Man Ray's Influence on Fashion at Centre of New Exhibition

Antwerp's fashion museum, MoMu, has put on some stellar fashion exhibitions since its re-launch in 2021, expertly challenging our perspective on clothing, addressing what it means in the context of culture and world events. E/MOTION: Fashion in Transition looked at how designers respond to their environments from political turmoil to human disaster, before MIRROR MIRROR - Fashion & the Psyche looked inward at the psychological impact of clothes. At the centre of Belgium's fashion hub, Momu's latest exhibition examines the fashion photography of Man Ray in the early 20th century, and the Dadaist and Surrealist artist's impact on designers including Martin Margiela, Olivier Theyskens, Dries Van Noten, Chanel, Madeleine Vionnet and Yves Saint Laurent.

'For Man Ray the realms of art and fashion weren’t mutually exclusive. His commercial fashion photography inspired his artworks and vice versa. Our aim is to illustrate that fashion is part of society and is permeated by many influences. Without necessarily explaining this we also hope the exhibition illustrates the importance of creative subconsciousness', curator Romy Cockx explains.

Cockx details just how far back the artist's influence on fashion goes. 'It was a discovery that the first reference to Man Ray in Belgian fashion dates to 1938, and can be traced back to the fashion house Norine', that surprised her most. 'Also, it was interesting to discover that Man Ray greatly inspired Martin Margiela. In general, I think it is interesting that Surrealism made a comeback in fashion over the past two years, but already regularly influenced some Belgian fashion designers during the last three decades.'

The catalyst point for the curation of Man Ray and Fashion was a series of exhibitions in France of the fashion photography of Man Ray. Shown at the Musée Cantini and Chateau Borély, Marseille, and the Musée du Luxembourg, Paris, these images formed the initial threads for MoMu's exhibition, which has been co-organised with the Réunion des Musées Nationaux, Grand Palais, in partnership with the City of Marseille Museums.

However, it became evident to Cockx that Man Ray's work in the Dada art movement, and the influence this had on fashion was missing. Alongside sourcing Dada artworks by the artist, Cockx also wanted to further illustrate Man Ray's fashion photography from the 1920s and 1930s, such as photographs for couturiers and fashion magazines including Vogue, by including dresses from the period taken from the MoMu permanent collection, displayed alongside the artist's portrait. 'I also looked for contemporary fashion that is, or seems, influenced by his work', Cockx explains. 'Inspired by the importance the Surrealists attached to the subconscious, visual parallels emerged. Sometimes references to Man Ray are intentional in contemporary fashion, but often they stem from a shared surrealist visual language.'

MoMu worked with the scenographer Ania Martchenko, who 'designed a trail that supports the surrealist vision of Man Ray, balancing between recognisability and defamiliarisation', feeding the narrative of the exhibition back into the visitor's experience of it.

Man Ray and Fashion runs from 22 April through to 13 August 2023.

MoMu - Fashion Museum Antwerp, Nationalestraat 28, 2000 Antwerpen, Belgium.