Dilys is busy installing the exhibition today. So we tracked her down in the gallery to get the answer to your question.

Works in the exhibition represent 1951 - 2007.

I would plan on spending a minimum of 45 minutes to an hour. You'll want time to see all of the dresses (about 83) and the 9-minute video.

Hi everybody! We're just three weeks away now, and the dresses have arrived! I’m still working on the video, and construction in the gallery space is moving along and really looking fabulous. The excitement is definitely building. Be sure to check back next week when we start to dress!

Hello everyone! Things are really starting to come together for the Capucci show. I've attached an image of the 3-D model that our exhibition designers built for the Dorrance Galleries (the area where the show will take place). These galleries have to be rebuilt for every exhibition held there, and the challenge lies in dealing with existing structural columns. I am always amazed at the variations the designers come up with.

The platforms aren’t visible in this photo (these range from 24-32”), nor are the dividing walls. And although the model helps me to visualize the final product, the actual installation inevitably brings changes as I have to balance volume, color, and vistas. It’s a bit like composing music. Now that construction is underway in the galleries, it's getting really exciting. Four more weeks to go…

Despite the cold and the snow in Philadelphia, I've been keeping busy. I’m continuing to work on the Capucci video, which will feature some really great archival film clips. It’s quite an interesting challenge to integrate the script with the visuals. Also, I just saw an advance copy of the catalogue! The photographs are stunning – even better than what you see here on the web.

Just a little more than 5 weeks to go...

As far as I understand they are almost completely hand sewn. For example the understructure of each dress is stitched by hand from many layers of organza. The production is extremely labor intensive; one dress made from sixty-two meters of taffeta was worked on for three months.

Both - Capucci created a number of dresses that were meant to be worn, as well as sculptures that were not worn. His Leaves sculpture dress (pictured under the “Capucci the Artist” section of this site) is an example of the latter.