'Manus x machina' at the Met for 2016 Costume Institute exhibit, gala

The Costume Institute's Spring 2016 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art will examine the impact of technology on fashion and attempt to reconcile the relationship between the perceptions of the hand-made and mass-produced.

Set to open to the public on May 5, "manus x machina: fashion in an age of technology" will juxtapose over 100 examples of haute couture and avant-garde garments spanning over 130 years alongside the technologies that made their creation possible. Designs on show will include pieces from Alexander McQueen, Hubert de Givenchy, Coco Chanel, Issey Miyake and Raf Simons.

"Fashion and technology are inextricably connected, more so now than ever before," said Thomas P. Campbell, Director and CEO of the Met. "It is therefore timely to examine 
the roles that the handmade and the machine-made have played in the creative process. Often presented as oppositional, this exhibition proposes a new view in which the hand and the machine are mutual and equal protagonists."

The exhibition is preceded by the annual Costume Institute Benefit on May 2 where British actor Idris Elba, Apple's head of design Jonathan Ive, singer Taylor Swift and former Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour will serve as co-chairs.

"Both the automated and handcrafted process require similar amounts of thoughtfulness and expertise," said Jonathan Ive. "There are instances where technology is optimized, but ultimately it's the amount of care put into the craftsmanship, whether it's machine-made or hand-made, that transforms ordinary materials into something extraordinary."