MONTREAL.- As the phenomenal tour of the exhibition The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk, which captivated over two million visitors in twelve cities around the world, draws to a close, the
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts is presenting Love is Love: Wedding Bliss for All à la Jean Paul Gaultier, an original installation that brings together thirty-five of the French designer’s haute couture and prêt-à-porter bridal creations.
Produced by the MMFA in collaboration with the Maison Jean Paul Gaultier, this exhibition presents wedding gowns and suits created between 1991 and 2017 by this humanist and inclusive couturier. The daring lines and exquisite artistry of these outstanding creations reveal a highly original designer and the virtuosity of his ateliers. An installation evoking a monumental wedding cake presents wedding apparel for all: heterosexual, homosexual, intercultural and interracial couples to celebrate love in diversity and peace.
The exhibition Love is Love bears witness to the ongoing commitment of Jean Paul Gaultier and the MMFA to promote the acceptance of diversity and to continue the fight against homophobia. The show’s title is an allusion to the speech given by Barack Obama, then-president of the United States, on June 26, 2015, regarding the legalization of homosexual marriage in all American states. This presentation also serves as the grand finale for the international tour of The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk, a major retrospective devoted to the French designer. Love is Love calls once again on the talents of the creators and artisans of this exhibition.
“The tour of the exhibition The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier gave me the opportunity to show my creations around the world. I call this show by the MMFA ‘my biggest fashion show ever!’ In keeping with tradition, whereby an haute couture fashion show finishes with the bridal gown and to thank Quebecers for their enthusiasm for my work, but also the MMFA’s creative team behind this record-setting tour, it is only fitting that the grand finale feature my most beautiful wedding gowns, most of which are being shown for the first time in this Montreal exclusive. Love is love, long live the newlyweds!” declared designer Jean Paul Gaultier.
Nathalie Bondil, Director General and Chief Curator of the MMFA, explained, “And they lived happily ever after… The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier: From the Sidewalk to the Catwalk toured non-stop for five years around the world – a record for a fashion exhibition! To celebrate the happy ending of this extraordinary exhibition with Jean Paul Gaultier, the Maison Gaultier and our teams, we wanted to create a festive installation bearing the humanist, pacifist and inclusive message that brought us together the very first time we met. For this celebration of a marriage that is truly for all, I wanted to pay tribute to Barack Obama who said, ‘Love is love.’ This exhibition is also an opportunity to thank the whole team that toured the retrospective over the past five years, transporting fourteen tons of material for a singularly complex installation.”
“The exhibition also features Jean Paul Gaultier’s twenty years of haute couture. This Montreal exclusive presentation spotlights thirty-seven haute couture and prêt-à-porter pieces, outstanding creations that challenged stereotypes and shattered taboos with humour. Jean Paul Gaultier, the defender of diversity, used his boundless imagination to champion freedom of expression and differences, revisiting the classic white dress, turning stereotypes and accepted dress codes upside down, and embodying an inclusive vision of society,” said Thierry-Maxime Loriot, exhibition curator.
