Major Fashion Coup: The Last Queen of Paris Heads to the Met

Raymundo de Larrain and Jacqueline de Ribes, 1961. Photograph by Richard Avedon.

Jacqueline de Ribes, 1969. Photograph by Pierluigi Praturlon for Vogue.

Jacqueline de Ribes in her own design, 1986. Courtesy The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Raymundo de Larrain and Jacqueline de Ribes, 1961. Photograph by Richard Avedon.

Mark your calendars: The 2015 fall exhibit of the The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Anna Wintour Costume Center, debuting Thursday, November 19, will celebrate “The Last Queen of Paris,” Jacqueline de Ribes.

She has called the quintessence of Parisian elegance, was photographed by Richard Avedon as a Swan and was a member of the International Best-Dressed List Hall of Fame since 1962, but it took de Ribes almost 10 years to agree to an exhibit showcasing her iconic style and presence.

She and Harold Koda, the Costume Institute’s curator-in-charge, selected approximately 60 couture and ready-to-wear looks, 1959 to the present. Designers include Valentino, Jean Paul Gaultier (who dedicated his couture collection to de Ribes in 1999), Norma Kamali, Ralph Rucci, Roberto Cavalli, Pierre Balmain, Bill Blass, Ralph Lauren, Yves Saint Laurent and de Ribes’ namesake label, which she maintained from 1982 to 1995. The displayed ensembles, along with photographs and other items, illustrate how one woman’s interest in fashion developed into a renowned international style.

“Jacqueline de Ribes: The Art of Style” will be on view at The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Anna Wintour Costume Center November 19, 2015, through February 21, 2016.