Dressing Silk-Road: From Nomadic Tradition to Paris Collection

Since ancient times, Central Asian countries on and along the Silk Road were sites where Eastern and Western culture met and where a unique culture of rich and fabulous cloths and textiles was developed.  Since the 1970s, fashion designers from around the world, including from Japan, have had a strong interest in these traditional textiles and they have come to use them in their designs. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, as Central Asian countries opened their doors to foreigners, designers became increasingly aware of and more interested in traditional textiles. They thus flourished as “folklore fashion” on the stages of the Paris Collection.

This exhibition introduces the latest fashions by John Galliano, who played a leading role in  “folklore fashion,” as well as pieces from other Paris Collection designers such as Dries Van Noten and Isabel Marant, along with ethnic costumes from Central Asia which inspired these fashion designers. We hope the exhibition presents a new possibility of visualizing beauty brought out by the inter-fusion of different cultures, which is a distinctive characteristic of global society.