Fashion Exhibition Tour, Phoenix Art Museum, Wednesday 28th April 2021

Wednesday 28th April 2021, 5-6pm GMT

Journey to Arizona virtually with an FRN exclusive tour!

Second in our online Archive Tour series is the Phoenix Art Museum. Join us as curator Helen Jean guides us through her exhibition Collective Inspiration just before it closes on 2nd May. The exhibition pairs fashion objects with paintings, sculptures and prints from the museum’s collection to explore artistic interconnections, juxtaposing makers as varied as Alexander McQueen, Ralph Rucci, Victor Vasarely, and Fujikasa Satoko. After a tour within the gallery and a presentation of research behind the show, we’ll have time for a discussion and Q&A.

Register here.

Helen Jean's background consists of a series of fashion history, costume design and museum studies degrees. Her professional work began as a costume designer for live theater; later transitioning to museum studies at the prestigious International Quilt Study Center in Lincoln, NE. She first joined Phoenix Art Museum in 2007 as curatorial assistant and spent over 5 years assisting in over 12 original exhibitions, multiple publications, and countless events. After leaving the Museum she taught at various design colleges throughout the valley eventually joining the faculty at the Art Institute of Phoenix. She left the college after 6 years as the head of the program to join the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in 2018 as a college representative. In September 2019, Jean was invited to re-join Phoenix Art Museum as interim curator and in February of 2020 she presented her breakout exhibition, India: Fashion's Muse. Shortly thereafter she was appointed the position of Jacquie Dorrance curator of Fashion Design.

During the Museum's closing Jean pivoted to virtual programming and presented numerous video tours, lectures, exhibition openings and closings. In December 2020, Jean opened Collective Inspiration in the Kelly Ellman Fashion Design Gallery bringing together objects from all 9 of the Museum's various collections. That exhibition will be on view through 2nd May 2021.