A Chanel wedding ensemble by Karl Lagerfeld for House of Chanel during the press preview of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute spring 2016 exhibition ‘Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology’ in New York. — AFP A Chanel wedding ensemble by Karl Lagerfeld for House of Chanel during the press preview of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute spring 2016 exhibition ‘Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology’ in New York. — AFP

New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art said Thursday it is extending the hours of the "Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology" exhibition that has drawn near-record visits. The exhibit in the US museum's Costume Institute explores handmade and machine-made creation of haute couture and avant-garde ready-to wear in more than 170 ensembles, with the oldest dating to the early 20th century. "Manus"-hand-and "Machina"-machine-has attracted more than 664,000 visitors since its May 5 opening, the Met said.

That has pushed it into the Costume Institute's second place for attendance, topping "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty" in 2011, which drew slightly more than 661,000 visitors. The department's most popular show, last year's blockbuster "China: Through the Looking Glass", attracted nearly 816,000 visitors and is the Met's fifth most-visited exhibition. The Met said it was adding six more hours of viewing time on "Manus x Machina's final weekend. The museum will close at midnight on September 2 and 3, instead of its normal time at 9:00 pm. The exhibit ends on September 5.

The exhibit already was extended by three weeks from August 14. The signature piece is a 2014 wedding ensemble with a six-yard (meter) train by Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel made of scuba knit, a synthetic material, and hand-embroidered. Among the other designers are names from some of the world's leading fashion houses, including Balenciaga, Pierre Cardin, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana and Yves Saint Laurent. "Manus x Machina" was the inspiration for the Met's annual gala this year, whose star-studded attendees included Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Taylor Swift, Kim Kardashian, Bradley Cooper and Johnny Depp.-AFP