The Fashion Council is a dynamic group of fashion enthusiasts and Museum supporters whose dues have helped us to build the MFA’s 20th and 21st century fashion collection. The Fashion Council provides its members with special programs and trips over the course of the season. Trips to Japan, India, London, and New York have featured studio visits with both established and avant-garde designers including Francisco Costa of Calvin Klein, Erdem, Ruben and Isabel Toledo, Sophie Theallet, Phillip Lim, Isabel and RubenToledo, Olivier Theyskens, and Phillip Treacy. Our programs also bring fashion speakers such as Hamish Bowles, Liz Goldwyn, Rodarte, and Kate Betts to Boston.

This coming year is an exciting one for the Fashion Council because we will celebrate the group’s 10-year anniversary with the opening of “#techstyle” in March 2016 in the Foster Gallery, 158. “#techstyle” examines how the synergy between fashion and technology is not only changing the way designers design, but also the way people interact with their clothing. The exhibition will include key pieces from innovators in the field, including Alexander McQueen, Mary Katrantzou, CuteCircuit, and Nervous System. A number of the works in the exhibition, including this 3-D printed dress designed by MIT Media Lab’s Neri Oxman and avant-garde Belgian designer Iris Van Herpen, were purchased with Fashion Council funds.