Beauty in Black is an intimate exhibition featuring black dresses from the 1950s to 2000s from renowned designers like Rei Kawakubo, Karl Lagerfeld, and local names such as Benny Ong and Thomas Wee.
The design takes its spin from a fashion runway show where the surrounding is always quite dark, and attention is focused on the models and clothes. We wanted to explore finishes and materials for the space that are ‘softer’ in nature, which allude to the dresses, and with various textures.
A central platform is created as a distinctive feature to gather all the dresses. This allows one to walk around the dresses and take a closer look. The platform is lit from within, with all the captions printed on it, each relating to the dresses suspended from above. From afar, it presents a mysterious sight of 18 intricate dresses afloat dramatically over a huge lantern.
We have also created a black felt carpet wall that wraps the surrounding spaces. This black ribbon wall extends outwards at the entrance, with its top gently curved to form a graceful collar, welcoming the visitor. The experience of this wall is highly textural too, as the exhibition texts are printed directly on it, giving the words a sensual quality.
In addition to spatial design, we are also responsible for the overall visual & graphic branding of the exhibition, which includes the main title logo, and all the captions and text within the exhibition.
