Over at Irenebrination last month there were hintings at a Schiaparelli exhibition coming to the Met in New York.  I would love to hear some commentary about the pairing of Schiaparelli with Miuccia Prada, because it has in fact been confirmed.

Anna Battista of Irenebrination knows much more about this than I do, which is why I’ve linked to her post about this.  Schiaparelli though not the end-all of my favorite designers has been something interesting to look back on and study in these times of dried up inspiration for me.  But the way the Met has chosen to deal with this is jaw-dropping:

”While Schiaparelli’s work can’t reference Prada’s — she died in 1973 — and Prada’s work never references Schiaparelli’s, there are “significant resonances” between their designs, according to Koda. “They are both very provocative for their time,” Koda said. “We thought it would be very interesting to pit these two women together in an anachronistic conversation.”

To deny that any contemporary designer has influences is idiocy.  Any designer across any medium did not grow up in a sterile environment devoid of all design.  Ugh.  It is just such a stupid thing to say, a statement that makes the speaker appear like he doesn’t know anything about either Schiaparelli nor Prada.  The Met has gone commercial, or rather is showing it’s true colors.

Here is where the story broke on WWD.