Bernard Rudofsky’s 1944 exhibition “Are Clothes Modern?”

We’re over two years into intensive research for our upcoming exhibition, Items: Are Clothes Modern? and I still get asked on a fairly regular basis: How did MoMA decide to embark on a fashion exhibition? I always answer with the same (true) story. Several years ago, in an attempt to plot out necessary acquisitions for the Museum’s collection of modern and contemporary design, and believing that a history of design cannot be told without fashion, I began to keep a list of items (for my eyes only) that I called “garments that changed the world.” In keeping with the gist of our collection, which privileges objects over designers, I added to the list items that came to mind that had made their mark on a global and/or local level: the wrap dress, the cheongsam, the keffiyeh, and the baseball cap were early contenders, and the list quickly ballooned over the years. I stuck to the chronology of most of the works we hold in our architecture and design department, so roughly 1900 to the present (with exceptions harking back to the eighteenth century). About two years ago, MoMA’s director, Glenn Lowry, suggested the list should become an exhibition. That’s how we find ourselves here, with just under a year to go before it opens. <a href="https://medium.com/items/bernard-rudofskys-1944-exhibition-are-clothes-modern-1ba461789d24">Website</a>