Anyone who has ever had the audacity to question Boston's fashion savvy must now swallow their words, for the Museum of Fine Arts Boston was selected to receive the archive of the original drawings of legendary fashion illustrator, Kenneth Paul Block (1924-2009).
During his lifetime, Block was known as the primary illustrator for such noteworthy publications as Women's Wear Daily (WWD) and W. Following his death in April at the age of 84, the artist gifted his archive to the MFA, including: nearly 2,000 original fashion illustrations and couture sketchbooks, as well as five boxes of supporting materials.
This generous gift could not possibly have found a more appropriate and loving home, for the MFA was the first general museum to establish textiles as fine art when the department was first created in 1930. In just the past few years, the museum has made a more concerted effort towards the collection of 20th century design. In fact, the MFA has recently created the MFA Fashion Council, a unique group for museum members who are personally invested in high fashion from the runways of Paris, New York, and London. Proceeds from the annual council dues directly support the David and Roberta Logie Department of Textile and Fashion Arts and are used towards the acquisition of twentieth- and twenty-first-century fashion.
Block's archive, chronicling fashion illustration spanning forty years, has made the the MFA the forerunner in the collection of 20th century fashion illustration. As Deputy Director Katie Getchell has acknowledged, “I was amazed by the range and quality of his work and that one person who had witnessed so much history in fashion had actually documented it all and that he wanted it to be part of a public collection made a big impression on me.”
So the moral of the story is that Boston is most definitely a force to be reckoned with on the fashion scene. AND if you're VIP enough to be part of the in-crowd, the next MFA Fashion Council event is just a month away, with a fashion-themed luncheon at the Malcolm Rogers home in Brookline on June 12. This sad little fashionista hopes to one day be worthy, but until then you can find me here again tomorrow--same time, same place...
During his lifetime, Block was known as the primary illustrator for such noteworthy publications as Women's Wear Daily (WWD) and W. Following his death in April at the age of 84, the artist gifted his archive to the MFA, including: nearly 2,000 original fashion illustrations and couture sketchbooks, as well as five boxes of supporting materials.
This generous gift could not possibly have found a more appropriate and loving home, for the MFA was the first general museum to establish textiles as fine art when the department was first created in 1930. In just the past few years, the museum has made a more concerted effort towards the collection of 20th century design. In fact, the MFA has recently created the MFA Fashion Council, a unique group for museum members who are personally invested in high fashion from the runways of Paris, New York, and London. Proceeds from the annual council dues directly support the David and Roberta Logie Department of Textile and Fashion Arts and are used towards the acquisition of twentieth- and twenty-first-century fashion.
Block's archive, chronicling fashion illustration spanning forty years, has made the the MFA the forerunner in the collection of 20th century fashion illustration. As Deputy Director Katie Getchell has acknowledged, “I was amazed by the range and quality of his work and that one person who had witnessed so much history in fashion had actually documented it all and that he wanted it to be part of a public collection made a big impression on me.”
So the moral of the story is that Boston is most definitely a force to be reckoned with on the fashion scene. AND if you're VIP enough to be part of the in-crowd, the next MFA Fashion Council event is just a month away, with a fashion-themed luncheon at the Malcolm Rogers home in Brookline on June 12. This sad little fashionista hopes to one day be worthy, but until then you can find me here again tomorrow--same time, same place...
Psst: For more information on the Museum of Fine Arts, please visit the museum online at http://www.mfa.org/. For information on the MFA Fashion Council, visit the council website at http://www.mfa.org/calendar/sub.asp?key=12&subkey=3455.
Fashion illustrations by Kenneth Paul Block. Information on the life and works of Kenneth Paul Block from: artdaily.org at http://www.artdaily.org/; the Museum of Fine Arts at http://www.mfa.org/; and the Drawing Club Blog at www.thedrawingclub.com/blog.
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