by Andrew Bolton. Published by Yale University Press; Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2018. Reviewed by Jo Ayers

This large coffee-table sized, two-volume catalogue illustrates the gorgeous, provocative and outrageous garments of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s (MET) 2018 costume exhibition on “Catholic Imagination”.

The exhibition, which attracted both praise and heated opposition, aimed to “forge and express relationships between costume and specific works of religious art held in the MET”. It honours the unique contribution that the Catholic imagination has had in the arts. Through ceremony, architecture and the fine arts the Catholic Church has provided an access point for us to enjoy the beauty and inspiration that art contributes to our lives. The stained glass, sculpture, painting, architecture, the use of precious metals and stones, the systems of colour and the choice of materials were all used to inspire and to make theological statements.

And this inspiration and creativity is reflected in the contemporary haute couture fashion garments exhibited at the MET. There are dresses inspired by mosaics. Filmy, dreamlike pastel creations that challenge the ideas of the spiritual. And pieces that seriously question Catholic thought and practice. One particularly wonderful papal evening gown, with a full skirt and nipped-in waist, I thought suggested a future for the papacy! Some redesigned religious habits are comic statements commenting on a darker side of religious life. The exhibits all pose a challenge: What does religious art communicate to us and how do we receive the view of the secular world?

In his accompanying essay, theologian David Tracey uses the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel to demonstrate the power of art to communicate theological concepts. He describes how Michelangelo’s work illuminated the philosophy and theology of the Renaissance with a potency that makes him the “best theologian of his century”. Tracey’s essay integrates the relationships between art and theology with the whole thrust of the exhibition.

The exhibition also includes 40 articles on loan from the sacristy of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. Exquisite pieces of art? Yes — but one set of 12 embroidered chasubles took 15 nuns nearly 16 years to complete! It’s a reminder that the sumptuous clothing made for liturgy to highlight the Divine presence also stratified the people of God. They reinforced the “superiority” of a small aristocracy including clergy and gave them power to exclude the majority from full participation in the rituals.

Heavenly Bodies provides a view of the art of the past as well as a view of contemporary, imaginative fashion. On show in your home, these volumes will be pored over for hours and start many conversations.

Books are readily available in Australia and New Zealand from Footprint Books or in a local bookshop.

Tui Motu Magazine. Issue 233 December 2018: 36