and the location is the future location of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, at Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles.

The show is organized by the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (V&A), and sponsored by Swarovski, this ticketed exhibition explores the central role of costume design – from the glamorous to the very subtle – as an essential tool of cinematic storytelling.

The exhibition takes visitors on a non-chronological, four-gallery journey that tells the story of costume design from early Charlie Chaplin (The Tramp, 1912) to Man of Steel (James Acheson and Michael Wilkinson, 2013). Hollywood Costume includes montages, animation, film clips, and projections, supported by a specially commissioned score written by British composer Julian Scott. The clothes are exhibited alongside quotes and interviews with costume designers, directors, and actors discussing the role that costume plays in creating the characters on screen.

Costumes fromThe Great Gatsby

The exhibition includes more than 145 costumes from over 60 lenders, including Jared Leto’s costume from Dallas Buyers Club (Kurt and Burt, 2013) – a recent acquisition to the Academy’s collection – as well as costumes from such recent releases as The Hunger Games (Trish Summerville, 2013), Django Unchained (Sharen Davis, 2012), Lee Daniels’ The Butler (RuthE. Carter, 2013), American Hustle (Michael Wilkinson, 2013) and The Great Gatsby (Catherine Martin, 2013).

 In addition, Hollywood Costume also showcase the Academy’s pair of the most famous shoes in the world – the original ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz (Adrian, 1939) shown with Dorothy’s blue and white gingham pinafore dress.

“We are thrilled to bring this innovative exhibition to Los Angeles,” said Cheryl Boone Isaacs, Academy President. “Hollywood Costume invites visitors to see some of the most well-known costumes from their favorite movies and to explore the impact designers have in creating our most beloved characters.”

            
Upending the conventions of what is considered “costume,” Hollywood Costume reveals what is hidden in plain sight: that films are about people, and the art of the costume designer helps create their characters.

The exhibition brings together iconic costumes from Hollywood’s Golden Age, including costumes for Marlene Dietrich from Morocco (1930) and Angel (1937) designed by Travis Banton, and from modern classics such as Mary Poppins (Tony Walton, 1964), Raiders of the Lost Ark (Deborah Nadoolman, 1981) and Titanic (Deborah L. Scott, 1997).

   Hollywood Costume is curated by Deborah Nadoolman Landis, Academy Award®-nominated costume designer and founding director of UCLA’s David C. Copley Center for the Study of Costume Design, whose credits include National Lampoon’s Animal House (1978), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), Coming to America (1988) and the music video for Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” (1983); with Sir Christopher Frayling (Professor Emeritus of Cultural History, Royal College of Art), and set and costume designer and V&A Assistant Curator Keith Lodwick.

“Cinematic icons are born when the audience falls deeply in love with the people in the story. And that’s what movies and costume design are all about,” notes Landis.

 
The exhibition is the culmination of a five-year effort to source, identify and secure objects from all over the world. The collectors who have loaned to the exhibition include major motion picture studios, costume houses, actors, public museums and archives, and private individuals.
CREDITS:
Hollywood Costume is organized by the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
Swarovski is the presenting sponsor of Hollywood Costume. The crystal house has provided the all-important sparkle to Hollywood’s wardrobes since the 1930s, when Swarovski crystals began to light up the silver screen in classic films like Gone with the Wind, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. In recent years, Swarovski has worked closely with talents in costume and set design on blockbusters including Black Swan, Skyfall and The Great Gatsby, and its crystals have been the key creative ingredient in the dazzling set design for the Academy Awards since 2007.
"Swarovski’s history of working with costume, jewelry and set designers on some of Hollywood’s most iconic productions goes back 75 years to when Dorothy first tapped her Swarovski-encrusted ruby slippers," said Nadja Swarovski, member of the Swarovski Executive Board, "so we’re thrilled to support this landmark exhibition at its new home in Los Angeles.” Additional support was provided by Pirelli.

Costumes from Pretty Woman

HOURS
Monday 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Tuesday 11 a.m.– 5 p.m.
Wednesday  Closed
Thursday  11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Friday 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Saturday 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.
EXHIBITION-RELATED PROGRAMS
Exhibition-related programs including screenings and lectures visit www.oscars.org/HollywoodCostume for details.

TICKETS
at www.oscars.org/HollywoodCostume
Admission: $20 Adults ǀ $15 Seniors (62+) ǀ $10 for students with ID and children under 13.

Location:
Wilshire May Company building, 6067 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Contact: 310-247-3049; HollywoodCostume@oscars.org

PARKING
Parking is $12 and available in the Pritzker Parking Garage on Sixth Street, just east of Fairfax Avenue, and on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard at Spaulding Avenue. Additional parking is available in the Petersen Automotive Museum parking lot located on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue, the Museum Square parking lot on Curson Avenue, and at meters located on 6th Street.