FIDM Museum Blog

Silk moire bonnet, c. 1845

Bonnet
c. 1845
2008.5.32
Museum Purchase

During the 1840s, headcoverings were an essential part of every women's wardrobe. Inside the home, women often wore delicate, lacy caps which covered the hair and tied under the chin. When venturing out into the world, most American women wore a bonnet made of straw or silk. In the mid-1840s, the fashionable bonnet shape was that seen here: a continuous crown and brim forming a straight line with low tabs covering the cheeks and ears. Embellishment varied, but a bow or puff of ribbons on one side, long ribbon ties at the chin and a "bavolet" were common characteristics. The bavolet, a gathered panel of fabric extending from the lower back of the bonnet, was also functional, providing sun protection for the neck. It also covered and protected the fashionable hairstyle, a knot or twist of hair worn low on the neck. The interior of the bonnet brim often featured additional decoration in the form of artificial flowers, lace or the frilled edges of a house cap peeking out from under the bonnet. Photographic evidence indicates that some women wore fancy house caps under their bonnets, particularly when visiting. The bonnet was removed to reveal the house cap only when entering a home or other appropriate indoor space.

Sketch to Screen exhibition at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art

As we told you in this post, eight costumes from the FIDM Museum collection are currently on exhibit in Sketch to Screen: The Art of Hollywood Costume Design at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. Consisting of more than 85 original garments and accessories, the exhibition highlights the work of influential Hollywood costume designers, including Gilbert Adrian, Walter Plunkett, Edith Head and Travis Banton. Sketch to Screen closes on August 15, 2010, so you'd better visit soon if you haven't already!

For our readers who can't make it to Oklahoma City, we offer you the next best thing: installation photos of the FIDM Museum pieces accompanied by relevant segments of the audio tour. Narrated by our curator Kevin Jones, these short, informative segments are part of the Sketch to Screen audio tour. To listen, click on the link. Enjoy!

Kevin Jones discusses the gown worn by Marlene Dietrich in A Foreign Affair

Paisley strapless evening gown worn by Marlene Dietrich in A Foreign Affair
Irene/Edith Head
1949
HC 3633
Department of Recreation and Parks, City of Los Angeles, FIDM Museum
Photo by Jim Meeks, Oklahoma City Museum of Art

Kevin Jones discusses the "Suit of Lights" worn by Rudolph Valentino in Blood and Sand

"Suit of Lights" jacket worn by Rudolph Valentino in Blood and Sand
Natacha Rambova
1922
HC 4001
Department of Recreation and Parks, City of Los Angeles, FIDM Museum
Photo by Jim Meeks, Oklahoma City Museum of Art

The Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design Opens Today

 

Organized by guest curator Mary Rose, The Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design salutes memorable costume designs from recent television shows. See costumes from your favorite shows, including Mad Men, Treme, Glee, Big Love and others. The display is free and open to the public, July 27, 2010 thru September 4, 2010. Museum hours are 10 am – 4pm, Tuesday thru Saturday.

L to R: Mad Men Costumes worn by Elisabeth Moss as Peggy Olson, Jon Hamm as Don Draper, January Jones as Betty Draper. Costume Designer, Janie Bryant; Costume Supervisor, Le Dawson. Nominated for 2010 Emmy for Outstanding Costume Design.

Treme costumes worn by Clarke Peters as Albert Lambreaux. Costume Designer, Alonzo V. Wilson; Assistant Costume Designer, Ann Walters.

Thanks for a great year!

One year ago this month, we started the FIDM Museum blog as a way to share our objects with a wider audience. It has been a great experience, bringing us in closer contact with fashion history aficionados around the world. Thanks to all of YOU for reading, commenting and sharing our posts with your friends and colleagues. Keep reading, as we're working on a number of fantastic posts. We've also started a Facebook page. Don't forget to join us there, as we regularly post additional content and links.

Below are links to a few favorite posts from the past year. Leave us a comment if we've missed one of your favorites! Also, let us know if there are topics you'd like us to cover on the blog.

This post on Fashion & Feathers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries resonates with the current interest in sustainable fashion. And this post on counterfeit Chanel perfume provides historical perspective in the current debate about whether fashion designs can or should have copyright protection.

Our post on Fancy Dress was a big hit! We'd love to know if it inspired any Halloween costumes.

All of our posts involve historical research. Finding an image of this exact Tina Leser skirt was very rewarding.

Photographs provide an additional source for researching fashion history. This 2-part post analyzes several photographs from our collection.

Fabulous 1970s platform boots!

Our post about the 1920s silhouette inspired a great discussion in the comments section, as did this post on display options for garments.

Re-Designing History Illustration Competition

 

The FIDM Museum is holding an illustration competition for currently enrolled FIDM students! Create a design inspired by the beautiful, c. 1872 fuchsia day dress currently on view in the lobby of the second floor at the Los Angeles campus and you might win a cash prize. If you study at one of the other FIDM campuses, don't worry, we've got you covered! The images below show the c. 1872 day dress from all angles.

The winning illustrations will be displayed next to their historic inspiration in the upcoming exhibition Re-Designing History: FIDM Museum Study Collection, 1850-2000 to open in October 2010. The competition is open to all majors. Illustrations must be submitted by September 1, 2010 to the FIDM Museum Office, Suite 250, attention Kevin Jones, curator. The winning designs will be chosen by a panel of judges who will look for overall creativity, visual composition, and design inspiration. Cash prizes will be awarded to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners.

We can't wait to see your submissions!

Day dress
Silk
c. 1872
Gift of Steven Porterfield
S2008.897.5A-C

S2008.897.5A-C Side view

S2008.897.5A-C

Silver paper headdress, c. 1860

Anyone interested in the history of fashion quickly realizes that fashion is a series of cyclical repetitions. Contemporary silhouettes, colors and design details reference recent and historic styles, often with only slight modifications to bring a garment into the present moment. This cycle isn't new or unique to contemporary culture; documented revivals of historic fashions exist in the nineteenth century and earlier. Fashion historian Barbara Baines has suggested that revivals of historic dress styles are due to a number of factors, including nostalgia and an interest in associating oneself with specific, perceived characteristics of the past. In addition to these psychological factors, concrete events like an archaeological discovery, museum exhibition or period film can inspire a revival of historic styles.¹

Carolina Herrera evening gowns

Even before launching her own line in 1981, Carolina Herrera (b. 1939) had established a reputation for elegance and personal style. As an adolescent, she sometimes accompanied her grandmother on haute couture buying trips to Paris. When at home in Caracas, Venezuela, Herrera designed her own clothing, which was then brought to life by a skilled seamstress. Herrera's ability to combine purchased garments with those she designed herself earned her multiple nominations to the International Best Dressed list, along with compliments from friends and acquaintances. In 1980, Herrera was interested in launching a line of textile designs, but a meeting with Diana Vreeland convinced her to go into fashion. Herrera already had numerous friends in the fashion industry, and with the help of Bill Blass, Mary McFadden, model Iman and other notables, in 1981 she presented her first collection at the Metropolitan Club in New York City.

Evening gown
Carolina Herrera
c. 1992
Gift of Carolina Herrera
2005.844.12AB

The 'Little Girl' look and nostalgia in fashion

During the later years of the 1960s, the '"little girl" look was prominent in fashion. Many women dressed in loose, A-line shift dresses similar to those worn by little girls and accessorized with items (hairbows, headbands, flat shoes) associated with youth. Twiggy, with her childlike appearance and demeanor, is the iconic representation of this style. As described in a somewhat satirical 1968 New York Times article, designers "flipped over the princess dresses and little smocked numbers" worn by little girls and "made the dresses larger, used very expensive fabrics and put price tags on big enough to pay for a little backyard merry-go-round."¹

Smocked dress
Jeanne Lanvin
c. 1968
Museum Purchase
S2003.5.16

Traveling in High Style

Have you ever wondered how a complete exhibition gets from one museum to another? In this post, FIDM Museum Registrar Meghan Grossman Hansen fills you in on the process.

This month, the FIDM Museum’s award-winning exhibition High Style: Betsy Bloomingdale and the Haute Couture is hitting the road. A slightly modified version of the exhibition will be installed at the American Textile History Museum in Lowell, MA from August 14, 2010-January 2, 2011. If you missed the exhibition in Los Angeles, this is your chance to learn about a style icon and the haute couture process.

As the FIDM Museum Registrar, I want to fill you in on the behind-the-scenes activities of traveling an exhibition. The shipping has to be planned in great detail, from the number of objects, the size of the crates, to the size of the truck. In our case, the total volume does not warrant an exclusive truck, so we are fortunate to tag along with other artworks on an art-transportation shuttle from Los Angeles to the east coast. (Yes, there are trucks filled entirely with art objects criss-crossing the country!) Next, a packing list is planned with a number of considerations in mind: dimensions, weight, condition, and object accessibility (for instance, the order in which objects will be installed may be an important factor in where they are packed).

Assistant Registrar Dani Killam creates the packing list.

Roberto Cavalli poncho c. 1970

Though Roberto Cavalli's aesthetic is closely associated with flamboyant animal printed textiles crafted into overtly sexy garments, the designer's career actually began with T-shirts. In the late 1960s, Cavalli designed and silk-screened a batch of T-shirts. The T-shirts sold well, and Cavalli started a small workshop to meet demand. The designer soon expanded his offerings, developing techniques for printing designs on lightweight leather and suede. Cavalli used the printed leather and suede like a textile, using it to create garments of solid or patchwork leather and/or denim. Cavalli's use of leather, suede and denim was perfectly tuned to the decorative 'rich-hippie' aesthetic of the late 1960s and early 1970s, and his garments were worn by numerous style icons, including Bridget Bardot and Sophia Loren. By 1972, Cavalli's reputation had grown, and his garments retailed at small boutiques in Europe and New York.

Poncho
Roberto Cavalli
c. 1970
Museum Purchase
2004.5.39