Cheekwood Announces Extension of Dressing Downton Costume Exhibition

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Dressing Downton: Changing Fashion for Changing Times exhibition has been extended to Sept. 17 at Cheekwood Estate & Gardens.

Originally set to end on Sept. 10, Cheekwood will extend the exhibition by one week due to its popular demand and ideal fit with the newly-restored Cheekwood Mansion.

The blockbuster exhibition, showcasing 36 period costumes from the television hit drama Downton Abbey®, opened simultaneously with the refurnished Cheekwood Mansion June 17. The exhibition is being displayed throughout the museum galleries and in select areas of the restored home.

During the exhibition’s residency, Cheekwood has also featured two period cars in the Cheek family’s former garage space under the title Classic Cars in the Courtyard. The historic vehicles will be on view through Sunday, Sept. 10.

To highlight the arrival of Downton, Cheekwood has hosted programming throughout the summer, including special evening hours each week during its Thursday Night Out series, set to continue through Sept. 14. Thursday Night Out features live music and food trucks as the gardens and the mansion stay open until 10 p.m.

Dressing Downton is included with Cheekwood admission or membership. Visitors can reserve tickets on site at Cheekwood’s Visitors Services, or online at https://cheekwood.org/calendar/dressing-downton-changing-fashion-for-changing-times/. Timed entry is not required to view the exhibition.

Audio tours are available with exclusive, behind the scenes narration from the designers and historical advisors who brought the hit show to life. Audio tours and exhibition merchandise can be purchased at the Cheekwood Mansion Gift Shop.

Dressing Downton: Changing Fashion for Changing Times is produced by Exhibits Development Group in collaboration with NBCUniversal International Television Production and Carnival Films/PBS Masterpiece’s Downton Abbey®, and will tour North America through 2017.

The exhibition's award-winning costumes were produced by the London costume house of Cosprop Ltd. Since 1986, when the Academy Award for Costume Design was awarded to a Cosprop designer, the company has supplied costumes for 29 nominated films. In 2011 and 2012, four of the five films nominated for Best Costume Design included costumes from Cosprop.

Dressing Downton at Cheekwood is presented by the First Tennessee Foundation and Gullett Sanford Robinson & Martin PLLC.

The restoration of Cheekwood's historic rooms and gardens and the endowment for their care and maintenance have been made possible with generous support from the Andrea Waitt Carlton Family Foundation, the Bovender Family, Mr. and Mrs. William F. Andrews, Jr., and the Founding Members of The 1929 Club.

About Cheekwood

Cheekwood is an historical estate in Nashville, Tennessee with beautiful botanical gardens and a museum of art. Recognized as one of the finest examples of an American Country Place Era estate, Cheekwood presents year-round seasonal festivals, world-class art exhibitions, breathtaking gardens, and education programs to over 225,000 visitors every year, including 13,000 household memberships. Its mission is to preserve Cheekwood as an historical landmark where beauty and excellence in art and horticulture stimulate the mind and nurture the spirit. Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, Cheekwood is on the National Register of Historic Places and a USA Today Top 10 Garden. Cheekwood is located at 1200 Forrest Park Drive, 8 miles southwest of downtown Nashville. Daily hours of operation: Tuesday through Sunday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. For further information, call 615-356-8000 or visit cheekwood.org.

ABOUT EXHIBITS DEVELOPMENT GROUP

EDG is dedicated to the development, production, marketing and distribution of traveling museum exhibitions and cultural projects. EDG also serves as a partner to other exhibition organizers, museums, foundations and collection owners in the U.S. and abroad, in the care and stewardship of their exhibitions and collections. EDG’s mission is to initiate and promote international cultural and intellectual exchange by bringing high-quality traveling exhibitions of art, science and history to broad and diverse audiences. For more information, please visit www.exhibitsdevelopment.com

ABOUT NBCUNIVERSAL INTERNATIONAL TELEVISION PRODUCTION

NBCUniversal International Television Production’s in-house production labels include: Carnival Films, creators of the Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning drama sensation Downton Abbey; Monkey Kingdom, which produces Channel 4’s hit UK reality series, Made in Chelsea; factual entertainment label Chocolate Media, makers of How To Cook Well with Raymond Blanc for BBC2; Lucky Giant, which specializes in comedy and most recently produced Christopher Guest comedy Family Tree, starring Chris O’Dowd for both BBC2 and HBO; and Australian-based Matchbox Pictures, makers of critically-acclaimed drama series The Slap and Real Housewives of Melbourne.

Additionally, NBCU International Television Production operates a joint television production venture with Working Title Television, owns an equity stake in LARK Productions in Canada (Motive), has a first look deal with Hardy Son & Baker and operates a prolific global formats business.

ABOUT COSPROP

The amazing costumes in this exhibition are custom made or come from a stock of more than 100,000 costumes and accessories made by the renowned British costumer, Cosprop Ltd.  Founded in 1965 by John Bright, an award-winning costume designer in his own right, Cosprop specializes in creating costumes for film, television and theater pieces set from the 15th century to the swinging 60s. Cosprop has a staff of forty experts in designing, tailoring, cutting, fitting, millinery, jewelry making and repair, and dyeing and printing.  Reference for their work comes from an extensive library and a collection of original garments — thus ensuring that any production undertaken by Cosprop is "correctly dressed".

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