Exhibition Opening: Ib Jorgensen - A Fashion Retrospective

On Wednesday 27th May at the National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts & History, Minister Heather Humphreys will officially open a new “Design Gallery” which will host temporary exhibitions on all elements of design, past and present. Ib Jorgensen – A Fashion Retrospective is the first such exhibition and will be followed by others.

PREAS RÁITEAS THAR CEANN ARD-MHÚSAEM NA hÉIREANN

PRESS RELEASE ISSUED ON BEHALF OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF IRELAND

26th May 2015

Exhibition Opening
Ib Jorgensen - A Fashion Retrospective

At the National Museum of Ireland - Decorative Arts and History, Collins Barracks, Benburb Street, Dublin 7

On Wednesday 27th May at the National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts & History, Minister Heather Humphreys will officially open a new “Design Gallery” which will host temporary exhibitions on all elements of design, past and present. Ib Jorgensen – A Fashion Retrospective is the first such exhibition and will be followed by others.

From the 1950s to the 1990s, Danish born Ib Jorgensen was one of Ireland’s leading fashion designers, attracting a clientele from amongst the wealthiest and most stylish women in the country. A graduate of Dublin’s Grafton Academy of Dress Designing, Ib was only twenty-two years old when he set up his own salon and his name was to become synonymous with elegant, glamorous clothing. He displayed a relentless attention to detail in his work; fine tailoring and perfect finishing were the hallmarks of his classic clothing.

Ib was at the forefront of Irish fashion throughout his career; in 1962 he was a founder member of the Irish Haute Couture Group and later, the first chair of the Irish Designers’ Association, established in 1982. During the 1970s his designs were stocked in the International Designers’ Room in Harrods and in Liberty of London, and this international success led to the opening of a London salon and workrooms in 1979. He designed two uniforms for Aer Lingus, in 1975 and 1986, and the first uniform for the new Irish Army Women’s Service Corps established in 1980.

The exhibition looks back at Ib’s long career, displaying a selection of some forty garments including day, cocktail and evening wear from across three and a half decades, supplemented with original fashion photography and illustrations. His first wife Patricia, a textile designer, created designs for extravagant hand beading, appliqué and embroidery, and these techniques were frequently used to great effect on Ib’s evening wear. The exhibition includes several lavishly embellished garments and highlights include a beaded gold silk evening dress and matching coat made for Harriet Donnelly (née Harris), for the 1967 London première of the film Camelot, which starred her brother Richard; and a beaded velvet evening coat made in 1988 for Anne Heseltine, the wife of former British MP, Michael Heseltine. Garments for the exhibition have been kindly donated for the exhibition by former clients such as Lady Heseltine and the late Nyda Prenn, while other pieces have been lent by their owners. Loans to the exhibition include a black and white printed silk evening dress from the 1960s lent by Sonya Lennon, who acquired it as a vintage piece; and an entirely hand beaded cocktail dress with silk organza coat created for Anne, the late Countess of Rosse, which has been lent by Lord and Lady Rosse from the collection at Birr Castle.

Commenting on the exhibition, Raghnall Ó Floinn – Director of the National Museum stated; “Our new design gallery was made possible by a generous grant from the Department of Arts, Heritage & the Gaeltacht. We are delighted that the first exhibition showcases the work of Ib Jorgensen and the world of haute couture fashion in Ireland in the late twentieth century. The exhibition will introduce his work to a new audience and we hope that it will inspire the next generation of Irish Fashion designers”

Minister Heather Humphreys said: “I am delighted to see the NMI’s new design gallery opening with an exhibition on such an iconic Irish designer. It is fitting that, in the Year of Irish Design, we look back on the life and work of designers like Ib Jorgensen, who had such a major impact on Ireland’s fashion industry. The exhibition includes a range of beautiful garments which will be of interest to fashion junkies, design enthusiasts and anyone who can appreciate a perfectly crafted piece of clothing.”

FOR MORE PRESS INFORMATION CONTACT

• Maureen Gaule, Marketing Executive, Marketing Department,

T: 01 648 6429 | M: 087 9031690| E: mgaule@museum.ie

• Ann Daly, Head of Marketing, Marketing Department,

T: 01 648 6457 | M: 087 2368067| E: adaly@museum.ie

Notes to the Editor:

A Photocall will take place at 12.00 Noon on Wednesday 27th May in the Exhibition space at the NMI, Collins Barracks.

Additional information on the exhibition can be found on;

http://www.museum.ie/en/exhibition/ib-jorgensen-a-fashion-retrospective.aspx

The above exhibition is open to the Public from Thursday 28th May.

Images available from the photocall and launch from

Paul Sherwood – Photographer paul@sherwood.ie 087 2309096

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