‘Nothing off limits!’ — Paris show combs through the ages of hairstyles and grooming

The human relationship with hair runs the spectrum from reverence to repulsion. From the hairless bodies of Ancient Egyptian queens to the modern-day mileage of extensions, a new exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs (MAD) in Paris, entitled Des Cheveux et Des Poils (Hair and Hairs), runs a fine-tooth comb through the history of hairstyles and grooming, and the crucial role they have played in shaping appearances, self-expression and societies.

Orchestrated by Denis Bruna, curator of fashion and fabrics at MAD, Des Cheveux et Des Poils is the fourth in a series of exhibitions that questions the links between fashion and the body. It is the first to take something other than clothes as a starting point, “to show that [the relationship between] body and hair is certainly the most important in the construction of appearances”, explains Bruna.

“Nothing was off limits! The idea was to talk about everything — combed hair, uncombed hair, symbolism, colour, eyelashes, hair on the arms, intimate hair,” lists Bruna on a theme that, historically, has not often been depicted in art. “When we see portraits of women and men naked, of paintings of ancient goddesses in the 16th, 17th and 18th century, sculptures of the saints or Jesus on the cross, they never really have body hair. It was only seen in medical books and erotic lithographs.

“In our exhibition, we try to explain why [body hair] was present and why it wasn’t. There are representations of some very intimate scenes. It might shock people, but it’s our history.”

Indeed, a Greek terracotta statue from the 5th century BC, thought to be the first representation of a woman’s pubic hair being groomed (with nothing but a lamp and a small flame), inspired a more visceral response than expected in this writer. A portrait of Louis XIV lent by the Palace of Versailles shows the king in what was perhaps the first wig he ever wore after losing his hair at a young age.

The skills of figures with great impact on follicular fashion are also on display, including Léonard Autier, a favoured hairdresser of Marie Antoinette, alongside creations from fashion powerhouses such as Alexander McQueen, Martin Margiela and Vivienne Westwood. A wall of wigs from the late 17th century to the 1980s includes the last wig Andy Warhol was known to have worn.

“For me, it was very important to have this piece because Andy Warhol’s story was very close to that of Louis XIV,” explains Bruna. “Louis was 20 when he lost his hair and was very sad, so he decided to wear a wig, decreeing that a wig was mandatory at the French court. So, wigs became the symbol of the 17th-century court of France. It was the same kind of thing with Andy Warhol, because he lost his hair very early, but it transformed a handicap into a strength, because his wigs became a part of his iconic signature.”

Bruna’s inquiry into the removal of hair through the ages proved most eyebrow-raising for the curator. “I was surprised to see that in 1767, the Duke of Orléans shaved all his body hair off the day before his wedding so as not to frighten his young wife-to-be, who had perhaps never seen a naked man.”

Alexis Ferrer, global creative artist at hair colour and care brand Wella — whose printed hair series will be featured in the exhibition — sees a future for hair that is more in line with worn fashion: something that can be changed frequently.

With Andy Warhol, wigs transformed a handicap into a strength

“Hair, for me, is like a fabric,” explains Ferrer. “The future of this print technique could be used as an accessory, a connection between clothing and hair.” Ferrer’s hair-printing innovation, unveiled in 2013, was a global first, featuring a black-and-white photograph “printed” on a model’s hair. Following this, Ferrer took inspiration from 18th-century French fabrics to create hatlike wigs. Most recently, he created a technique that allows printed hair to be coloured, combed, ironed and washed without losing the integrity of the print. Imagine: Prada print hair to match your Prada print skirt.

“I see a future where clients can come to the salon and get a print on their hair, almost like make-up. It’s an interesting proposition for the fashion world,” Ferrer explains.

Also featured in the exhibition is work by British hair stylist Sam McKnight. He rose to prominence creating looks for 1990s supermodels, fashion editorials and big-name designers such as Westwood and McQueen, and was the personal hairdresser to Princess Diana for seven years, creating her iconic cropped cut in the early 1990s.

One look from Westwood’s spring/summer 2010 show was based on a 17th-century drawing the designer showed to McKnight of a man running down stairs with his hair on fire. “Vivienne said to me, ‘Do you think we could do something like this?’ So we went off and dyed pieces to make it look like flames. Her hair was that same flame colour at the time and she, of course, wore her hair in the same look, which was amazing.”

After four decades in the industry, what does McKnight feel hair represents today? “Hair is my medium, of course, but I know what hair means to people,” he says. “It’s personal, it’s how it makes you feel. People use it as a defence, as something to hide behind, as a shield. It can reflect who you are as a person, it can also be the opposite — it can disguise who you are. And I think people who learn to use their hair are really clever.”

Referring to his own closely shaven head, he deadpans: “I don’t have that choice.”

madparis.fr, to September 17

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