Norell: Dean of American Fashion

This large-scale retrospective presented an in-depth study of one of America’s greatest and most influential fashion designers. It was organized by guest curator Jeffrey Banks and MFIT's deputy director Patricia Mears.

Born in 1900, Norman Norell had an extraordinary career that spanned six decades. Working in the theater, film, and fashion industries, he incorporated the highest quality couture construction techniques and workmanship in all of his designs. Norell won numerous industry awards and was the first American to launch his own perfume. Not only did he spearhead the concept of luxe ready-to-wear decades before his European contemporaries, but many of his classic works are still wearable today. Decades after his death, Norell’s legacy lives on.