In the Rollicking 1970s, Artists Rubbed Elbows With Wall Street Execs at Studio 54. A New Show Celebrates Its History—See Images Here

While museums around the globe are closed to the public, we
are spotlighting each day an inspiring exhibition that was
previously on view. Even if you can’t see it in person, allow us to
give you a virtual look. 

“Studio 54: Night Magic”
Brooklyn
Museum

What the museum says: “‘Studio 54: Night Magic’
traces the radiant history, social politics, and trailblazing
aesthetics of the most iconic nightclub of all time. Behind the
velvet rope, partygoers of all backgrounds and lifestyles could
come together for nights of music, dazzling lights, and the popular
song and dance ‘the Hustle.’

Organized chronologically, ‘Studio 54: Night Magic’ uses
photography, fashion, drawing, and film, as well as
never-before-exhibited costume illustrations, set proposals, and
designs, to place the nightclub within the wider history of New
York, from Prohibition through the 1970s. Blueprints and
architecture models illustrate the club’s innovative development
and creation, while documentation of extravagant theme parties
traces its 33-month run. The exhibition continues through the years
after the nightclub’s closure, showing the ongoing influence of
Studio 54 aesthetics.”

Why it’s worth a look: Studio 54 looms
large in the collective memory of America, and this show fills out
a fuller history of its meaning, beyond all the frivolity and
hedonism. In the wake of the horrors of the Vietnam War, as social
mores were swiftly changing and people rallied for racial and
sexual equality and freedom, Studio 54 became not only a place to
party, but also, curiously, a political battleground.

It was a club where outsiders could mingle with pinstripe
suit-wearing executives from Wall Street, and where drags queens
would rub elbows with celebrities. One of the most compelling
images from the show even depicts Bianca Jagger astride a
white horse.

What it looks like:

The post In the Rollicking 1970s, Artists Rubbed Elbows With
Wall Street Execs at Studio 54. A New Show Celebrates Its
History—See Images Here appeared first on artnet
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