New Acquisitions

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Strapless dress and matching doublebreast jacket in dark blue cotton with orange, red and yellow tipped roses on green leaf stem and off white polka dot print
Patrick Kelly / Set / Printed cotton / Spring 1989, France / Gift of Nicole Miller, 2021.9.2

Patrick Kelly was the first American designer to join the Chambre syndicale du prêt-à-porter, the prestigious Parisian ready-to-wear trade organization. These designs are characteristic of his work. He frequently used red, black, and white color combinations; fun prints; and body-conscious silhouettes. Kelly died of AIDS in 1990 at only thirty-six years of age.

This set was on view in the 2021 exhibition Ravishing: The Rose in Fashion. 

Yellow hand woven cotton dress with v neck bodice, short puffy sleeves, draw string waistband, allover floral eyelet
Christy Dawn / Dress / Cotton / 2021, USA / Gift of Christy Dawn, 2021.39.1

This dress was made from cotton that was grown regeneratively on a farm in India. The fashion label Christy Dawn has been producing "regenerative fashion" since 2019 as part of their farm-to-closest approach to design. Regenerative fashion is an extension of regenerative farming whereby crops are grown in a way that encourages soil health, while replenishing plants in their surrounding environments. Although these techniques may be new to the public discourse, they have been practiced around the world since antiquity.

This dress was on view in the 2023 exhibition Food & Fashion.

Dark blue sleeveless cocktail dress with velvet trimmed chiffon neckline and armholes, softly pleated knee-length skirt, knitted hemline and floral beading at box pleated waistband
Marc Jacobs for Louis Vuitton / Dress / Wool, chiffon, velvet ribbon, and beads / 1997, France / Gift of Darcy Davisson Rigas, 2021.53.53

Marc Jacobs signed a contract with Louis Vuitton in 1997. He was tasked with presenting the first fashion collection for a brand that had historically thrived on sales of luggage, handbags, and scarves. The designer played an integral role in strengthening Vuitton's place in an ever-expanding luxury market, and he remained at the label until 2014.

This dress was on view in the 2022 exhibition Reinvention and Restlessness: Fashion in the Nineties.

floor-length sleeveless gown in gold on a mannequin inside a gallery vitrine
Bibhu Mohapatra / Evening gown / Gold metallic jacquard and black silk / Fall 2021, USA / Gift of Bibhu Mohapatra, 2022.1.1

FIT alumnus Bibhu Mohapatra designed this golden gown that actress Priyanka Chopra wore on the cover of Vogue India in 2012. This dress reveals the international reach of Mohapatra and Chopra. Although based in New York, Mohapatra has expressed, "I'm designing for a global audience" when discussing heritage and influence.

This dress was on view in the 2022 exhibition Asian Americans in New York Fashion.

Below are the types of objects in the collections of The Museum at FIT.

Man's informal or undress cap in crimson red silk damask brocaded with stylized floral design in multicolor silk and metallic thread

The accessories collection consists of approximately 15,000 objects that date from the mid-17th century to the present day. The collection has a particularly strong emphasis on designer accessories from the second half of the 20th century.

The accessories collection is supported by the Solomon-Sloan Endowment Fund, which was established in 2005 to facilitate the acquisition, conservation, documentation and exhibition of accessories.

  • The footwear collection contains more than 4,000 pairs of shoes, boots and sandals. It includes examples by designers such as Manolo Blahnik, Roger Vivier, Herbert Levine, and Salvatore Ferragamo.
  • The millinery collection contains more than 3,000 hats by famous milliners such as Caroline Reboux, Lilly Daché, Halston and Philip Treacy. There are also many examples from designers such as Christian Dior, Balenciaga and Jacques Fath.
  • The handbag collection includes fine examples by luxury houses such as Hermés and Gucci as well as examples by Roberta di Camerino, Judith Leiber and Bonnie Cashin for Coach.
  • Other accessories include fans, gloves, belts, hosiery and costume jewelry.

Pale pink silk damask dress with fitted bodice with bows

The Costume Collection consists of more than 50,000 objects dating from the mid-18th century to the present. The strength of the collection lies in its 20th-century holdings and, particularly, in couture and ready-to-wear women's clothing. The collections are currently being computerized to facilitate research.

  • The costume collection includes fashion by designers such as Azzedine Alaïa, Balenciaga, Chanel, Comme des Garçons, Dior, Galanos, Halston, Charles James, Norell, Paul Poiret, Yves Saint Laurent, and Vivienne Westwood.
  • The Halston Archives and Study Room hold designs, patterns, and related records documenting this important designer's life work.
  • The menswear collection features some 2,000 garments ranging from formal to activewear, including suits, coats, vests, and uniforms.
  • Also included are swimwear, lingerie, outerwear, and knitwear.

Texitle image of animals prancing

The Textile Collection consists of more than 30,000 textiles dating from the fifth century to the present, and includes the work of artists and designers such as Junichi Arai, Salvador Dali, Raoul Dufy, and William Morris.

  • The textile collection includes apparel and home furnishing fabrics, embroideries, and shawls.
  • The collection also includes a number of ribbon sample books.
  • The J.B. Martin Velvet Room archives handwoven and production velvets spanning a 125-year period.

Model Sandra Payson in studio in front of prints of Greek columns, leaning on a table filled with multicolor fabrics wearing a gray cape jacket, yellow gloves, and a grey hat

The Photography Archive features the work of fashion photographers Louise-Dahl Wolfe (1895-1989), who produced 86 cover images and thousands of interior shots for Harper’s Bazaar magazine, and John Rawlings (1912-1970), who had more than 200 Vogue and Glamour magazine covers. 

Image:  Louise Dahl-Wolfe photograph of model Sandra Payson. Featured in Harper’s Bazaar, March 1947, page 205, gift of  Louise Dahl-Wolfe,  74.84.54 

For those looking for the Herman Landshoff collection, the archive has been transferred to:
Munchner Stadtmuseum
Sammlungsleiter Fotomuseum
St.-Jakobs-Pl. 1
80331 Munchen

The contact for the collection is:
Dr. Ulrich Pohlmann
Tel.: 089/233-22948
Fax.: 089/233-27969
email.: [email protected]