Gucci's Camp Exhibition at the Met Announced During Milan Fashion Week

During Milan Fashion Week, Alessandro Michele presented Gucci's fall-winter 2019-2020 collection at the company's headquarters on via Mecenate, centered on the theme of the mask. The show featured models in melancholic, pre-ordered chaos, with outfits combining embroidery, leather, and accessories evoking ghosts and skeletons. Michele also announced the upcoming exhibition "Camp: Notes on Fashion" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, opening in May 2019. The exhibition, sponsored by Gucci and supported by Condé Nast, will explore the camp aesthetic from the 17th century to today, featuring around 200 objects including clothing, sculptures, paintings, and drawings. It will be organized by Andrew Bolton, curated by Wendy Yu with Karen Van Godtsenhoven, with set design by Jan Versweyveld and mannequin headpieces by Shay Ashual. The Costume Institute Benefit gala will take place on May 6, 2019, chaired by Alessandro Michele, Harry Styles, Lady Gaga, Serena Williams, and Anna Wintour. The exhibition draws on Susan Sontag's 1964 essay "Notes on Camp" and traces camp's origins in European and American subcultures from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. Max Hollein, director of the Met, stated that the show will reveal camp's profound influence on both art and popular culture.