Phoenix Museum

On Wednesday, those of us who had arrived early visited the Phoenix Art Museum and took a bus tour of Phoenix and the surrounding area.  We viewed the exhibit described below. 

Defning Moments: Fifty Years of Fashion at Phoenix Art Museum  
April 2 – August 7, 2016
Ellman Fashion Design Gallery and
Orme Lewis Gallery

Featuring more than 50 works drawn from across the history of fashion, this exhibition highlights masterworks and milestones of the permanent collection. Providing insight into how the treasures of the collection were acquired and formed an internationally respected fashion archive, this exhibition will feature a roster of world-class designers including Alexander McQueen, Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga and Chanel alongside stunning historical works.

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We actually went in two different galleries.  One gallery had costumes from much earlier time periods.  The second gallery showcased works from the designers listed above.

To be honest, I'm not all that interested in fashion history, but a great tour guide (or docent, as she called herself) can make it really interesting.

This was the dress Kate Winslet wore to the 2005 Academy Awards.  It is described as a cerulean blue gown with sparkling jewel details.  It was designed by Badgley Mischka. 

As you can see, Kate fills the dress out much better than that mannequin did!  The color has also been called "periwinkle." :-)

The museum also had a fabulous miniature collection (dollhouses etc).   Some of us did a quick tour through that section. Here is a photo of one display.  Yes...this is tiny furniture in a little display box!

What would a museum visit be without souvenirs!!  I bought this box of notecards featuring some of the gowns in the collection.  The designers are:  Christian Dior (green), Fontana (strapless), James Galanos (orange),  Mainbocher (dull orange), Cristobal Balenciaga (red and white).

Also bought this "Day of the Dead" necklace.  I loved the colors and the size of the beads. Plus you can adjust the length.  The kindergartners will love it, too!

Any great museum trip has to include lunch at the museum restaurant.  Kwei-lin Lum snapped this photo of Ron Fong and myself.  I think I had corn chowder and it was yummy!