(Un)constructed, Reconstructed and Deconstructed Again. An Examination of the Context, Reconstruction and Display Possibilities of Five Lace Panels for Use on a Gown, c. 1900–1910, at the MoMu Fashion Museum in Antwerp

Abstract

This article studies five shaped panels of Duchesse de Bruxelles lace, part of the collection of the MoMu Fashion Museum in Antwerp. These handmade panels were created c. 1900 but never fashioned into a gown and, consequently, never worn. The first part of this article uses an object-based approach to examine how the panels might have looked if they had been constructed into a gown, what type of gown this would have been, to what occasions it would have been worn and by whom. In 2021, the renovated MoMu reopened with, in addition to its space for temporary exhibitions, a permanent display showing highlights from the museum collection. This unconstructed gown being a highlight of its historical lace collection, the museum is currently considering how to best exhibit it. The second part of this article therefore examines different display possibilities, ranging from a full reconstruction, to a deconstructed display, to the possibility of replication — all the while keeping in mind the ethics of conservation-restoration and display, and what it means to exhibit fashion.