Photofest

Alexandra Byrne-designed dress, shown here in 2004’s The Phantom of the Opera, will be part of the Cut! exhibit.

DETAILS

Cut! Costume and the Cinema
Glenbow Museum
Saturday, August 20 - Wednesday, September 28

More in: Visual Arts

Renaissance royalty. Eighteenth-century pirates. Victorian heroines. Second World War guerrillas.

If that doesn’t grab your attention, try the following: Natalie Portman, Johnny Depp, Kate Winslet and Daniel Craig. The list goes on.

The Glenbow Museum’s newest exhibit, Cut! Costume and the Cinema, shines the spotlight on the intricacy and beauty of costumes, showcasing 43 outfits from 25 blockbuster films representing five centuries of history. And yes, this is the real deal: These are the actual costumes used in movies such as Ever After and Sherlock Holmes, and worn by the likes of Renée Zellweger and Heath Ledger. But the exhibit pieces weren’t chosen only for their star-powered aura. Regardless of the actors who inhabited them, many of these costumes are award-winning in their own right, including the Oscar-winning sartorial splendours of The Duchess (starring Keira Knightley). Even a casual glance at these eye-popping gowns reveals why these costumes are exhibited as art, with insights on the design and craftsmanship provided from the costumer’s perspective.

“There is a lot of artistry reflected in the making of these costumes,” says Melanie Kjorlien, vice-president of access, collections and exhibits. “It’s obviously a very creative process, and although the costumes are based on different periods of history in which the films take place, there is still some latitude for creativity for the costumer and the director.” And the actors tasked with wearing the ensembles? Well, Depp apparently had some input on Captain Jack Sparrow’s now-iconic garb.

But the exhibit is a lesson in history as much as in hems. The roster includes carefully researched period films, opening a window into the past, from 17th century explorers (The New World), to the 1920s (Mrs. Dalloway). For a dose of realism in the cinematic montage, the exhibit offers a peek at “underpinnings” — that’s right, the architectural undergarments essential to many of the elaborate costumes on display.

Speaking of history, the Glenbow isn’t just an art gallery. It boasts a few stunning costumes in its own cultural history collections, such as a 1930s opera costume in its Mavericks exhibit. “Yes, we have this travelling exhibition coming in that has these amazing historical costumes from these very current films,” says Kjorlien. “But there are interesting analogies you can make to the costumes we have in our collection, some of the beautiful ones that are highly valued in terms of their importance to this region.”

And there’s an even wider perspective you can take when considering the exhibition. Why is it, after all, that so many people go squealy at the mention of a movie star? According to Kjorlien, Cut! also showcases “the predominance that the film and television and the entertainment industry has on our popular culture we consume on a daily basis, and where we place our value in terms of the objects we prize today.”

The Glenbow is seizing the opportunity of this five-week exhibit to let some of Calgary’s stars shine. To get an inside edge on how both costume and sound design contribute to theatre, you can attend a panel on September 24 with costume designer Deitra Kalyn and sound designer Beau Shiminsky (plus goodies from local food guru Julie van Rosendaal). Kalyn, award-winning in her own right, will have five of her own costumes on display.

Sociological commentary aside, what will draw and wow people is the magnificence of the costumes themselves — some of which had less than 30 seconds of screen time, and are now shown closely enough to appreciate every detail. “It’s a really unique opportunity to see some of the most beautiful costume design that’s been produced for historical films in the last 20 years,” says Kjorliein.