Netflix, Brooklyn Museum launch ‘The Queen and The Crown: A Virtual Costume Exhibition’

Explore the role fashion played in the lives of the powerful women whose wardrobes were the inspiration for costumes seen in “The Queen’s Gambit” and “The Crown” with “The Queen and The Crown” – a virtual costume exhibition.

Fans of Netflix series’ “The Queen’s Gambit” and “The Crown” can experience detailed 360-degree views of select costumes from the shows, along with artifacts chosen from the Brooklyn Museum’s collection that complement each ensemble.

Set amid a digital rendering of the museum’s gorgeous Beaux-Arts Court, “The Queen and The Crown: A Virtual Exhibition of Costumes” allows viewers an up-close look at the 1960s-era apparel designed by Gabriele Binder for fictional chess champion Beth Harmon, the main character in The Queen’s Gambit. A highlight piece is Beth’s “Endgame dress,” all in digital format.

Emmy award-wining costume designer Amy Roberts created fashions inspired by pieces worn by Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Margaret, Princess Diana, and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in “The Crown,” each carefully recreated for virtual viewing. Among the iconic outfits is Queen Elizabeth’s “Braemar Games” wool tweed suit.

Matthew Yokobosky, the Brooklyn Museum’s senior curator fashion and material culture, selected items from within the museum’s collection that complement each outfit, including a circa 1938-1799 B.C.E. Egyptian board game; photographer Arthur Tress’s “Boys on Checker Floor, Far Rockaway NY” gelatin silver print; and artist Hew Locke’s mixed media assemblage “Koh-i-noor,” representing Queen Elizabeth II.

“The Brooklyn Museum has a long history of doing fashion exhibitions since the 1930s and I was very excited about the idea of doing an exhibition virtually in our COVID time right now,” said Yokobosky.

The virtual presentation also includes a panel discussion with Yokobosky, and costumiers Binder and Roberts, offering virtual visitors a behind-the-scenes insight into the television series’ wardrobes.

The attraction, which runs through Dec. 13, marks the first time the museum has featured an online fashion exhibit. Past in-person wardrobe and artifact collaborations include “Killer Heels: The Art of the High-Heeled Shoe,” “David Bowie is,” and “Pierre Cardin: Future Fashion.”

To view the virtual exhibition, visit TheQueenandtheCrown.com.