Sleeping Beauties: The Rebirth of Fashion

An exploration of ephemerality and transformation in fashion through the philosophies of Leopardi and Lipovetsky.

What Do Fashion and Death Have in Common?

At first glance, fashion and death seem like opposing worlds, but they share a deep connection through transience. Giacomo Leopardi posits that both arise from impermanence, and this symbiotic relationship is central to the exhibition “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.” The show explores how fashion, over 400 years and through 250 garments, reflects the eternal interaction between life and death. Although these pieces, designed for intimate contact with the skin, have lost their functionality over time, they are reborn through technology and sensory experiences that connect them to the present. This rebirth reveals not only their physical wear but also a profound cultural shift.

Showcased Pieces from Sleeping Beauties, Met Gala 2024

Philosophy and Fashion: The Ideas of Leopardi and Lipovetsky

Leopardi offers an enlightening perspective on the relationship between fashion and death. For him, death ends life, giving it new meaning, while fashion, in its constant transformation, redefines our customs and appearances. The "sleeping beauties," once essential in our daily lives, only awaken when we reinterpret them through a contemporary lens. Leopardi critiques how society, obsessed with appearance and novelty, often focuses on superficiality rather than the essence of life. In this context, fashion acts as a mirror of this obsession, showing how even in its obsolescence, garments continue to reflect our fleeting concerns and values.

On the other hand, Gilles Lipovetsky analyzes how fashion and fleeting trends dominate daily life, highlighting the prevalence of immediacy and superficiality in modern life. According to Lipovetsky, fashion acts as a snapshot of the moment, capturing the essence of each era. This idea resonates in “Sleeping Beauties,” which juxtaposes historical and contemporary fashions to show how fashion not only reflects but amplifies the values and changes of each period.

A Sensory and Technological Experience

The “Sleeping Beauties” exhibition offers a multisensory experience that transcends mere visual observation. Incorporating scents, sounds, and textures, the exhibit creates a deep immersion that invites viewers to engage in a dialogue between the present and the philosophy of ephemerality. Andrew Bolton, curator of the exhibition, states, “The sensory and emotional are largely part of our experience and notions of feelings and memory... it’s the first time we literally bring them back to life.” This experience allows the garments to become witnesses of a life cycle that goes beyond the superficial, revealing their connection to temporality and existence.

The exhibition employs advanced technologies, such as augmented reality and artificial intelligence, alongside traditional methods like X-rays and soundscapes, to reactivate the sensory capabilities of the pieces. Each space within the gallery juxtaposes historical fashions with their contemporary counterparts in an immersive environment that engages all the senses: sight, smell, touch, and sound. This combination of technologies redefines fashion as a dynamic art form that captures the essence of our existence, always in change and renewal.

The Garden of Fashion: Design and Symbolism

The gallery features designs by fashion icons such as Cristóbal Balenciaga, Hattie Carnegie, Lilly Daché, Hubert de Givenchy, Deirdre Hawken, Stephen Jones, Guy Laroche, Madame Grès, Mainbocher, Elsa Schiaparelli, and many more. These designs are arranged like a garden of autonomous galleries, each exploring a theme inspired by nature and organized around the elements of earth, air, and water. This symbolism highlights fashion as a cycle of rebirth and transformation, reflecting the transcendence, impermanence, and ephemerality that Bolton describes.

Final Reflection: Fashion as an Eternal Cycle

“Sleeping Beauties” not only celebrates fashion as an art form but invites us to reconsider it as a dynamic testimony to the human condition. By capturing the essence of the ephemeral and the possibility of rebirth, the exhibition reminds us that fashion, like life, is in perpetual change. It challenges us to view fashion not only as an aesthetic phenomenon but as a manifestation of eternal cycles that reflect the transience of life and the possibility of constant transformation.