Conservation Couture collection at the V&A: Humorous and chic

Currently on show at the V&A are a selection of masks modelled on animals. They have been created by top designers for Elephant Family, a charity dedicated to protecting Asian elephants and their unique habitat. The exhibition is being held in the Cupola, a room in the museum which has never been opened to the public before, where visitors can gaze at 40 different animal-themed creations.

Fashion houses who have contributed masks include Burberry, Jimmy Choo, Preen and Chloe. The designs range from a Swarovski crystal-encrusted cat mask to a fluttering blue and gold macaw. Some of the masks are even more unexpected, with Leonara Ferguson offering an amazing headpiece topped with a furry replica of a lemur. The result is both humorous and, somehow, distinctly chic.

Elephant Family is organising the Animal Ball on 22^nd November, for which guests can buy one of the designer masks for £2,000. The ball involves simultaneous dinners at 40 different restaurants, although some of the more elaborate masks look like they would make eating difficult. The charity hopes ticket and mask sales will raise around £2 million to aid their work and the work of other animal conservation charities.

The masks on display are both fabulously elaborate and highly artistic. The amazing imagination of the various fashion designers has scoured the length and breadth of the animal world to come up with designs featuring animals from sea, land and sky. If the £2,000 price tag is a bit out of your reach, this free exhibition is the perfect way to get a glimpse of the glamorous world of high fashion, all for a great cause.

Anna Souter

The Animal Ball Collection is at the V&A from 26^th October to 4^th November 2016, for further information visit here.