Orla Kiely Retrospective Lands at London’s Fashion and Textile Museum
British designers Lucienne Day and Orla Kiely have both been awarded a Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, or OBE, title for their contributions to the arts. But their connection goes deeper: Kiely cites the late Day’s mid-century textiles as inspiration for her fashion designs, over 100 of which are on display in “Orla Kiely: A Life in Pattern,” May 25 to September 23 at the Fashion and Textile Museum, London. Dedicated to her print, clothing, handbag, and homeware pieces, her first-ever retrospective draws on an archive of more than 20 years of work. “A riot of color and pattern will all be under one roof,” says Kiely, who also counts Shirley Craven and Mary Quant as muses.
