On the 6th July 2024 join The Costume Society at the Fashion and Textiles Museum, London where we will be celebrating our 60th anniversary. We share this anniversary with the famous BIBA fashion label - the subject of the museum’s exhibition - The Biba Story: 1964 – 2024 and our day will include speakers, time to view the exhibition and will close with the Patterns of Fashion and Patterns for Performance Awards. The Costume Society's Annual General Meeting will also be held during the day.
Our 60th Anniversary Day will commence with an exclusive private view of the exhibition, and there will be mutliple opportunities to view The BIBA Story exhibition throughout our day.
Dr Elizabeth Blood will talk about her research into the early years of the Costume Society.
Following the Society’s AGM our day will conclude with the final of the Patterns of Fashion and Patterns for Performance Awards, a celebration of new talent in costume (re)creation and the outstanding creations that have been shortlisted for this year's awards will be on display.
This year's Patterns of Fashion will be judged by Bernadette Banner, costume maker, author and educational content creator best known for her YouTube channel which documents the exploration, reconstruction and reinterpretation of fashion history.
Patterns for Performance will be judged by Susannah Buxton the multi-award winning costume designer for film and television whose work includes Poldark, Burton and Taylor, Downton Abbey (series 1 and 2), Millions and Anita and Me.
The Costume Society began its life sixty years ago in 1964. Prompted by a growing popular interest in the history of fashion, a nationally publicized inaugural meeting took place at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London on 13 October. A committee was formed with Charles Gibbs-Smith as Chair, and over a hundred members had joined by the end of the year.
The Society’s distinctive motif or logo, based on a German tailors' guild sign, was devised by The Costume Society’s first Secretary, Madeleine Ginsburg, from a drawing made by her husband.
The first issue of the Society’s journal, Costume, appeared in 1967 and included an eighteenth-century dress pattern by Janet Arnold. The journal’s back archive now includes 58 issues and has since been digitised for remote access by our members.
Now a UK Charity, the Costume Society has over 500 members, hosts a thriving programme of events each year and supports the future of dress-related research, conservation, interpretation, and practice by making a series of annual grants and awards.
We look forward to seeing you at this special anniversary event.
