Fashion Figures Faces. The Röhsska Museum shows the work of Mats Gustafson.

20 February 2014

PRESS RELEASE

Fashion Figures Faces

The Röhsska Museum shows the work of Mats Gustafson.

Mats Gustafson has attracted international attention over several decades for his fashion drawings in watercolour, Indian ink and pastels. He has repeatedly been engaged by the leading clothing designers and fashion houses: Yohji Yamamoto, Romeo Gigli, Dior, Comme des Garçons and Hermès. His drawings have been published in Italian, French and British Vogue and other influential fashion magazines. The works on display are from 1983-2013, a long time in the world of fashion where change is fast and frequent. The exhibition is curated by Niclas Östlind and shows both original works and examples of journals and other printed matter where the pictures were originally published.

From the 80 or so works being exhibited, it is clear that the great challenge lies in depicting how the clothes and the body influence each other. Sensitivity to the motif characterises Mats Gustafson’s relationship with materials and technique. He takes full advantage of the black Indian ink’s calligraphic potential and the line’s rapid movement, as well as the register of watercolour from gossamer layer to concentration and weight. The pastel emphasises the cohesive spaces, the result being abstraction.

Motifs include the naked body and the portrait. Famous faces from the catwalk, supermodels and fashion designers alike, but also authors, actors and other cultural personalities are portrayed, along with the inner family circle and friends from outside the world of fashion.

Mats Gustafson was born in Mjölby, central Sweden, in 1951 and has lived in New York since 1980. He has participated in a host of international exhibitions.

The exhibition runs 25 February – 4 May 2014.

The exhibition is the brainchild of Anders Wester and Niclas Östlind in collaboration with Mats Gustafson, and is held with the support of Proventus and H&M.