This Modern Love

In recent years the Bendigo Art Gallery has become renowned for its fashion exhibitions, including The Golden Age of Couture, The White Wedding Dress and Grace Kelly: Style Icon, bringing this rather sleepy country town under the eye of the fashion world. This year it presented Modern Love: fashion visionaries from the FIDM Museum LA, featuring some of the world's most innovative designers from the past 40 years. Drawn from the archives of the FIDM Museum at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, Modern Love reflects key moments in fashion design over four decades that have influenced and changed the way we dress today. The exhibition features over 60 works from the 1980's to the present day and considers influential designers such as Chanel, Dior, Louboutin, Alexander McQueen, Valentino, YSL and Toni Maticevski. 

The exhibition closes this weekend, so on Thursday I hurriedly made the decision to take a little road trip to Bendigo to catch this once in a lifetime overview of the modern fashion world. Though smaller than previous exhibitions, the works were rich in diversity, technique and, of course, beauty, making the whole experience completely worthwhile. There was much detail provided about each designer and their rise - and in some cases fall - from the fashion world. Here are some of the exquisite pieces on display.

Evening dress by Carolina Herrera, New York, 1988

Chanel suit jacket, Washington, 1991

This suit jacket appeared on the front of the 1991 addition of American Vogue and was inspired by the sand and sea.

Evening gown by Arnold Scassi, New York, 1988

My absolute favourite dress from the exhibition. Evening dress by Alexander McQueen, Fall/Winter 2008-09.

The focal points of this dress are the two peacocks on the front and back of the dress in black and white hues, creating a half-mourning palette. The hundreds of yards of gathered silk were tea dyed; the frayed edges blur one tear into the next, allowing the black lace overlays to stand out.

'Haute drape dress' by Toni Maticevski, Spring/Summer 2013-14. 

Light and shadow constantly morph as the onlooker walks around the pure white, 3D creation. The soft-form neoprene dress is the first example of Maticevski's work acquired by the FIDM museum.

Evening dress by Valentino

Vivienne Westwood bustier and shorts, 1994

Design sketches by Chanel