REVIEW: MARILYN - THE EXHIBITION
Enigmatic Icon's Story Told Through 250 Objects in Sparkling UK Premiere
It’s not often I’m left starstruck by an electric fan - but this is the fan behind (or beneath) Marilyn Monroe’s iconic flying skirt images for Seven Year Itch.
I’m at the launch of the new Marilyn: The Exhibition at Arches London Bridge, where astonishingly accurate Monroe lookalike, Suzie Kennedy is currently recreating the scene, above a subway grate replica - the most famous moment in movie history is alleged to have caused her divorce from second husband, Jo DiMaggio, who branded it ‘exhibitionist.’
The UK premiere of this exhibition offers a rare glimpse into the private world of the eternally fascinating and enigmatic silverscreen legend, with a meticulously curated collection of 250 objects from the private collection of Ted Stampfer, the world's largest collector of Marilyn’s historical objects.
We explore a warren of railway arches, discovering love letters, satin robes, scripts, timeless outfits to vintage shoes and make-up.
They tell the story of a little girl with a heartbreaking childhood, who turned to the glamour of cinema for escapism, became a teenage model, a 16-year-old bride, an actress, voracious reader, scholar and icon who met an untimely and tragic end, with DiMaggio saying: “Instead of kissing you at the altar, I kissed you in your casket.”
The famous President dress - most recently borrowed by Kim Kardashian, who was thankfully not allowed to alter it - glitters beside the video of Marilyn performing to JFK.
Andy Warhol’s famous screen print hangs on the wall - he immortalised her in her prime, just after her death in 1962 and this image was the first of his famous screen prints of icons.
There’s her famous black jumper and white capri trousers, Marilyn was expelled from school twice for wearing trousers and the exhibition also tells the story of a proto-feminist icon. She bravely spoke out about sexual harassment from powerful men in the film industry; became the second woman in America to have her own production company; she recognised the power of her sexuality and advocated passionately for equality and civil rights.
There are recipe books, tiles from her kitchen and her cooking utensils on display, although she famously said: “I have too many fantasies to be a housewife.”
Her three marriages are also charted in the show, with memorabilia from honeymoons, love letters and photographs.
Marilyn has an enduring and complex legacy, and even with her famous dresses and handwriting within thrilling touching distance, she's always just out of reach.
Like most people, I have always been mesmerised by Marilyn - as a child, for her beauty and as I got older, for her talent and powerful story as a strong, resilient and extraordinary woman ahead of her time, which is represented beautifully in this show.
As Marilyn said: “A sex symbol becomes a thing. I just hate being a thing.” She was so, so much more than that.
Marilyn: The Exhibition. Arches, London Bridge, 8 Bermondsey St, London SE1 2ER. 17 October - February 2025
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