Wedding dress show opens at St. George Art Museum Dec. 12

ST. GEORGE – Wedding dresses as art? Come see for yourself when the St. George Art Museum opens “Here Comes the Gown: 150 Years of Wedding Dresses” for public viewing on Friday, Dec. 12. The show runs through May 9, 2015, and features fifty-five dresses ranging in age from 1850, the earliest days of the Utah Territory, to those worn by brides in 2014.

“No other dresses in life take the extraordinary time to search out in order to find the perfect one than a wedding dress,” notes Deborah Reeder, museum curator. “No other dress requires the resources or evokes the memories. Lovingly and specially chosen, these dresses are fabric art.”

“Each of these dresses has a story,” states Deborah Reeder, museum curator. “We are pleased to be able to share these stories with the community – visually and with oral histories available to patrons touring the exhibit. This has been a real labor of love as we have gathered traditional white gowns, antique white and dresses in non-traditional colors, as well as a selection of ethnic wedding clothing and accessories including photographs from brides and families of brides throughout the region.”

Historically, Queen Victoria popularized the white wedding gown. In 1840, the infamous and popular Queen made headlines when she got married in a simple, pure white silk wedding dress. A white wedding dress was not the norm a century ago. It was common for women to get married in their very best dress, usually a dress of color.

The show will also feature a memory gown where museum visitors can pin on thoughts relating to their own wedding. In addition, matrimonial trivia will be part of the exhibit to provide visitors with fun facts about wedding traditions worldwide.

Throughout the exhibit, which ends in the spring, there will be numerous wedding-related events and activities for public participation, including the popular 3rd Thursday Art Conversations.

The St. George Art Museum is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 47 E. 200 North. According to the museum’s mission statement, the city-owned and operated facility exists “to educate … through quality exhibitions from all periods, cultures and media … and to collect, conserve, inventory, exhibit and interpret art and artifacts from Utah and the West.”

For more information about “Here Comes the Gown” or other events happening at the St. George Art Museum, call 435-627-4525.

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