Following a Michael Jackson Summer in the capital thanks largely to The National Portrait Gallery, we’re reaching the final weeks of the King of Pop’s dominance over central London (for now).
As the lead sponsor for the Michael Jackson: On The Wall, event BOSS have been embracing their connection by doing what they do best, fashion! After their run of 100 white Thriller Suits and three official t-shirt designs, there was one final piece to unveil which combines art and fashion titled Thriller BOSS Black.
So, BOSS opened the doors to the Sloane Square store for an after hours VIP evening to see the one-off suit and take part in a Q&A with both the artist Graham Dolphin who created the work along the Black BOSS tshirt and Assistant Curator for NPG Lucy Dahlson.
The event began at 7pm with a champagne reception and the Thriller BOSS Black suit was located in the centre of the store for guests to marvel at. Dolphin explained that he hand wrote the lyrics to over 50 songs across the suit at least twice with the rule that only songs written by Michael himself were to be included. On inspection the lyrics to songs such as Billie Jean, Speed Demon, Beautiful Girl, On The Line and even Rebbie’s Centipede are visible.
Dolphin and Dahlson took to the stage at 8pm to answer a series of questions posed by host GQ Magazine’s Teo van den Broeke. During the session Dolphin revealed the Thriller BOSS Black suit took him about a year to finish and the challenges involved in writing on material in this way. His Thriller inspired Hugo Boss t-shirt features messages from Michael’s fans that he’d found when searching online and he felt that partnered with the Thriller cover image it formed the perfect fan tribute t-shirt.
Dahlson explained that Michael Jackson: On The Wall was first thought of by Curator Nick Cullen ten years ago and has been in the full planning for three years before opening in London this June. Following it’s residencies in France, Germany and Finland, they are in talks for the exhibition to go to Japan and finally the United States – It should be noted, these are just discussions at the present time and nothing has been confirmed yet.
Dahlson also expressed that working alongside the Michael Jackson Estate had made her really think about the ‘why’ when including art in to the exhibition as each piece’s inclusion was explained to the Estate as it was secured, informing them what it added to the narrative.
On speaking with Dahlson following the stage Q&A she revealed to us that Michael Jackson: On The Wall has seen the gallery welcome record numbers of young people through its doors and has opened contemporary art up to an entirely new audience. It’s great to see that Michael continues to inspire people to expand their horizons and how his message reverberates through alternative mediums.
The evening continued with what seemed like free-flowing champagne and dessert canapes before finishing around 9:30pm where we grabbed one of the official Michael Jackson Hugo Boss postcards on our way out.
The Thriller BOSS Black suit remains on display at the Sloane Square Store.
Pez Jax / MJVibe.com
