Museums and Culture

Every year the Metropolitan Museum of Art has a special gala to which celebrities of all types are invited.  This year was a memorable year, as its theme was Punk Couture.  Fabulous dresses and faux pas messes rocked the runway all in honor of the Met’s most recent exhibition: Punk – Chaos to Couture.  I was unfortunately not one of the famous who got to celebrate this annual GALA, but I did have the amazing opportunity to go and visit the exhibit which features original punk creations and punk inspired fashion.

The punk culture originated in the 1970’s right here, at home, in New York City.  It quickly spread across the pond, and London soon caught the punk craze.  This worldwide fashion and social phenomenon morphed as it grew.  The meaning and style of “punk” differed depending on where the alternative population was living.  In New York, for example, the punks were mainly middle-class young adults looking to rebel against their parents.  It’s interesting, because I feel that most fads are similar.  For example, many of the hippies in the United States during the ’60s were middle class teens looking to test their boundaries.  Today’s “hipsters” are of a similar crop.  In England, on the other hand, the culture had more political undertones.  The punks of London were generally working class and were trying to make a counterculture statement with their look.

The Met exhibit opens with a lot of information on the wall about the history of punk culture.  The curators featured two well-known punk designers from the era – Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren, the owners of the London punk boutique Sex, later renamed Seditionaries.  The first main room displayed various graphic-T’s that the duo created during their partnership.  Many of the images contained profane language and images, alluding to sex, drugs, and political dissension.  One shirt in particular featured the image of Queen Elizabeth II with a safety pin through her lips.  The picture is very similar to the cover of a Sex Pistol’s album from that time.  It’s interesting to see how far this punk imagery has permeated into society!  When I visited the Village a few days later, I saw a sign for a vintage shop with that identical disrespectful portrait.  In the same room were modern punk inspired fashions created by contemporary designers.  Not only were these pieces punk-inspired, but they were specifically influenced by the work of Westwood and McLaren.

Throughout the rest of the show, the curators sought to educate museum visitors about the different styles of punk fashion: DIY Hardware (the usage of zippers, chains, studs, safety pins, and staples), Bricolage (the utilization of garbage such as trash bags, bottles, caps, and plastic), Graffiti/Agitprop (paint splatters and text), and Destroy (distressing and ripping).  None of the remaining outfits on display were original punk pieces and this was something that was a bit disappointing to me.  I was hoping to see a comparison between New York and London punk – the introduction to the exhibition seemed to be hinting towards this layout.  All the remaining dresses, suits, pants, and shirts were modern creations by designers such as Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, and Chanel.  Some of the pieces were quite amazing and inspiring to me as an artist, while others seemed to be silly and useless.  For example, there were several mannequins sporting clothes with extra sleeves and collars in places where sleeves and collars are not needed.

Punk: Chaos to Couture was definitely an aesthetic roller coaster and was tons of fun to walk through.  Many times, though, the clothing was positioned very high on platforms, making it difficult to analyze the handiwork of the designers and to fully appreciate their creations.  A mash-up of music from the punk era was blasting, but I wasn’t able to discern any particular song – in the end, it just sounded like a bit of unnecessary noise.  The one melody I did recognize, though, was the Clockwork Orange remix of The Thieving Magpie by Rossini playing at the opening of the exhibit.  Video screens placed around the exhibition hall were showing recordings of musicians and popular films of the time, but with little explanation, I wasn’t quite sure what I was looking at.

All in all, I did enjoy my time in this temporary exhibit.  It made me realize how much of today’s fashion is based on the past.  When I go to a store and see distressed jeans and ripped up shirts, I can now relate it back to the punk culture and can understand how it inspired them.  The do-it-yourself nature of the fashion phenomenon is really inspiring, and makes me look at my style differently.  I want to go out into the world and bring something of my own design aesthetic to the public – not on a global scale, by any means, but at least in my own social circle.  Punks were young adults just like me!

Punk: Chaos to Couture
Metropolitan Museum of Art
May 9 – August 14 2013

Marina B. Nebro