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The Brooklyn Museum’s Artist’s Ball Honored Iris van Herpen—and Brought Out A Fashion-Obsessed Crowd

Image may contain Coco Rocha Adult Person Clothing Dress Latex Clothing Face Head Photography and Portrait

Coco Rocha, Iris van Herpen

Jason Lowrie/BFA.com

On the second Monday in May, it was time for another fashion-filled night at the museum. This time, artists, designers, curators, and art fans hot-footed it to Brooklyn for the annual Artist’s Ball. And once again, the evening was rooted in the truth that fashion is an art form. The sentiment was reinforced by the work of Dutch designer Iris van Herpen, who is set to have her first-ever New York retrospective, Sculpting the Senses, which opens on May 16.

Upon arrival, guests were greeted with specialty cocktails named after van Herpen’s signature aesthetic—bar tenders were kept busy whipping up the Architectonics, the Sculpted Spice, and the Ethereal Express. As they sipped from coupes and navigated their way around the unmissable wooden sculpture by the artist KAWS, they complimented one another on their takes on the cocktail attire dress code.

Many attendees donned pieces by van Herpen herself. One guest garnered an audience who awed at her battery-powered headpiece that fluttered like butterfly wings, while others couldn’t help but snap photos of Coco Rocha’s black mini dress with tentacle-like details. “I walked into the room, and people can’t stop looking,” Rocha told Vogue with a laugh. “That’s what art is, isn’t it? It grabs your attention.” Those not in van Herpen ensured her spirit was incorporated into their looks, too, by sporting texture, prints, and sculptural silhouettes that fit right in with the exhibition.

Guests made their way up to the fifth floor to see what the evening was all about. There, they were transported into van Herpen’s world; one where the original version of Eileen Gu’s bubble dress from last week’s Met Gala sets the precedent, upside-down mannequins are the norm, and her atelier is open to all. “She’s taken high-end technology and merged it with handcraft in a way that other designers haven't accomplished at such a high level,” Matthew Yokobosky, the museum's senior curator of fashion and material culture, told Vogue.

Attendees had the opportunity to see this up close through microscopes, where they could examine the natural materials and molecular structures. “I’ve only ever seen her work in photographs,” actress Chloë Sevigny shared. “Seeing it up close, it’s stunning. The artistry is undeniable.”

For van Herpen, Monday’s initial reactions are only the beginning. “I hope that I widen people’s perspective of what fashion is,” she told Vogue. “I want to show them that it is in dialogue with art, but also with science, with engineering, with philosophy. And I hope people will feel a deep connection to nature because that is really the primal question of my work.”

While guests, including Wes Gordon, Derek Blasberg, Jordan Roth, Peggy Gou, and Ulla Johnson could have (and wanted to!) stay immersed in van Herpen’s exhibit for the entire evening, they began making their way to the museum’s third floor, where dinner was served in the Beaux-Arts Court. The room was filled with long tables dressed in blue linens. Iris flowers—a nod to the evening’s honoree—lined the table, and softly flickering candles created an ethereal ambiance for celebration.

As they took their seats, New York City Ballet principal dancers Taylor Stanley and Ava Sautter took the stage in van Herpen pieces, moving to Ether by Arca to showcase the fluidity of the garments. After their performance, Barbara Vogelstein, head of the museum’s board of trustees, reminded attendees of the evening’s purpose. “We believe that art is one of the most powerful tools we have for understanding ourselves and each other,” she said. “Hundreds of thousands of people walk through these doors year after year and leave with an entirely new way of seeing the world.”

Dinner was followed by a Sotheby’s-led auction, with proceeds going towards the museum’s wide array of charitable and educational initiatives. “The Brooklyn Museum is different from other cultural centers in the city,” Fabiola Beracasa Beckman, one of the evening’s hosts, explained. “This museum runs programs that support those who have been incarcerated. It spotlights artists who speak out about the climate crisis.”

As the auction wrapped, chocolate mousse made the rounds before guests were invited back to the first floor for an after-party. Blue lights, lively music from DJs Chi, Runna, and Madout, and fresh face created a new energy in the space; one that encouraged movement, dance, and conversation.

“New York is the city of freedom and creativity,” van Herpen said. “I feel at home here, and I know that so many others in this room do too.” Guests danced beneath the neon LOVERULES sign until late, before slowly making their way back outside to the quiet Brooklyn streets, while admiring the lit-up museum that immersed them in van Herpen’s world for the evening.