In the intricately woven story of music and clothing, the exhibit “Instrumental Fashions: Attire and Song” does a wonderful job of blending these timeless songs and stitches. Located in the Fashion Archives and Museum, this exhibit creates incredible outfits using historical pieces inspired by song.
Karin Bohleke, director of the museum, states that their collection at Shippensburg is “very well known” and contains “working-class to Chanel.” As you walk through this exhibit, outfits adorn mannequins and lyrics from the inspiration song hang above them. Below the attire, the location and story behind each piece of clothing informs the viewer the origin of each piece. My favorite piece in this exhibit was “Cardigan,” inspired by Taylor Swift’s song of the same name. The lyrics of this song mention a vintage tee and high heels on cobblestones, which is exactly what is included in this piece. The outfit includes a pair of jeans, cardigan, heels and a vintage t-shirt donated by Peggy Coffman. The shirt was purchased at an Adam Ant concert in 1983 on the American Tour.
I would highly recommend a visit to the Fashion Archives and Museum. The rich history of each piece and the cleverly associated lyrics make the “Instrumental Fashions: Attire and Song” a thoroughly interesting experience and is worth checking out before the exhibit closes.
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