ArtsWestchester hosts landmark costume exhibition on Ballroom culture

ArtsWestchester has launched an unprecedented cultural retrospective with a costume exhibition that shines a spotlight on the artistry and cultural legacy of New York’s House Ballroom community.

Legendary Looks: The Art of Effects Design in House Ballroom celebrates the fashion and drama of costumes in House Ballroom. The multi-media exhibition features over 16 extraordinary looks created by some of Ballroom’s top designers, stylists, and walkers, including Icon Overall Mother DeeDee Lanvin, Icon Founding Mother Miss Shalae Basquiat and Legendary Cameo Cameo.

The House Ballroom community is a working-class Black, Latinx, queer and trans cultural formation that grew out of the Harlem drag ball scene of late-19th century. The community is organized around an alternative kinship system of cross-generational non-biological families called Houses. Balls are the ritual events where Houses compete with one another in performance categories.

Costumes displayed at ArtsWestchester are accompanied by illustrations, ball flyers, photographs, and video, highlighting the creative process and inspiration behind each ballroom moment.

The exhibition is open Wednesday to Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. ArtsWestchester’s gallery is located at 31 Mamaroneck Ave., White Plains, N.Y. The suggested admission is $5.

Legendary Looks is a three-part exhibition that includes ArtsWestchester, City Lore in Manhattan and Pioneer Works in Brooklyn. On June 6, Pioneer Works debuted Legendary Looks: My Ballroom Story, a multimedia installation by Felix Rodriguez, a filmmaker who has documented the ballroom scene since 1991. On July 25, City Lore will open Legendary Looks: Preserving Our Legacy, a multi-media exhibition that includes ball flyers, archival photos, costuming pieces, as well as audio excerpts from oral history interviews collected by the curators.