The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the sidewalk to the catwalk

Sexy exhibition at the Barbican looking at the work of the designer John Paul Gaultier.

This is a brilliantly designed exhibition and worth seeing just for the way it is set out and the amazing mannequins with live faces. I found these a bit spooky at first but once you get used to them somehow having a moving face makes the clothes come alive. Some of them even speak and sing to you and John Paul himself acts as a great introduction to the show.

It is themed well from the classic Breton designs and Madonnas, though Parisian, punk and of course the classic corsets. There was also a good section on his muses and the models he has used including Andrej Pejic who modelled both male and female clothes for him.  

The exhibition didn’t shy away from the sex appeal and empowerment of the clothes and he says himself of his first collection for men that he took as his inspiration the idea of making erotic clothes for men. It’s the first of these fashion exhibitions which gives almost equal weight to male and female clothing.

As for favourite items, that’s really hard! I did love a ballet costume for a man which is a sailor suit at the front but a body stocking with tattoos drawn on at the back. You can’t help but love the conical bra corsets, particularly the first one he made for his teddy bear! How about an off the shoulder evening dress for a man worn with a shirt and tie and top hat and  I am a sucker for a denim evening dress!

How right that the show included clips from Absolutely Fabulous because it was!

Review
Evening Standard


 

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