Design Museum gets a sneak peak into Prada headquarters for new exhibition

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Robert Dex @RobDexES14 November 2019

The Design Museum has been granted access to Prada’s headquarters in Milan for a fresh look at the fashion firm and its pioneering boss Miuccia Prada.

Deyan Sudjic, who is stepping down as museum co-director in January, is going behind the scenes at the brand to curate the show.

The exhibition, which opens in September, will trace how Miuccia transformed the family business after joining in the Seventies and made it a byword for luxury. Among the exhibits will be Prada’s handbags and shoes, and items from its collections.

Other shows planned for next year at the museum, which is based in the former Commonwealth Institute in Kensington, include Sneakers Unboxed: Studio To Street, examining the rise of trainers from practical sports shoes to sought-after fashion accessories.

Among the objects set to feature in the exhibition, which opens in May, will be the limited edition Nike Air Force 1 and the Jesus shoe — a Nike Air Max 97 injected with holy water by a group of New York designers and then sold for thousands of dollars.

The museum will also examine the technology used to make electronic music with a clubbing-inspired show complete with its own soundtrack mixe by French DJ Laurent Garnier. Mr Sudjic said: “Following a successful year with Stanley Kubrick and Moving to Mars, we have a provocative programme for the year ahead which allows us to cover every aspect of the design landscape. From the annual Beazley Designs of the Year to Electronic and Sneakers, this series of shows will enable us to bring more people closer to design.

“For me it’s a particularly personal challenge to work on the Prada exhibition — there is so much to explore about a company that never wants to do the obvious thing, and that is such a genuine cultural force.”

Mr Sudjic and his co-director Alice Black announced last month they were stepping down having overseen the museum’s £82 million move from Shad Thames to its new home. Writer and broadcaster Tim Marlow will take over.

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