China fashion exhibition is New York smash hit

China fashion exhibition

 

In the latest sign of China’s pulling power in America, an exhibition exploring Chinese influence on Western fashion has become a summer smash-hit, attracting more than 670,000 visitors.

“China: Through the Looking Glass” is the most visited exhibition at the Costume Institute of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and has been extended for three weeks, the museum said Tuesday.

It has smashed the previous record set by a 2011 exhibition celebrating the late British designer Alexander McQueen.

By August 16, the China show attracted more than 670,000 visitors compared to 661,509 for McQueen and has been extended until September 7, the museum said.

The exhibition, which opened on May 7, explores the impact of Chinese aesthetics on Western fashion and how China has fueled the fashion imagination for centuries.

It showcases haute couture from some of the world’s best-known designers alongside jewelry and works of Chinese art, with the focus on Imperial China, 1920-40s Shanghai and the People’s Republic of China.

China was also the theme of this year’s Met Ball, which kicked off the exhibition and acts as the Institute’s annual fundraiser, the most glittering extravaganza in New York high society.

The Costume Institute reopened last year and was named after Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, who has raised more than $125 million for the center since becoming trustee of the Met in 1999.

The Met is New York’s most visited museum, welcoming 6.2 million people last year.

“China: Through the Looking Glass” is so far the museum’s eighth most visited exhibition in history, a spokeswoman said.

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