(Image: Cooper-Hewitt Museum)

Quick Take: Rodarte, an exhibition curated by our very own 20x200 edition-maker Gregory Krum, opened last week at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum. The show surveys the work of conceptual fashion designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy, who founded the acclaimed fashion label in 2005, and provides a glimpse into the process and inspiration behind their work.

Part of what separates Rodarte from the rest of haute-couture is their unorthodox influences, which include "the building and taking apart of homes, California Condors, Boris Karloff as Frankenstein, land art and Japanese horror films." Gregory, who was recently interviewed by Cool Hunting on the exhibition, writes that the resulting designs are "meticulous, sophisticated and fearless."

He adds:

They have a very specific vision of what they want to do and are able to combine and convert very disparate references—none of which involve romantic nostalgia for past fashion designers—into garments that don't look like anything else we’ve seen. Aside from looking unique, the work is constructed in a very serious way, often combining traditional couture techniques with more radical ones…they'll do whatever it takes to achieve the look they want.

Don't miss the full interview on Cool Hunting and if you're in New York make sure to stop by the exhibition, which runs through March 14th.

Quicktake: Rodarte
Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum
February 11 - March 14, 2010
2 East 91st Street
New York, NY 10128

Two out of three of Greg's editions are completely sold out, but select prints of New York (Peony) are still available from 20x200. If you're a fan of Krum—and who isn't?—you'll also want to keep an eye on the mailing list.

New York (Peony) by Gregory Krum