Yet in the museum staff's eyes, the true fabulousness of the expansion is as much about storage and conservation space as it is about display. As any fashionista will tell you, one can have great clothes, but without room to store them and try them on, life can be trying.
Until now, thousands of vintage clothing and textile items were stored in a cramped warren of rooms comprising 3,500 square feet and outfitted with hanging racks and drawers built in the mid-1970s.
There was almost no room for conservation. Conservators shared space with those who dressed the mannequins. Working with the chemicals used for cleaning, dyeing and other preservation processes was a chore. Scholars and visitors who wanted to study the museum's fashion collection had to be crammed into this space as well. The Perelman's new Hamilton Center triples conservation, storage and study space.
The off-white, 7,600-square-foot storage system is designed to be compact, allowing conservators to fit more pieces in less space. Haugland said the six-member staff, plus grant-funded conservators and technicians, spent nearly five years rehousing objects in preparation for the move. Hanging garments got new hangers and supports and many pieces were boxed as needed. Hats, jewelry and other accessories were placed on purpose-built mounts, and textiles were rolled on acid-free tubes.
In addition to the improved storage facilities, conservator Sara Reiter is looking forward to the new lab, with its fume hood and huge flexible exhaust tubes - called trunks - that she plans to use to fumigate gifts to the museum that have been preserved in mothballs.
"I'll be able to use solvents and other chemicals to reduce stains, and eliminate creases in pieces for exhibits," Reiter said. "There are a lot of adhesive treatments we want to use that just aren't safe [in the old space]. Now we can use them."
For those who truly appreciate the art and architecture of fashion, "A Passion for Perfection" is a harbinger of what to expect from the relocated department.
The clothing - mod suiting from 1950s-through-1970s designer Tassell, metallic gowns from 1950s- through-1980s Galanos, and rich-hued sable suits from present-day Rucci - displays the details of fashion at its best.
At the center of the exhibition is a grouping of little black dresses from all three designers (no retrospective is complete without them), and Rucci's flowing, painted strapless autumn gown - inspired by Cy Twombly's "Four Seasons" series of paintings - is sure to grab viewers' attention.
It's a crisp, accessible space in which to see and appreciate classic designs. Stitching, cuffs, appliqués - all these details can be enjoyed, as nothing separates the viewers from the clothes.
"Fashion is a part of our lives," said Joan Spain, who, with her husband, Bernard, donated $1 million to the main gallery. "People love to see retrospectives of famous designers the same way they like to see movie stars and famous people. . . . This can't help but bring more people to the museum."
