The large poster was of two men wearing glasses, surrounded by antique-looking dolls. The dolls were dressed in unique modern fashions--very unique and unusual modern fashions. The poster invited the viewer to a Viktor & Rolf exhibition at the Barbican Art Gallery.
The House of Viktor & Rolf
We quickly found out that Viktor & Rolf are cutting edge fashion designers from the Netherlands. As we are both very interested in both fashion and dolls, we decided that this was a must-do for us in London, although we didn't really know what to expect (were dolls actually part of the exhibit? Would we be interested in the fashions of Viktor & Rolf? It was an unknown, but one that intrigued us.
Mummies & The Barbican
After a morning of Egyptian mummies and sculpture at the British Museum (seriously, another must-do for any doll lover since some of the small figures that were buried with the mummies are quite doll-like) we set out for the Barbican.
A Giant Doll House
As soon as we entered the Special Exhibit, we knew we were not wasting our time. The first thing we noticed was that the manikins displaying Viktor & Rolf's high-concept fashion had reproduction doll heads (made by a Belgian dollmaker whose name is not disclosed). The second thing we noticed upon turning a corner was a huge three-story doll house with miniaturized versions of the larger manikins, displaying the fashions of Viktor & Rolf in perfect miniature.
Three Floors of Dolls Wearing Miniaturized Fashions
This jumbo, idealized doll house was white, which showed off the small dolls with Jumeau-like heads and their sometimes bizarre, often thought-provoking fashions perfectly. The exhibit space consisted of two floors and from the second floor, you could use thoughtfully-provided opera glasses to more closely view the dolls on the upper floors of the doll house.
Giant Dolls and Performance Art
We were also intrigued with the fashion of the House of Viktor & Rolf. More performance art than wearable fashion, each of their collections was thought-provoking and themed. Along with the oversized dolls displaying the fashions were screens showing videos of the original fashion shows (performance art?) that showcased those fashions. It seems that Viktor & Rolf have long been a bit doll-obsessed. One early show, entitled "Russian Doll," mimicked the Russian dolls where when you open the doll, there is another and another inside. For their fashion show, Viktor & Rolf took one model, placed her on a turning pedestal, and made a living Russian doll out of her...she displayed 8 fashions, one after the other, placed upon the model by Viktor & Rolf themselves. At the end, you could barely see the model for all the clothing.
Viktor & Rolf and Collector Fashion Dolls - Influences?
Another doll-related aspect of the exhibit that I found intriguing (perhaps the most intriguing) is that in 1996, Viktor & Rolf did a show in miniature that they called "Launch." In this show, dolls roughly the size of 15 to 17-inch fashion dolls were shown going through the life-cycle of a fashion designer and fashion-design house--design studio, catwalk show, photo shoot and boutique. The dolls created for the exhibit were faceless, but with modern fashion-doll proportions. This exhibit brought us so many interesting questions! This was right at the time of the birth of the modern, large fashion dolls for collectors. Had Viktor & Rolf seen the recently released Gene dolls? Had they seen some of the work of Robert Tonner? Had Robert Tonner seen Launch and did it help inspire his own miniature fashion designer doll, Tyler Wentworth?
Information About the Exhibit
I unfortunately don't have photographs of Launch or the larger manikins from the show as photos were strictly not allowed in the Gallery. However, a book has been published about the exhibit and will be available online once the exhibit closes in September (it is currently available at the Barbican).
The House of Viktor & Rolf runs through September 21st at the Barbican Gallery, in London, England.
