FASHION and photography enthusiasts from all over the world descended on a County Durham museum for an exclusive exhibition last night.

Catwalking: Fashion through the Lens of Chris Moore was held at The Bowes Museum, in Barnard Castle, to celebrate the renowned photographer himself.

Now 84, Moore was one of the first photographers to snap live fashion when Parisian salons opened their doors in the 1960s and still produces images from every major catwalk show.

Guests enjoyed viewing 230 of his original images which were spread across three galleries and chartered the evolution of fashion captured through his lens.

The pictures were presented alongside 40 original catwalk outfits in a unique collaboration with the world’s leading fashion houses and presented on a catwalk made of paper tubes.

The garments represent era-defining catwalk moments from Paco Rabanne’s 1960s chain-link modernism to a Dior gown from Galliano’s extravagant Spring/Summer 1998 show.

Straight off the catwalk, direct from Versace’s 2018 Tribute Collection, which brought the original supermodels together in homage to the late designer, is a reinterpretation of the Marilyn Monroe Pop Art dress worn by Naomi Campbell in 1991.

Also featured are seven Alexander McQueen outfits, including the golden feathered frockcoat from his final Angels and Demons Autumn/Winter 2010 Collection, and two previously unseen looks by Sarah Burton, designer of the Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding dress.

Only Moore, as in-house photographer, was invited to photograph McQueen’s last show after his death.

Mr Moore, said he was thrilled to hold the exhibition in the North as he was born in Newcastle.

Joanna Hashagen, the museum’s curator of fashion and textiles, said: “I am delighted that the fashion houses have been so generous with loans to this exhibition, a testament of their regard for his work. We are delighted to be able to present this unique fusion of photography and fashion in one significant exhibition.”

The exhibition will run until to January 6, 2019.