Cathy's Art Diary

Dull exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum looking at design for and by disabled, deaf and neurodivergent people and communities. I admit this show may have suffered from the fact I went to it after the Marie Antoinette exhibition however I found it drab and impenetrable in places. They also took a broad definition of design not only objects and fashion but also design for protest and items to make a point which I felt were nearer to being contemporary art than design. I also have lots of gripes with the labels. Firstly that the labels which carefully numbered obects in a rather complex system with the room and object number. That in itself was fine but they then didn't number the actual objects so it you were scanning the works on display to work out which was the one you were reading about. Secondly the language was trying to be so inclusive that it became convoluted and complex. From the introductory board which read "For those who are non-disabled or are less...

Sumptuous exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum looking at the life, style and influence of Marie Antoinette. From the first room, with a semi-circle of 18th century dresses in display cases, I was hooked. The dresses were in stunning condition and really brought the period to life. The show moved on to look at accessories, with an amazing display of jewellery. The next section looked at the Petit Trianon examining Antoinette’s interior design style and the life which was lived there which included her piano. From there you moved on to a moving room on her imprisonment and death. The show then opened up to look at her influence on style after her death. I assumed this would jump straight to contemporary fashion but there was a good section on how the Victorian's referenced her in fancy dress and the use of her style post in First World War graphic design and fashion. The show ended with a fabulous room of contemporary fashion and costume designs. It was a real feast...