Parachute: Subversive Fashion of the ‘80s

Founded in Montreal in 1977 by designer Nicola Pelly and architect Harry Parnass, the Parachute brand quickly became an international fashion phenomenon with a celebrity clientele that included Madonna, Duran Duran and Peter Gabriel.

This exhibition will explore Parachute’s androgynous and provocative clothing, and the company’s transformation from its subcultural New Wave beginnings, to a designer brand with concept stores in cities including Montreal, New York and Los Angeles. Parachute translated the cultural anxieties of the early beginnings of the digital age into avant-garde clothing that aspired to change people’s perspectives and shake up the status quo.