What fairy tales can teach us about modern fashion trends

Fairy tales have long woven magic into fabrics. But this 12 months MetGalathe annual fundraiser for the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, took the connection between fantasy and fashion one step further.

Thematically related to the Sleeping Beauty: Resurgent Fashion At the exhibition, the dress code focused not on opulent displays of nature's bounty, but on a more complex reality: the natural world and the character of time. Inspired by JG Ballard's short story, The Garden of TimeDesigners were invited to explore the complex relationship between materials, their origins and the fleeting nature of fashion trends.

The exhibition, which runs until September, offers a chance to reflect on the conflict between man-made and natural materials in fashion. The reference to “sleeping beauties” provides a useful context for considering how tangible, imperishable matter often sits alongside natural substances in fairy-tale worlds.

This tension played out on the Met Gala red carpet, where some attendees embodied the classic elegance of fairytale princesses and princes, while others portrayed more sinister characters.

Clothing and materials play a transformative role in fairy tales. Who can forget the importance of clothing (and people glass shoes) for Cinderella's fate? An encounter with Prince Charming only becomes possible when she discards her torn rags in favor of a sparkling ball gown.

Scholar Maria Tatar suggests Fairy tales “favor the metallic,” while armor evokes how materials create associations with gender roles and social categories. In the 2012 film Snow White and the HuntsmanCostume designer Colleen Atwood covers the evil Queen Ravenna (played by Charlize Theron) with steel, gold and metal work.

While vibrant, flawless surfaces originally attracted the prince in Cinderella, on this adaptation the evil queen needs shimmering minerals and inorganic materials to stay desirable when threatened by the teenage Snow White.

Just as armor fulfills its function on the battlefield, its garments are intended to offer everlasting protection against aging and mortality. Not surprisingly, such materials played a very important role within the response on the Met Gala to the theme of the passage of time.

The legacy of Atwood's Evil Queen armor was evident in John Galliano's silver corset and mirrored paneled skirt worn by Kim Kardashian, in addition to the Stella McCartney chainmail hoodie she wore.

The seductive glow of sparkling surfaces that worked so well for Cinderella got here through Schiaparelli by Jennifer Lopez and the embellished birdcage dress Richard Quinn wore for the actress Sarah Jessica Parker.

The costumes Theron wears in Snow White and the Huntsman use artificial reflective surfaces to make an announcement concerning the pursuit of difficult the fragility of life. When she will not control her aging body, Atwood gives her clothes more organic, ephemeral textures.

The natural life cycle of living things is in direct contrast to the solid, flawless properties of metal. The seasonal decay of foliage and vegetation results in changes in color and shape. The decay process ends in aesthetically flawed surfaces and fewer tactile, smooth textures.

The contrast between material substances of the “civilized” male world and the feminine spaces of nature is paying homage to the paintings of Sir Edward Burne-Jones The thorn forest (1871–73). The artist represents one scene from Sleeping Beauty, as her potential suitors fight in armor against the organic barrier of the threatening thicket.

This is expounded to certain Met Gala costume ideas and presents an alternate composition of nature to the visually appealing one.

Dark undercurrents

The darker undercurrents of the organic could possibly be seen within the bronze, sinewy hawthorn branches that slid upward Sean McGirr's Alexander McQueen Dress worn by singer Lana Del Rey.

Flesh-piercing thorns adorned Jean Paul Gaultier's design for presenter Emma Chamberlain. In allusions to the unsettling and hostile nature, connotations of strength and refusal to be limited were evoked.

In fairy tales, forests might be places of fear that drive the plot and characters. Such wild landscapes offer contrasting textures and surfaces that challenge the graceful sheen of synthetic things.

These spaces are sometimes the territory of outsiders. They embrace the rough edges of nature and offer an alternate identity to the glamour and glitz of the traditional.

Such style statements represent a welcome change for the designers and celebrities who played it secure on the Met Gala, wearing healthy-looking florals and fauna. The elegance of Vogue editor Anna Wintour's velvet Loewe coat decorated with colourful tulips was a living proof.

Press coverage of the Met Gala has predictably been largely concerned with subjective descriptions of outfits as either flattering or ugly. But this 12 months's creative transient, based on literary sources, underscores fashion's ability to transcend restrictive classifications of attractiveness.

There is so far more to fashion than simply dressing celebrities. The emphasis on materials and the dialogue between textures and surfaces inside a design are an integral a part of every artistic practice.