The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk
By: Christina Stewart at JustLuxe
Virgins, sailors and mermaids, combined with elaborate headpieces, over-the-top cancans, and a spirit of true avant-garde genius fill the echoing halls of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.
With an invitation to preview The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk — and the chance to meet ‘l’enfant terrible’ himself — I quickly packed my bags for Montreal and was on my way to the UNESCO City of Design.
The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts opened its doors earlier this month to celebrate the life’s work of the Parisian courtier with an installation that marks the designer’s first international exhibition. The exhibit features six thematic galleries, comprised of 140 carefully-curated pieces, photos, and sketches from 150 collections from the past 35 years.
The exhibit opens with The Odyssey of Jean Paul Gaultier, a unique selection of the designer’s signature style, including an eclectic mix of nautical stripes and religious stereotypes. Visitors make their way up the museum’s grand staircase and are greeted with what at first glance appears to be Jean Paul himself reciting French limerick. The familiar face, along with those of past models and muses, such as Eve Salvail, are in actuality state-of-the-art holograms projected onto delicately casted-mannequins.
Curator and former male model, Thierry-Maxime Loriot said the decision to introduce the exhibition with this particular collection was an obvious choice for several reasons.
“I think it’s one of the most spectacular collections, but also its one of the first dresses he made (the blue one on the left that he made in 1971),” Loriot said.
“We use the sailor stripe because it’s something that started his career.”
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