V&A Museum – Hats An Anthology by Stephen Jones

Cecil Beaton, Christian Dior, Nasir Mazhar, Philip Treacy on Display

Mar 19, 2009
Frances Spiegel

Wash and Go by Stephen Jones - Image courtesy of justinephotography

Outstanding exhibition explores historical and modern hat design and production. Discover the etiquette of hat wearing and see which style or colour suits which face.

A new exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum presents the history of hat design from ancient times to the present day. Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones explores the historical and cultural importance of millinery and features more than 300 hats including an Egyptian Anubis mask dating from 600 BC to creations by Stephen Jones and his contemporaries.

The Search for Exhibits

For the past two years milliner Stephen Jones and fashion and textiles curator, Oriole Cullen, have been scouring the V&A's archives and the collections of other international museums. Their amazing discoveries are now on display in Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones. The exhibition is supplemented by items from Jones's own collection.

The display includes a Coptic Fez (ca. 1100), a Tudor knitted beret and a silk and straw bonnet dating from 1807. Also on view is a cloche hat designed by Christian Dior in 1949, and worn by Dame Margot Fonteyn. Stephen Jones's own Wash and Go shows how plastics can feature in modern hat design. Also featured is a Swarovski crystal-encrusted cube-shaped hat created by Nasir Mazhar for the fashion designer Gareth Pugh in 2008.

Inspired by Cecil Beaton

In planning this new exhibition Cullen and Jones were inspired by a 1971 V&A show: Fashion: An Anthology by Cecil Beaton. This show featured haute couture designs loaned by leading fashion designers and their clients. The new installation has been created by Michael Howells, renowned for his designs for Christian Dior and John Galliano, as well as ballet, theatre and film designs.

Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones — the Themes

The exhibition is arranged thematically:

Inspiration — This section features Queen Victoria's bonnet and Prince Albert’s top hat. This area explores how the past has inspired hat designers and how popular styles, such as the tricorn, are continually re-interpreted.

Creation — Through a mock-up of a milliner's atelier Creation looks at tools, traditions and innovations. On view are the tools of the trade together with materials, millinery blocks, patterns and sketches. Visitors can see designs in progress, finished products and assorted items of headwear.

The Salon — In this area the focus is on buying and selling the finished products. A dazzling display showcases hats created by the world's leading milliners including Philip Treacy, Nasir Mazhar for Gareth Pugh, Vladzio d’Attainville for Cristobal Balenciaga, Claude St Cyr for Norman Hartnell, and Mitza Bricard for Christian Dior and Coco Chanel.

The Clients — Who should wear hats, where, when and why? What is the etiquette of hat wearing? What shape, style or colour suits which face? The Clients answers all these questions and more. The exhibition features headgear created by the world's leading milliners. The wearers of these hats include Dita von Teese, Boy George, Madonna, Isabella Blow, Gertrude Shilling, Audrey Hepburn, and Anna Piaggi as well as royalty and keen collectors. Also on view are hats created for films including two designed by Cecil Beaton for My Fair Lady, Ava Gardner's Balmain hat, and Marlene Dietrich's famous beret.

Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones, which runs until 10th May 2009, is accompanied by a book of the same name by Stephen Jones and Oriole Cullen, with a foreword by John Galliano. There will also be an extensive programme of public events. Full details can be obtained from the V&A.