Will the Costume Institute’s Upcoming Exhibition have Fashionistas Saying Amen or OMG?

This year the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Spring exhibit is the largest to date and may just be the most controversial.

They’re taking on religion and its relation to fashion. “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination” opens this month following the Met Gala.

The exhibit can be seen in three galleries, the Anna Wintour Costume Center, the medieval rooms at the Met on Fifth Avenue and the Cloisters. (Is that symbolism? Having THREE spaces? As in Father, Son and Holy Spirit?)

On display will be about 50 ecclesiastical garments and accessories on loan from the Vatican, works from the Met’s collection of religious art and 150 designer garments inspired by Catholic style or iconography.

Versace, Dolce & Gabbana, a Chanel wedding gown inspired by a communion dress, along with Valentino couture gowns inspired by paintings of Monk’s gowns.

All beautiful for sure. But is this a good time to focus on the Catholic Church? Considering all that’s happened in the church in the last 16 years? The sex abuse scandals and now with a pope who does not relish in the riches and luxuries of the Vatican.

Knowing this could cause an issue, Andrew Bolton, the curator in charge, told the New York Times, “Every show we do at the Costume Institute has that potential.”

He went on to say, “This one perhaps more than any other. But the focus is on a shared hypothesis about what we call the Catholic imagination and the way it has engaged artists and designers and shaped their approach to creativity, as opposed to any kind of theology or sociology.”

To avoid any obvious controversy and to steer clear of incendiary objects, Bolton did consult with representatives from Catholic groups, including Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, the archbishop of New York.

Bolton told the Times, “There will always be viewers who want to reduce it to a political polemic.” But added that he did not have to remove a single garment or piece of art.

While there will be garments on loan from the Vatican, they will be kept separate from the main exhibition out of respect because they are still working garments. Greg Burke, the director of the Holy See press office, told the Times, “The Roman Catholic Church has been producing and promoting beautiful works of art for centuries. Most people have experienced that through religious paintings and architecture. This is another way of sharing some of that beauty that rarely gets seen.” It will be a conversation starter for sure.

The exhibition opens to the public May 10. and runs until October 8.

Here are some of the pieces from the exhibit.