Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, young boys and girls were often dressed in sailor suits. Worn as both school uniforms and everyday dress, the popularity of the style was sparked by this 1846 Winterhalter portrait of Albert Edward, Prince of Wales. About 5 years old when the portrait was painted, Albert Edward wears a scaled down version of the newly standardized white and blue uniform of the Royal Navy.1 Throughout the nineteenth century, the Royal Navy was the most powerful navy in the world, a symbol of the United Kingdom's colonial empire and position as a world power. By dressing Albert Edward and her other sons in naval uniforms, Queen Victoria indicated her aspirations for her children and her country. As royalty were the trend-setters of the day, the fashion for sailor suits soon spread across Europe and the United States. National versions of the sailor suit varied, depending on the specific naval uniform of individual countries.
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Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel (1883-1971) distinguished her design aesthetic through a strict insistence on comfortable, lightweight garments and a pared-down silhouette. Chanel's interest in simplicity is seen in her earliest millinery designs from the 1910s, which relied on a single, dramatic embellishment for decoration rather than the "assemblage of materials" then in vogue.1 This interest in "less is more" also demonstrated itself in her earliest garment designs, ready-made suits and dresses often made from inexpensive wool jersey. These garments, almost the exact opposite of popular feminine fashions, launched Chanel's career. Throughout her career, Chanel adhered to the basic principle of crafting soft, lightweight fabrics into functional (yet luxurious) garments.
Though Chanel produced a variety of garment types throughout her career, one that reappeared over and over was the suit. Borrowing from menswear, Chanel created a feminine suit which offered ease of movement and capitalized on the implication of power inherent in the masculine suit. The basic, stripped down silhouette remained consistent, but the textiles changed with the times. It became a classic and functions today as shorthand for the designer herself.
Two-piece suit
Chanel
Spring 1964
Transfer from the Museum at FIT
S2004.291.24AB
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In 1998, Chanel launched an understated new handbag. Based on the upside-down torso of a woman, this aerodynamic bag was called 2005. The sleek, lightweight 2005 bag was created to carry the venerable design house into the new century. Prior to the 2005 bag, Chanel had primarily produced quilted leather handbags in a variety of sizes, always slung over the shoulder with the classic gold chain. The 2005 was a departure, consisting of a solid plastic understructure covered with neutral flannel and carried by an understated silver metal mesh chain. During the design phase, 2005 prototypes were carefully guarded to prevent counterfeiting. Chanel's designer Karl Lagerfeld said of the 2005, "It's totally new age...I have never seen anything like it."1
2005 Bag
Chanel
1998
Gift of Barbara Bundy
2002.37.1
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