It is Said of Me. Tango and Fashion Stories

Can tango lyrics represent and account for the clothing in tango? Is there a tango fashion? Tango stories are intertwined with silks, calico, hoop skirt, tuxedo, gacho, funyi. 

Thinking about tango from clothing will take us to know the tango aesthetic and the collective imagination that we have of it. This exhibition inspired by a tango with a fabric name, Percal , triggered a search that culminated in the compilation of tangos that define characters and stories through their clothing. In turn, the iconic figures that mark aesthetics through the use of clothing, shoes and accessories in the dance. The question about tango fashion involves metaphors, myths and stories of tango from the canvas. 

This exhibition invites us to explore from the tango literature the representative ideals of fashion that have emerged comparing them with those of their time and the use of clothing in the milongas. 

From calico to silk in the words of Enrique Cadícamo, Alberto Mastra’s hoop skirt to Gardel’s flowery gaucho costume. The glitter, the skirt with a slash and the shoes with a heel will show the ideality of the tango dancers on stage, a product of their subsequent popularity and professionalism. Figures such as Milena Plebs who have contributed not only technical and choreographic criteria to contemporary dance, and María Nieves, a style icon that set trends thanks to the garçon cut. Details that are part of what the social imagination has built on how you dress tango. 

Today, in the milongas, the fashion trend of each era coexists, the collective imagination, the aesthetics of tango on stage and the search for comfort. Beyond the style of each space and dancer, the essence of tango persists and crosses the times: we invite you to meet her in this show.