Pages of history: WAM exhibition showcases paper replicas of centuries of fashion

A magazine headline once cleverly called Isabelle de Borchgrave’s re-creations of historical fashion pieces “pulp art.”

In the Belgian artist’s hands, the rather ordinary medium of paper is turned into exquisitely detailed and colorful life-size historical costumes such as English and French royal court gowns, Turkish caftans and costumes worn by the influential and avant-garde Parisian dance troupe Ballet Russes, founded by a Russian impresario.

“Fashioning Art from Paper,” an exhibition of nearly 100 of de Borchgrave’s artworks, will be on display at the Wichita Art Museum from Feb. 18 through May 14. Admission for the special exhibition is $12 for adults, and free to students with an ID, youth under 18 and WAM members. Discounts are available for those who participate in SNAP benefits. WAM is holding a special free admission day to the exhibition on Saturday, April 22, in conjunction with its Family ArtVenture series, which will focus on playful patterns that day.

Exhibition opening day afternoon activities on Saturday, Feb. 18, include two ballet performances choreographed by Ballet Wichita artistic director David Justin at 1 and 3 p.m., and a 2 p.m. talk by fashion curator, professor and writer Dennita Sewell, who will share her insights on de Borchgrave’s works. The performances and talk are free to attend.

WAM curator Tera Hedrick saw the “Fashioning Art from Paper” exhibition when it was in Oklahoma City in 2018, and “it’s lived in my imagination ever since,” she said.

Other WAM patrons who saw the exhibition also raved to museum officials about the exhibition, hoping that the exhibition could make its way here. Now it has.

A longtime painter, de Borchgrave’s inspiration for her time-traveling paper fashions started with a 1994 visit to New York City’s Museum of Modern Art’s Costume Institute, where 18th-century fashions were on display.

She started doing re-creations of various iconic fashions, from royal courts to those made by turn-of-the-century designers such as Coco Chanel. In 2004, the Chicago Marshall’s department store asked her to replicate Jackie Kennedy’s ivory silk taffeta wedding gown in paper since the original had become dusty and fragile. The replica was later displayed at the Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in honor of the Kennedys’ 60th wedding anniversary in 2013.

“I was, and still am, surprised every day by what paper can give you,” de Borchgrave said in a Vogue article when her exhibition was shown at the Savannah College of Art and Design. “Paper gives you freedom: You can paint on it, shrink it, iron it, and mimic fabrics such as linen, velvet, brocade, taffeta, and satin by playing with trompe l’oeil and illusion. It’s much more resistant than fabric. It endures better against light and time, with the only issue being humidity.”

At WAM, two galleries will showcase the exhibition in a series of five suites, each covering a particular time period or genre through 300 years of fashion.

The first series, “Papiers à la Mode,” represent de Borchgrave’s first works replicating historical ball gowns. One work to look for is the artist’s re-creation of Madame de Pompadour’s dress modeled by the famous aristocrat in a 1759 painting by François Boucher.

In another series, “Les Ballets Russes,” the artist plays tribute to the costumes and even footwear worn by the dance company, some of which were designed by Pablo Picasso. The costumes will be shown suspended on wires, giving the illusion of dancers suspended in the air.

To help visitors understand the historical context of de Borchgrave’s replicas, WAM will provide explanations or reproductions of the works that inspired the pieces, such as Boucher’s painting.

“It’s so the visitors can visualize those connections and see what Isabelle de Borchgrave was working from,” Hedrick said.

For visitors who want to see fashions that are closer to home than the French courts or the Ottoman Empire, WAM is also showing the exhibition “Wichita Wore What? A Century of Local Fashion,” which is already on display and continues through June 18. The exhibition is a collaboration among WAM, the Wichita-Sedgwick County Historical Museum and local collectors.

It showcases fashions from 1898 through 1998, featuring designer label clothing and other pieces worn by key figures in Wichita’s history, including Connie Peters, the city’s first woman mayor, and civil rights attorney Chester Lewis. The exhibition also includes wearable paper shift dresses that had been part of a marketing gimmick of the Scott paper company in the 1950s, when consumers who sent in a proof of purchase could receive a free paper dress, Hedrick noted.

“Wichita Wore What?” is included in WAM’s free admission.

‘Fashioning Art from Paper’ exhibition

What: an exhibition of nearly 100 paper works re-creating historical fashion pieces by Belgian artist Isabelle de Borchgrave

Where: John W. and Mildred L. Graves Gallery & Louise and S.O. Beren Gallery, Wichita Art Museum, 1400 Museum Blvd.

When: Feb. 18-May 14, gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, noon-5 p.m. Sunday, closed Monday

Admission: $12 for adults, $3 for Kansas who participate in SNAP benefits, and free to students with an ID, youth under 18 and WAM members. Admission to other WAM galleries is free any time.

More information: 316-268-4921 or wam.org