BWW Previews: Patrick Kelly: Runway of Love and Gerlan Jeans Loves Patrick Kelly at Philadelphia Museum of Art

This past weekend, the Philadelphia Museum of Art opened an important retrospective featuring the life and works of fashion designer Patrick Kelly. Almost 25 years after Kelly's untimely death of AIDS in 1990, we continue to experience his profound impact on fashion. Yet, "Patrick Kelly: Runway of Love" is the first of its kind to comprehensively display the breadth and diversity of this designer's influential work.

Already one of the largest costume and textile collections in the nation, The Philadelphia Museum of Art was lucky to receive a generous gift of Kelly's business and life partner, Bjorn Guil Amelan, and Bill T. Jones. The Museum now posses approximately 100 of Kelly's head-to-toe looks as well as other memorabilia, photographs, and videos, totaling nearly 1,000 objects. For "Patrick Kelly : Runway of Love," the Museum is displaying 80 ensembles, along with additional objects, that are sure to make you smile.

Video footage from his Kelly's runway finales is projected behind a central "Runway of Love," featuring looks with heart-shaped embellishments. Tunes by Michael Jackson, Prince, and Paula Abdul are piped in through overhead speakers. Immediately, you're transported to La Palace in Paris in the 1980s, sipping cocktails with Yves St. Laurent and Kelly. Grace Jones walks by in an all-leather outfit, designed by Kelly, with a hat shaped like the Eiffel Tower.

In addition to looks on display created for living divas, the exhibition presents ensembles inspired by iconic women of the past. One, as a tribute to Billie Holiday, is covered in artificial gardenias, the favorite flower of both Kelly and the legendary singer. Another pays direct homage to Josephine Baker's iconic costume banana-skirt costume worn during the 1920s.

Kelly does not need to create a skirt out of fruit of flowers to make a statement, however. "Runway of Love" also exhibits Kelly's striking yet simple street wear. Curator Dilys Blum confessed that one look on display was originally mistaken for rags. These simple strips of turquoise fabric with unfinished edges were later discovered to be an ingenious tube top and skirt.

But, it was not until Blum had done a frame-by-frame analysis of all of the footage of Kelly's runway shoes that she was able to identify these objects. Her careful study has also help reconstruct ensembles for which shoes and accessories are missing. Still, the majority of the garments and accessories on display are originals.

Since secondary literature on Kelly is lacking, Blum and her staff conducted extensive interviews with Kelly's former colleagues and friends, including everyone from interns to supermodel Iman. The result of their study and the exhibition is a major contribution to Kelly's legacy and the history of fashion. Hopefully this exhibit will help reignite interest in Kelly's work, which has been neglected since the most active part of his career was so brief, and also perhaps because of his identity as an African American gay man.

As a companion exhibition, Gerlan Jeans ♥ Patrick Kelly features the work of Midwest born and Brooklyn based designer Gerlan Marcel. Marcel's ensembles, which are both directly and indirectly influenced by Kelly's work, are playful head-to-toe looks.

When explaining the inspiration behind a Chanel inspired jacket, skirt, and sport bra, all done in the same, fun "Flamingo Fiesta" print, she giggles, "matchy, matchy, matchy is the ultimate in luxury!" Another look from the same Spring/Summer 2011 collection, the "KrissKross" Halter-All-Dress in "Lip Leopard" Print, is a cheeky reinterpretation of the overall.

One eccentric ensemble is composed of a green silicone bustier dress with matching pumps and sunglasses. Inspired by slime used on Nickelodeon shows like "You Can't Do That On Television," the look was worn by Katy Perry to the Nickelodeon 2012 Kids' Choice Awards. Marcel has also dressed pop icons Beyoncé and Solange Knowles.

But despite her high-prolife clientele and appreciation for influential designers of the past, Marcel's ratchet couture is equally indebted to inspiration she finds in the "2 for $10" bin at Rainbow. Her mix of high and low fashion, à la Patrick Kelly, is playful, empowering, and occasionally irreverent.

Both "Runway of Love" and Gerlan Jeans ♥ Patrick Kelly are open April 27 - November 30th. In conjunction with the exhibits, the Museum is hosting a number of events, most notably a fashion film series this fall. For more information about the exhibits and events, visit the Philadelphia Museum of Art online.

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