Showcase

The Dreamscape

Madeline Hogan

Profile picture of Madeline Hogan

Hi I’m Madeline! This course was an exciting opportunity to continue the development of my academic writing, research and critical thinking skills, and translate them into a creative curatorial and exhibition-making practice. I am excited to take this further.

Hi I’m Madeline! This course was an exciting opportunity to continue the development of my academ...

This exhibition proposal was developed from my research into the medieval-revival movement in 1920s Britain.  It centres around the ‘wedding dress’, designed by British Couturier Norman Hartnell and worn by the socialite Daisy Bendix for the Dream of Fair Women Ball’s parade of past, present, and future fashions in 1928.  The ball itself was inspired by Alfred Tennyson’s poem A Dream of Fair Women (originally published in 1833), which conjured up a romanticised version of the past.  Although its design reflects the style of medieval dress, Daisy’s dress was featured as part of the ‘present’ parade, highlighting the complex and antilinear nature of fashion.  This exhibition takes the themes of time, spectacle, and performance, and creates an artificial dreamscape, which visitors can experience and then reflect/respond through community-based and online workshops: facilitated by the Crafts Council where the exhibition is based. This community engagement aims to extend the history of the dress beyond something designed by Hartnell, worn by Daisy, and acquired by the London Museum, opening up the floor for new perspectives and interpretations to be heard.

Final work

Light pink dress made of silk satin and tulle, decorated with beaded flower cut-outs, has a scoop-neck, bell sleeves, and a long tulle train.

Norman Hartnell ‘wedding dress’ worn by Daisy Bendix to the Dream of Fair Women Ball (1928)

Image courtesy of Beatrice Behlen

  • The first page gives a walk through of the entrance, the second page describes the
  • This image grid depicts three pages, the first deciding the exhibition entrance, and the second and third describing the design of the scenography.
  • This image grid depicts three pages discussing the exhibition layout and the design of the scenography.
  • This image grid depicts three pages discussing the exhibition layout and the design of the scenography.
  • This image grid depicts three pages discussing the exhibition layout and the design of the scenography.
  • This image grid depicts three pages discussing the exhibition layout and the design of the scenography.
  • This page describes how antilinear and cyclical time is often associated with the metaphor of a constellation. This has informed by exhibition design
  • This page describes my research into British nationalism and its links to late 19th, early 20th century medievalism.
  • Lilies have formed a lot of my visual imagery as in the 1920s they were often associated with the medieval, such as the stylised fleur-de-lys.

Research and process

  • This is a page of sketches showing my design development for the dreamscape, referencing Cecil Beaton designs of abstracted fleur de lys.
  • This page shows the design development for my exhibition ‘finale’. It features the dress on a mannequin surrounded by words from Tennyson’s poem.
  • This is a picture of the bare model made out of Birkenstock delivery boxes which I recycled from my work. It is to scale with the exhibition space
  • This depicts a woman in fancy dress, she is wearing a paper crown, white shroud and loose white dress with a ‘medieval’ girdle
  • These stills depict a group of people surrounding a ‘lucky dip’ station at the ball.
  • This still depicts a woman dressed as a ‘bunch of grapes’. It is in black and white.

Share this project

The Dreamscape

This exhibition proposal was developed from my research into the medieval-revival movement in 1920s Britain.  It centres around the ‘wedding dress’, designed by British Couturier Norman Hartnell and worn by the socialite Daisy Bendix for the Dream of Fair Women Ball’...

A link to this page has been added to your clipboard

Browse related work