'MIRROR MIRROR' in Five Highlights

'MIRROR MIRROR - Fashion & the Psyche' aims to move visitors through an unexpected dialogue between art installations and avant-garde fashion that highlight such themes as body dysmorphia.

Next to silhouettes, the exhibition features a lot of dolls, a personal fascination of MoMu Curator Elisa De Wyngaert.

Since starting at MoMu as a curator, she has found herself surrounded by mannequins: lifeless human replicas with - at least, to her - a mysterious appeal. Below, she walks you through five not-to-be-missed highlights in 'MIRROR MIRROR'.

Sleeping Beauty' is a doll that appears to be alive thanks to a mechanism located inside its chest. If you listen closely, you can also hear it breathing quietly; it is asleep. The doll is is central within the oversized doll's house we built for the exhibition. The ambiguity of dolls lies in the fact that they straddle the uncomfortable boundary between animate and inanimate objects, something which simultaneously fascinates children and frightens adults. Van Beirendonck's installation 'Sleeping Beauty' encapsulates this idea.

What connects the mannequins inside 'MIRROR MIRROR' with artists like FKA Twigs, Kendrick Lamar and Frank Ocean? Hair stylist Cyndia Harvey's wigs. In her mother's hair salon, the Jamaican-British native became fascinated by the tactility of hair. While working in a Black hair salon in London, Harvey gained insight into the limitless possibilities of hair. As an assistant to hair stylist Sam McKnight, she had her first taste of the fashion and music industry. Her custom-made wigs bring the mannequins inside the exhibition to life and demonstrate the psychological, political, and expressive power of hair.

Cyborgs and avatars have been around in the art world for some time now. More recently, they have started making waves in the fashion industry as well, just think of 'virtual influencers' such as @noonoouri on Instagram. We are confronted on the daily with bodies that do not exist in the physical world, yet they can still have a great deal of influence on our self-image.

Ed Atkins' video installation 'Ribbons' wraps up the exhibition. Hopefully, visitors will take the time to really take in his work. They will meet a male character. He may seem a bit aggressive at first, but you get to know him as a melancholic, vulnerable and lonely character. Atkins makes us reflect on how we experience our own bodies in relation to the digital world, and the loneliness of a digital life.

Historically, dolls were intended for adults. From the 1960s onwards, Barbies start to make their appearance. In a way, it's strange that a Barbie doll, with its developed body, was meant for children. Yet, this brought about an elaborate world of its own: Barbie played an important role in everyone's childhood. We invited a group of children to help us set up a scene of international fashion dolls. Because children look at dolls with a much more sincere, playful look, we could definitely use their help. The composition that the children have made is very surprising, very carefully put together and it is shown in its entirety in a display case in the exhibition.

Sarah Lucas' feminist work challenges the male gaze. Lucas stuffs pairs of tights to create 'bunny girls', with dangling arms and passively lolling and splayed legs. The Bunny sculptures urge us to ask questions about sexuality and idenity and comment on the vulnerable positions women often inhabit. For the last day of 'MIRROR MIRROR', we are bringing back a workshop for families which was inspired by her work inside the exhibition. The first edition was met with a lot of enthusiasm by all ages.

'MIRROR MIRROR – Fashion & the Psyche' is on view through 26 February 2023. More info and tickets available here

Learn more about the family workshop on Sunday, 26 February here