Stop! In the Name of Glitz and Glam

Sequins. Feathers. Glitter. Glamour. These words evoke a certain kind of emotion from anyone, especially a 20-year-old girl. Junior Brittany Kneal examined a light pink, sequined gown and almost whispered her words. "This is so gorgeous. It's like a princess dress," she said.

Kneal is almost spot-on when she refers to this as a "princess dress." She was looking at one of three hand-beaded gowns worn by the Motown girl group The Supremes when they were invited to perform for and meet Her Majesty the Queen in 1968. Dresses, shoes and jewelry worn by The Supremes are featured in an exhibit in the Pauly Friedman Art Gallery through October 16, 2011. The Mary Wilson Supremes' Collection on display at MU is just part of a larger art exhibit. The rest of the collection is housed at the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.

The clothing is breathtaking to anyone who walks into the gallery, but more important are the stories that accompany each gown and the woman who is sharing these dazzling pieces with the world, Ms. Mary Wilson. As a founding member of R&B and pop music's reigning female group, Wilson understands that these gowns are part of history and tell a story of music, fashion and the legacy that is The Supremes.

"[The Supremes] did this. Motown didn't say, ‘We're going to dress you in gowns.' They had the tendency to be drawn toward fashion and what was going on," said Brian Benedetti, Pauly Friedman Art Gallery Director.

Benedetti had visited Cleveland, Ohio to see a baseball game when he visited the Rock ‘n' Roll Hall of Fame and saw an exhibition of The Supremes' gowns and accessories. During the past year when the committee for MU's annual "Under the Stars" Summer Arts Festival brought up the idea of asking Wilson to perform, Benedetti, as well as Gallery Assistant and Permanent Collections Curator Dona Posatko, knew that Wilson's gowns had to be displayed on campus.

Benedetti and Posatko want to create an interesting and inviting gallery that will draw in not just students but their families and other community members as well, and they feel that's what they've accomplished.

"I've noticed a tremendous influx of parents of freshmen that have come in, and students that are looking at the institution to come to school. The parents come in and they're looking at the exhibition and it's just a point of interest in variety," said Benedetti. "It's something that's different than the routine programming all the time."

What makes this exhibit so unique is the fact that it's not the typical kind of art that the public is accustomed to seeing in the Friedman Gallery. The Mary Wilson Supremes' Collection is art of a different sort: fashion. It represents a musical style and legacy. The Supremes had a style all their own and this is reflected in their clothing choices from the very beginnings of their career.

"Our look was very classy and very ahead of our time," said Wilson. "Glamour was something that we always liked, because we were always just cute little girls playing dress up."

The Supremes had a distinct style, and even from their early days of performing when money was tight, they still knew what they wanted to look like and how they were going to achieve this look.

"Obviously in the beginning we didn't have a lot of money, so we had to, you know, just buy off the rack and buy what we thought was great. And it was always with an eye on glamour," Wilson said. "The more money we made, the better our dresses became, and then of course after that the designers came in and always designed beautiful things of which is there at the exhibit."

Pat Campano, Michael Travis, and Bob Mackie are only some of the famous designers who created the stunning outfits on display in the gallery. The gowns showcased the beauty and grace of The Supremes and made the women feel special and beautiful at a time when the country was having difficulty seeing African American women this way. Although Wilson mused on the gorgeous women who paved the way, like Lena Horn and Dorothy Dandrige, The Supremes' legendary style helped change America's view on black women.

"We were real, live Cinderellas," said Wilson. "And we were black, to boot. And that was at a time when black people weren't considered beautiful. So, we came out with these gorgeous gowns on and we were totally beautiful and it really was something that helped America to appreciate black women."

The outfit choices of The Supremes were not the only way these women impressed the world, but also in the way they walked, talked and presented themselves. When Wilson came to MU to perform during the 2011 Under The Stars concert, she brought Mrs. Maxine Powell with her. Powell was part of the Artist Development Department at Motown Records and it was under her guidance that The Supremes learned to prepare "to sing in front of kings and queens."

"She would motivate us in terms of who we're as human beings and as women," said Wilson. "She would say things like, ‘You're diamonds in the rough and we're just here to polish you.' It really taught us to be ladies, and have grace."

Wilson continues to radiate that charm and grace today through what she says and how she says it, especially in the way she graciously spoke about her mentor Powell. Wilson was also very impressed with how kind MU's community was to Powell when she visited and how the university embraced her with open arms.