Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones

Tuesdays with Jenbiff

When my boyfriend, Ben, and I went to Salem around Halloween I saw an exhibit advertised at the Peabody Essex Museum. The exhibit? Hats: An Anthology by Stephen Jones.

Stephen Jones with some of his creations (Photo Credit: Bostonglobe.com)

Before this exhibit I had never heard of him, so I went onto the wonderful world of Google and found out what I could about this mystery man. Stephen Jones not only curated the exhibit, but he also had many of his own designs on display. But before he put them on display at the PEM he created hats for celebrities such as Gwen Stefani, Kylie Minogue, and Janet Jackson. He’s been a milliner since the mid-1980s, so I think it was a great choice to choose him for this exhibit.

"Kiss of Death" hat by Jo Gordon (Photo Credit: Bostonglobe.com)

The way he broke down the exhibit was by different styles and materials. There were displays of hats made out of wool, feathers, metals and many others. There was even a display case of crowns and tiaras! And not all of the hats were his own creations! Some were by Phillip Tracey, Elsa Schiaparelli and Salvador Dali, and Jo Gordon. Others were made in the early 19^th and 20^th centuries.

A bonnet made about 1835 (Photo Credit: Bostonglobe.com)

 

It was totally worth the drive back to Salem for this small but powerful exhibit. This exhibit is on view from September 8th 2012 to February 3rd 2013...so there's still time!!

Have you seen anything really cool recently?