” Magnificent Gold ” dress by Guo Pei

First impression

The reason why I have chose this dress was because when I was in the “China: Through the looking glass” exhibit, the other dresses were placed together from various designers. However, the “Magnificent Gold” dress was separately placed such that the whole room that had a dim light created a direct juxtaposition, drawing my immediate attention. After a thorough intake of the dress, I also realized that the ornaments such as the head piece and the detailed stitches were all related to a lotus flower, which then I have also noticed the placements of Buddhas around the room. Such features unconsciously drew me closer to the dress, as first my religion being Buddhism, second the significance of the symbols that the dress carried was very relatable. It also reminded me of my family due to such grandiose usage of ‘gold’. Growing up in an environment where gold was a common superstition, my family and our house was specifically adorned with a lot of gold. Particularly my mother’s bed sheet which was nothing but a plain endless silk in gold.

The Dress

“Magnificent Gold” was made in 2007 Haute Couture by a Beijing based designer Guo Pei. Due to the collaboration between MET’s costume institute and Department of Asian Studies, the dress was displayed. Guo Pei described that her dress was inspired by the significance of gold where it expresses ” Spirit of the King and the spirit of the Sun”. Pei also stated that it took 50,000 total hours to complete this intricate dress.

What was particularly interesting was the infusion of the cultures that was portrayed from the dress. The dress interestingly carries a Western inflated crinoline silhouette that was inspired by the 1850s Victorian shape yet the details convey Asian symbolisms.

Remix object & Impression object