New York Fashion Week rolls into town February 9. In addition to all the models rocking the runway in the latest designs from the world’s biggest fashion houses, the star-studded event also brings with it an array of art exhibitions exploring fashion trends and history.

For those looking to celebrate the artier side of the industry, here’s a guide to shows worth adding to your already hectic schedule.

Domina Trix by Tali Suirt, (2015). Courtesy of Yoav Zohar.

1. “A Walk of Art: Visionary Shoes” at Parasol @ Bowery
A shoe-lovers dream, this pop-up exhibition brings together 60 pairs of the most outrageously conceptual and artistic footwear designed by alumni and students of Israel’s Bezalel Academy for what the organizers describe as “a meandering journey between the ephemeral and the perennial, the beautiful and the painful, the mythology and reality of some of the most charged and coveted objects in fashion history.”

The show, which features shoes made from such unusual materials as porcelain, glass, metal, and wood, not to mention 3-D printing, will leave you wondering where fashion ends and sculpture begins.

Location: 208 Bowery
Price: Free
Date and time: Through February 12. Open daily 11 a.m.–7 p.m.

“Bjarne Melgaard: The Casual Pleasure of Disappointment.” Courtesy of Red Bull Arts New York.

2. “Bjarne Melgaard: The Casual Pleasure of Disappointment” at Red Bull Arts New York and Gavin Brown Enterprise
Bjarne Melgaard’s first large-scale exhibition in New York is a multi-site affair, timed to the Norwegian’s “retirement” as an artist, as he turns his attention to launching an eponymous streetwear brand. Under the creative direction of Babak Radboy, Red Bull Arts will be transformed into a “psychopathological” department store for the show, as the press release notes, which “violently embraces the obsessive and self-destructive aspects of fashion and consumerism.”

On February 14, the artist will be giving out his personal collection of designer clothing at Red Bull Arts between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. Titled “The Purge,” the event will give shoppers 15 minutes to stuff as much as they can into custom “MELGAARD” branded shopping bags before they are ejected from the gallery. In addition to pieces from the artist’s new collection, clothing from the likes of Supreme, Margiela, Lanvin, Huff, Eckhaus Latta, Yohji Yamamoto, Stussy, Issey Miyake, and Comme des Garçons will also be up for grabs.

Location: Gavin Brown, 291 Grand Street; Red Bull Arts, 220 West 18th Street
Price: Free
Date and time: At Gavin Brown February 11–19. Wednesday–Sunday 12 p.m.–6 p.m. At Red Bull Arts February 16–April 9. Wednesday–Sunday 12 p.m.–7 p.m.

Recommended Reading

Red Bull Rechristens New York Art Space and Plans Bjarne Melgaard Show

By Eileen Kinsella, Jan 2, 2017

Luisa Cevese working on “Spreads Threads” mat. Courtesy of the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Musuem, © Luisa Cevese Riedizioni.

3. “Scraps: Fashion, Textiles, and Creative Reuse” at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
Luisa Cevese, founder of Riedzioni in Milan; Christina Kim, founder of dosa, inc., in Los Angeles; and Reiko Sudo, managing director at NUNO in Tokyo, all have one thing in common: their design philosophy focuses on sustainability. The Cooper Hewitt highlights their innovative and sophisticated approach to minimizing textile waste by reusing materials in creative ways.

Location: Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonain Design Museum, 2 East 91st Street
Price: $16 online tickets, $18 at the door
Date and time: Through April 16. Sunday–Friday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m.–9 p.m.

Mia Pearlman installation at Holly Hunt. Courtesy of Holly Hunt.

4. “Mia Pearlman: TUMULT” at Holly Hunt, NY
New York-based artist Mia Pearlman has created a special site-specific installation for the Holly Hunt showroom, inspired by designs by the iconic late furniture designer Vladimir Kagan, now represented by the luxury home furnishings and design store.

Location: Holly Hunt, 150 East 58th Street
Price: Free
Date and time: Through August 31. Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m.

Orlando Dugi (Diné [Navajo]). Cape and dress from “Desert Heat” Collection, 2012
Silk, organza, feathers, beads, and 24-karat gold; feathers, beads, and silver. Photo by Nate Francis/Unék Photography. Hair and Makeup: Dina DeVore. Model: Mona Bear.

Location: National Museum of the American Indian, 1 Bowling Green
Price: Free
Date and time: February 17–September 4. Friday–Wednesday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m.–8 p.m.

Jonathan Leder “Polaroids,” Emily Ratajkowski. Courtesy of Castor Gallery Downtown.

6. “Jonathan Leder: Polaroids” at Castor Gallery Downtown
Before they were famous, photographer Jonathan Leder snapped Polaroids of models including Emily Ratajkowski (of “Blurred Lines” fame) and Allie Leggett. A selection of 120 of these intimate, sensual portraits, rarely exhibited to the public, are featured in this show, which the galley claims is inspired Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s Baroque masterpiece The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa.

Location: Castor Gallery, 254 Broome Street
Price: Free
Date and time: February 9–26. Opening February 9, 6 p.m.–9 p.m. Wednesday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–7 p.m.; Sunday, 12 p.m.–6 p.m.

Textile Hive. Courtesy of the Ace Hotel.

7. “Illuscious Textile Hive Fashion Show” at the Ace Hotel
Andrea Aranow and her son Caleb Sayan have collecting fabrics from all over the world since the 1970s. The result is Textile Hive, billed as “a physical, digital and contextual collection of over 40,000 antique and handmade textiles spanning fifty countries and 200 years of design history,” which gets its first New York exhibition just in time for Fashion Week. A fashion show featuring Japanese yukata designed by emerging artists based on the Textile Hive collection will turn the hotel lobby’s staircases into a runway for the occasion.

Location: Ace Hotel, 20 West 29th Street
Price: Free
Date and time: Through February 28. Opening February 9, 7 p.m.–8:30 p.m.

Ziyang Wu, The Story of the Pig. Courtesy of the artist.

8. “WAVELENGTH II: New Consumerism” at the Hole
This fashion and art exhibition curated by Yi Wang features the work of artists and designers Consistence, Dong Hee Lee, Elisa Van Joolen, JAHNKOY, Jiannan Wu, Kota Okuda, Lee Tal, Lisk Feng, Lunéville, Marta Molina Gomez, NAMILIA, PERCY LAU, Sonni, Gahee Lim, Yining Jin, Ying Gao, Yu Cao, and Ziyang Wu. Expect a mix of conceptual fashion pieces, jewelry, sculpture, and multimedia installations exploring the concept of “new consumerism,” in which purchasing is more socially engaged act bound up in issues of sustainability and authenticity.

Location: The Hole, 312 Bowery
Price: Free
Date and time: February 8–15. Opening February 8, 5 p.m.–9 p.m. Open daily 10 a.m.–6 p.m.

rag & bone New York Fashion Week art show installation shot. Courtesy of rag & bone.

9. rag & bone New York Fashion Week Art Show at 60 Tenth Avenue
In honor of its 2017 Fall/Winter collection and the brand’s 15th anniversary, rag & bone is staging an exhibition of film, imagery, and music curated by Lou Stoppard.

The new collection is showcased through a portrait series of over 60 people who have been part of or inspired the brand, shot by Glen Luchford using the rare 20×24 Polaroid camera and Frank Lebon, who created collages shooting on regular film. Subjects include Mikhail Baryshnikov, Carmelo Anthony, and Keri Russell.

Location: 60 Tenth Avenue
Price: Free
Date and time: February 10–12. Private opening February 9. Open daily 1 p.m.–4 p.m.