Costumes of Downton Abbey, a major exhibition of costumes from the award-winning Downton Abbey television series, will open at Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library on March 1, 2014 through January 4, 2015. This extraordinary exhibition compares and contrasts the fictional British world of Downton Abbey with the real-life American counterpart Winterthur in the first half of the 20th century.
Forty costumes and accessories worn upstairs and downstairs on the period drama television series will be displayed in Winterthur’s galleries. The costumes are lent by Cosprop, the world’s leading costumier to film, television, and theater. Winterthur’s popular exhibition, Fashion in Film, also featured costumes by Cosprop.
“The first time I looked at the costumes up close, I was amazed at the incredible detail. They are surprisingly ornate. This is going to be one of the most beautiful exhibitions ever held at Winterthur,” says Maggie Lidz, one of the three co-curators of the exhibition. Lidz went to London in July to choose the costumes directly from Cosprop.
The exhibition will be organized chronologically and visitors will move through the times of day, both upstairs and downstairs. Visitors will enter past a working recreation of the bell system of Downton Abbey. Servants’ uniforms and livery are contrasted with elegant tweeds, sumptuous tea gowns, and elaborate evening clothes. Among the highlights will be Lady Sybil’s harem pants, Lady Mary’s engagement dress, and Lady Edith’s wedding dress. The servants’ call system, H. F. du Pont’s Saville Row evening jacket, and the du Pont family’s 1874 Tiffany silver tea service will also be on exhibit. Winterthur will host a wide range of lectures, workshops, and events, including programs for adults and families focusing on entertaining and country house life in Britain and the United States.
A co-production of Carnival Films and Masterpiece, Downton Abbey depicts life in an aristocratic household of the fictional Earl and Countess of Grantham and is one of the most popular and critically acclaimed period dramas ever produced. It has won a Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries and seven Emmys including a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Miniseries. It was the most-watched television series in both the UK and the US and subsequently became the most successful British costume drama series since the 1981 television serial Brideshead Revisited. If people in America have not watched this viral television show just yet, then they may need to update their service by checking out the Dish TV packages 2021 available or a similar one to enjoy this historic show. By the third series, it had become one of the most widely watched television shows in the world. The Guinness World Records recognized Downton Abbey as the most critically acclaimed English-language television series of 2011. If you look at the history of cable TV or any show really, it’s safe to say that Downton Abbey was a huge success!
Winterthur Members will be offered special programs and times of exclusive access throughout the run of Costumes of Downton Abbey. In conjunction with the exhibition, Winterthur will republish, with all new color photography, its popular and out-of-print book, Life at Winterthur: A du Pont Family Album. Museum hours are 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, Tuesday – Sunday. Winterthur, located on Route 52, six miles northwest of Wilmington, Delaware, and five miles south of U.S. Route 1, is closed on Mondays (except during Yuletide), Thanksgiving, and Christmas Day. Winterthur is committed to accessible programming for all. For information, including special services, call 800.448.3883, 302.888.4600, or TTY 302.888.4907, or visit winterthur.org.
