COLUMBIA, Mo. – The Stephens College Historic Costume Gallery will open the exhibit “Chords & Threads: Rhythm - Movement - Style,” on Jan. 23, 2010. An opening reception will be held from noon-3pm in the Historic Costume Gallery, located on the mezzanine level of Lela Raney Wood Hall, 6 N. College Ave.

The exhibit is organized in three sections, each exploring the symbiotic relationship between fashion, music and dance.

“The first section is about the way rhythm and sound are visualized through fashion elements such as prints, fringes and silhouettes,” explains Elizabeth DeMaria, Costume Museum and Research Library curator. “The second section is about the way garments move in dance, they way they interact with music. Finally the ‘style’ section is a look at how fashion has influenced major music icons and how these same icons have introduced new fashion trends.”

The exhibit will feature garments from a period ranging from the late 1800s until the mid 1990s, and it will include renowned designers such as Emilio Pucci, Thierry Mugler and Bob Mackie, the latter represented in the exhibit by a gown allegedly worn by Motown legend Diana Ross.

In addition to garments and accessories, visitors will be offered a multimedia experience through mp3 players to be carried through the gallery. At various points in the exhibit visitors will be prompted to play different tracks to coincide with a specific garment.

All items on display are part of the Matilda Magnus Price Historic Fashion Collection – a working collection of approximately 13,000 garments and accessories from a variety of donors dating back to the 1700s – that is housed in the Stephens College Costume Museum and Research Library.

Stephens Costume Museum Launches Online Collection

The opening of this exhibit also marks the launch of the online collection of the Costume Museum and Research Library. For the first time, visitors will be able to use computer stations in the gallery to view the approximately 100 ensembles currently in the online collection.

DeMaria says the online catalogue will grow with time to include all the pieces in the Matilda Magnus Price Historic Fashion Collection, though for now the online records available mostly serve to represent the scope of the collection. The online collection, which is powered by eMuseum (the same software behind the online collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art) was made possible through a grant from the Jessie Ball duPont Fund.

The exhibit, free and open to the public, will run through May 15, 2010.

Regular gallery hours are 12-3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Thursday. Special tours can be scheduled for groups of five or more. For more information, contact Elizabeth DeMaria at (573) 876-7220.

Stephens College, established in 1833, is historically committed to meeting the changing needs of women. Stephens engages students in an innovative educational experience focused on pre-professional fields and the performing arts and grounded in the liberal arts.

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