Christie's launches The ART OF LITERATURE Exhibition with fashion by MOLLY GODDARD

This June and July, auction house Christie’s in London is staging London Now, featuring a season of two exhibitions under the heading The Art of Literature, as well as events and auctions to celebrate London's vibrant diversity and unique identity at Christie's headquarters on King's Street in the historic district of St James's in central London.

One of the exhibitions, The Art of Literature: Auction Highlights  is staged June 6 to June 15  and presents highlights from their summer sale season, featuring alongside fashion by Molly Goddard, to explore connections between art and literature across a wide range of genres and periods. 

From antiquities and Old Master paintings to fine jewellery and contemporary art, the works in this exhibition underscore the interconnections between painters and poets, sculptors and novelists, dramatists and craftspeople that have existed for millennia.

Molly Goddard has been a fixture on the British runway since the brand’s inception in 2014, with the designer known internationally for her ethereal tulle dresses loved by many, and worn on the red carpet and on screen including by actresses Sonam Kapoor, Rosamund Pike and Jodie Comer (who famously wore one of Molly's pink tulle dresses in the popular Killing Eve TV series.)

Molly Goddard has been creatively inspired by a range of influences, particularly from the English countryside and also from classic narratives of English literature, in particular from the author Thomas Hardy’s novel, Tess of the d’Urbervilles. 

Tracey Dress by
Molly Goddard A/W 2019 Show

Skye dress by
Molly Goddard S/S 2020 Show

Over the seasons the iconic tulle has been joined by taffeta, organdie and silk in voluminous, tiered and frilled joyful creations.  Molly explained that these looks were about being frivolous and fabulous but also strong, tough and resilient – not just surviving but thriving. Signature tulle was adapted for all weathers and paired with utilitarian accessories inspired by Thomas Hardy’s ill-fated 19th-century British heroine, Tess Durbeyfield.

Pearl dress by Molly Goddard, 
A/W 2019 show.

Molly Goddard comments, ‘Hardy paints an incredible picture of the English landscape and seasons in Tess of the d’Urbervilles.  The collection was definitely about being wrapped up against the weather physically and metaphorically. The pieces included in the exhibition are a very good representation of what we do best, by which I mean taking simple designs and turning them into something totally different, using techniques like shirring and hand-smocking, or by scaling them up and using unexpected fabrics.’

Annabelle Scholar, co-curator comments, ‘We are thrilled to include these wondrous creations by Molly in The Art of Literature Exhibition, pieces which were inspired by a work of literature and ushered in a new era of British fashion. In this cross category exhibition spanning three millennia we’re looking at how the written word has inspired artists and creatives to make works of art, or bring new meaning to existing works of art.’

The other Christie's exhibition, The Art of Literature: Loan and Selling is staged from June 6 to July 14, which brings together an extraordinary selection of masterpieces embodying this most productive of creative partnerships between literature and art, at times direct and at other times subtly allusive.  

Aesop's Fables

Picasso

Their intricate connections have been explored across this exhibition offering insights into the works of important artists and writers including Marlene Dumas, William Shakespeare, Peter Paul Rubens, Lucian Freud, Joan Mitchell, James Joyce, Pablo Picasso and Peter Doig.

All photos at Christie's exhibitions by Lucia Carpio.