Voices of Fashion

A major new fashion exhibition entitled Voices of Fashion: Black Couture, Beauty and Styles. is set to open at the Centraal Museum. The show will be the first ever staged by an art museum in the Netherlands to query the white gaze as the default vantage point from which to present, wear and collect fashion. Underpinning the exhibition are years of research by black, brown and white people that show that the fashion world and our relationship with it continue to be shaped by the legacies of European colonialism. Voices of Fashion takes you on a little told story of fashion, with a stunning exhibition design by Afaina de Jong of AFARAI.

Voices of Fashion is designed to inspire a more inclusive conception of collective memory by means of iconic designs. Fashion curator Ninke Bloemberg and co-curator and Diversity Rules founder Janice Deul show how black designers have influenced the fashion world and how much of what is considered fashionable today is based on these designers’ sense of style. Deul has been a longtime advocate for inclusivity in fashion, drawing critical attention to the issue through her platform, Diversity Rules, as well as through spirited appearances in the media. Janice Deul: “Black people are often said to be the Curators of Cool, but this isn’t always recognized or acknowledged where it matters. This lack of recognition has all to do with power and history. And that’s why I’m so excited about this show. It’s a celebration of black beauty, talent and culture that we hope will provide food for thought and give models and designers the credit they deserve.”

Participating artists
AiRich, Ashley Chew, AiAi Studios, Botter, Chokkas, Christopher John Rogers, Coco Olakunle, Cross Colours, Daily Paper, Darwin Winklaar, David Paulus, Di’Xpression, Dior x Maria Grazia Chiuri x Pathé’O, DJ Turne, Edson Sabajo, E-Life, Emmanuel Adjei, Filling Pieces, Frank Govers, Gucci x Dapper Dan, Hanifa, Haus of Stone (HOS2), Hosselaer | Farida Sedoc, Ikiré Jones, Kalkidan Hoex, Kenneth Ize, Kerry James Marshall, Kwame Brathwaite, Laetitzia Campbell, Lafalaise Dion, Lamula Nassuna, Lamula Nassuna x Othello De’souza Hartley, Larry Jay, Leroy Lucas, Lesiba Mabitsela, Libaya, Louis Vuitton x Virgil Abloh, Maartje van den Hurk, Marga Weimans Fashion House, Oscam, MAUKE V Jewelry, Marlene Dumas, Mattel, Moncler Pierpaolo Piccioli, Myles Omeally, Nina Ricci, Off-White™, Ozwald Boateng, Paco Rabanne, Patrick Kelly, Patta, Percy Irausquin, Priya Ahluwalia, Pyer Moss, Rammellzee, Raquel van Haver, Real Fake Shoes, Robin Ramos x Kymani Ceder, Roy Villevoye, Roxanne Hehakaija, Sansovino6 x Edward Buchanan, Sneakerjagers, Stephen Burrows, Steve McQueen, Studio Wesseling x KB Mpofu, Sunny Dolat, Telfar, The Natural Nation, The New Originals, Thebe Magugu, Thebe Magugu x Kristin-Lee Moolman x Ib Kamara, Tom van Veen, Valerio Zeno, Vincent Vulsma, Walker Wear, WilliWear, XHOSA, XULY.Bët, Yinka Shonibare, Yves Saint Laurent.

Annex: Tabita Rezaire
During Voices of Fashion, the Annex is taken over by Tabita Rezaire (1989), a French artist with Guyanese and Danish roots. Rezaire creates video installations and performances in which she critically and playfully connects her art practice with alternative cosmologies, forms of medicine and spirituality. In the Annex, her latest installation Orbit Diapason is shown, which draws inspiration and guidance from the stone circles of South Africa to dive into the realms of alienhood and the poetics of invasion.

This presentation is part of Rezaire’s solo exhibition Symbiose Immaculée which is a collaboration between IMPAKT, center for media culture and the Centraal Museum and takes place in two locations. You will find the second part of the exhibition at IMPAKT (on view at Lange Nieuwstraat 4, Utrecht). The installation Orbit Diapason comes out of a joint commission by the two institutions, with the support of IDFA and LA Filmforum for the film production. The presentation in The Annex is made possible with the generous support of the Mondrian Fund, OUTSET and the Theodora Niemeijer Fonds.