MORE than 100 people attended the launch of a new exhibition at The Bowes Museum in Barnard Castle.

Birds of Paradise – Plumes and Feathers in Fashion is being shown exclusively in its award-winning Fashion & Textile Gallery.

It is a tribute to the elegance of feathers used in the fashion industry past and present and features extravagant catwalk creations from British, Belgian, French and Italian designers including Alexander McQueen, Dries Van Noten, Jean Paul Gaultier, Thierry Mugler, Balenciaga, Prada and Gucci.

The exhibition, organised by MoMu - Fashion Museum Antwerp, addresses aspects such as luxury, modernism, femininity, lightness, and also covers the themes of lost innocence and dark romance.

The museum’s Keeper of Textiles, Joanna Hashagen, who is curating the show alongside MoMu’s Karen Van Godtsenhoven and Wim Mertens, said: “Whereas in the past, feathers were generally appreciated for their value and refinement, contemporary designers now see them as an expression of freedom and spirituality.”

Accessories also on display include a selection of fans, hats and feather shoes.

She added: “Thanks to design houses such as Alexander McQueen and Dries Van Noten, feathers are firmly back on the fashion agenda and once again featuring strongly on the catwalk.”

The exhibition will run until April 19, 2015 and the museum is open daily from 10am.

For details call 01833 690606 or visit www.thebowesmuseum.org.uk