Exhibitions

Isabelle de Borchgrave: Fashioning Art from Paper

June 14, 2019 - September 8, 2019

This exhibition features the life-size, trompe l’œil (a visual trick of the eye) paper costumes of Belgian artist Isabelle de Borchgrave (b. 1946). Fashioning Art from Paper provides a retrospective view of the artist’s paper sculptures over nearly two decades. From replicas of Italian Renaissance gowns to re-creations of the fantastical modernist costumes of the Ballets Russes, her work spans 500 years of fashion. Each paper sculpture is inspired by depictions found in early European paintings or fashion collections from around the world. Included in the exhibition is a sculpture based on a 1622 painting of Maria Maddalena of Austria and her son, the future Ferdinand II, by Justus Sustermans in the FIA’s permanent collection.

Major funding provided by

From the Exhibition

• Isabelle de Borchgrave, Belgian, born 1946. Petit sac brode (Small embroidered bag), 1994. Mixed media, acrylic, ink, metallic powder and adhesive on paper. 5 ½ x 9 x 1 ½ inches. Collection of the artist.

• Isabelle de Borchgrave, Belgian, born 1946. Lorenzo il Magnifico, 2007. Mixed media, acrylic, ink, metallic powder and adhesive on paper. 77 x 32 x 27 ½ inches. Collection of the artist.

• Isabelle de Borchgrave, Belgian, born 1946. Pallas, 2007. Mixed media, acrylic, ink, metallic powder and adhesive on paper. 72 ½ x 33 x 21 inches. Collection of the artist.

• Isabelle de Borchgrave, Belgian, born 1946. Maria-Maddalena d’Austria, 2007. Mixed media, acrylic, ink, metallic powder and adhesive on paper. 74 x 47 ½ x 48 inches. Collection of the artist.

• Isabelle de Borchgrave, Belgian, born 1946. Male Guest, 2009. Mixed media, acrylic, ink, metallic powder and adhesive on paper. 62 x 28 x 11 inches. Collection of the artist.

   

• Isabelle de Borchgrave, Belgian, born 1946. La Dame in Bleu (The Woman in Blue), 2009. Mixed media, acrylic, ink, metallic powder and adhesive on paper. 75 ½ 51 x 44 inches. Collection of the artist.