Designing For Royalty
Image: Wedding gown of Diana, Princess of Wales (neckline) (c) Royal Collection Trust All Rights Reserved
London Craft Week is in full swing and we’re taking a look at some of the events, exhibitions and talks which are not to be missed.
Celebrating outstanding British and international creativity, London Craft Week brings together over 250 established and emerging makers, designers, brands and galleries from around the world who will be taking part in around 380 events across the week. One of these events is a curator-led tour of Historic Royal Palaces’ ‘Royal Style in the Making’ exhibition at Kensington Palace.
Image: Copyright © Historic Royal Palaces 2021
Kensington Palace’s new temporary exhibition set in the recently-conserved historic Orangery explores the unique relationship between fashion designer and royal client. Royal Style in the Making showcases glittering gowns and masterful tailoring created for Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, Princess Margaret and Diana, Princess of Wales by the most celebrated royal couturiers of the 20th century. Alongside them are displayed original sketches, fabric swatches and unseen photographs from the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection – a treasure trove of over 10,000 items of dress and design history cared for by Historic Royal Palaces.
Image: Copyright © Historic Royal Palaces 2021
Visitors can see Diana, Princess of Wales’s wedding dress displayed complete with its spectacular sequin encrusted train, which at 25 feet dramatically filled the aisle of St Paul’s Cathedral, and remains the longest in royal history. The dress, on loan from The Duke of Cambridge and The Duke of Sussex, is now among the most famous in bridal history. To bring the story of the gown’s creation to life, it is displayed alongside surviving items from the Emanuel studio.
Among other star items is an 18th-century style gown designed for Princess Margaret by Oliver Messel, most famously known for his work on theatrical productions and on show for the first time since the event for which it was made – a costume ball in aid of St John Ambulance at London’s Mansion House in July 1964. Also going on public view for the first time is an elegant floor-length black velvet evening gown created for Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, complete with richly beaded shoulders and neckline by legendary royal couturier Sir Norman Hartnell.
Exhibition curator Matthew Storey and curator of Kensington Palace, Claudia Acott Williams, guides visitors through the exhibition, providing expert commentary on some of the greatest talents of British design and giving visitors an insight into the creation of a royal fashion exhibition.
The exhibition ‘Royal Style in the Making’ at Kensington Palace is available to view outside of London Craft Week until 2 January 2022 and is included in the price of a Historic Royal Palaces ticket.
Find out more about London Craft Week.
