FIDM Museum Blog

Versace Mare bikini, c. 1994

According to the inimitable fashion editor and curator Diana Vreeland, a bikini reveals "everything about a girl except her mother's maiden name."¹ As Vreeland noted, bikinis are defined by their scant coverage and are rarely more than a few triangles of fabric stitched or strung together. Though the bikini is now a widely accepted type of swim and beachwear, it took years for the bikini to go from scandalous to unremarkable. Bikinis, or bikini-like garments, appear in ancient Roman murals, and relatively modest two-piece suits were worn in the 1930s, but the scanty modern bikini didn't appear until 1946. Sources differ, but it seems that the revealing swimsuit was introduced almost simultaneously in summer 1946 by haute couture designer Jacques Heim and engineer/fashion designer Louis Réard. Heim called his scanty two-piece suit the atome, while Réard labeled his the bikini. Both names made reference to the US military's July 1946 nuclear tests on Bikini Atoll, a low-laying island located in the South Pacific. Réard's name for the revealing swimsuit stuck, and a new style of swimwear was born.

Bikini
Gianni Versace/Versace Mare
c. 1994-1999
Gift of Dorothy Washington Sorensen
S2010.1110.83A-D

Swingin' Summer

 

Swingin’ Summer, a collaboration between the FIDM Museum Shop and Clever Vintage Clothing, pays homage to the influence of swimwear on fashion and culture. On view in the FIDM Museum lobby through late July, this installation of swimwear and casual fashions includes ensembles by Catalina, Alfred Shaheen and the Kamehameha Garment Company. This installation is FREE and open to the public Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Selections from Swingin' Summer are featured below. Stop by the FIDM Museum lobby to see the full installation!

 

Ocean-themed straw handbags from the 1950s. The sequin embellished bag (front) was made in Japan, and the green and gold seashell handbag (back) is from Texas.

The start of summer

 

The unofficial start of summer is just a few days away. In the United States, the Memorial Day holiday (always the last Monday in May) marks the beginning of the summer season. Depending on where you live, the climate may or may not cooperate. No matter what the weather, you're probably plotting a weekend getaway and plans for summer fun. This blog post, first published in 2009, examines a crucial component of the summer wardrobe: swimwear. Dating from the late 19th century, this "bathing suit" is unlike any swimwear you'd see on the beach today. Made from a wool textile, it looks more like a full-length coat! Read on to find out why 19th century women wore such modest swimwear.

Woman's bathing ensemble
c. 1875
Museum Purchase
2006.25.3AB

Spring flowers

 

Spring is here! Today, March 20, is the first day of spring for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere. Spring brings longer days, warmer weather and a host of colorful blooms. In celebration of spring's arrival, we offer you an array of flowers from our collection. Enjoy!

Evening boots
1850-55
Gift of Barbara Bundy
2006.37.3AB

This pair of nineteenth century evening boots feature a pattern of roses and twining foliage. Made of a lightly iridescent silk damask brocade accented with green leather foxing at the heel and toe, these boots were almost certainly made to match an evening gown. Because of their delicacy, they would have been worn indoors only. As was common throughout much of the 19th century, these boots have undefined left and right soles. Shoes with distinctly different shapes for the left and right food didn't became widespread until the late 19th century.

Cabana set, c. 1955

 

Though "cabana set" sounds like the nickname for an elite group of beach hopping travellers, it actually refers to a matching or coordinating set of man's swim trunks and sport shirt or light jacket. Though California swimwear manufacturer Catalina promoted matching swim trunks and sport shirts in the 1940s, the term cabana set wasn't applied to this casual ensemble until sometime in the early 1950s. This clever marketing ploy elevated a straightforward sportswear pairing to an outfit suitable for the relaxed, yet sophisticated, indoor/outdoor lifestyle closely associated with Southern California. A 1954 advertisement for Arrow brand cabana sets declared them suitable for "dad's loafing, puttering or beaching."¹ As this quote reveals, cabana sets were marketed as multi-purpose sportswear, suitable both on the beach and off. Cabana set
c. 1955
In Loving Memory of Maurice Levin
S2007.917.5AB

Bathing cap

 

It's the time of year when those of us in the northern hemisphere start dreaming about summer. Winter has gone on long enough and we're ready for warmer weather. Granted, the FIDM Museum is located in Los Angeles, so we can't complain too much. Still, I find myself repeatedly searching the terms "swimwear" and "sundress" in our collections database. A recent search for "bathing cap" revealed this late 1950s rubber bathing cap, textured and printed to resemble a woman's hairstyle and adorned with a flocked flower.

Bathing cap
Rubber with fabric flower and leaf
c. 1956
Museum Purchase
2003.5.36

Lounge pajamas, c. 1935

During the 1920s, pajamas moved from bedroom to beach. Though pajama style pants were suggested by Paul Poiret as avant garde dress during the teens, pajamas were worn primarily as sleepwear until the 1920s. Sometime during the mid-to-late 1920s, pajamas appeared outside the bedroom as swimsuit cover-ups on the beaches of the French Riviera. Beach pajamas soon became a double-duty garment for the relaxed resort lifestyle, one that navigated easily from beach to cocktail party. In 1931, Vogue magazine declared, "A woman may and does wear pyjamas to quite formal dinners in her own house, to other people's dinners in town and country if you know them well and the more iconoclastic members of the female sex even wear them to the theatre."¹

For women who aspired to a resort lifestyle but didn't have the necessary means or leisure, pajamas could be worn for entertaining or relaxing at home. Worn in these situations, beach pajamas became lounge pajamas or sometimes "lounjamas."² During the 1920s, beach or lounge pajamas were usually two-piece ensembles accompanied by a matching jacket. By the 1930s, one-piece, jumpsuit-style pajamas had emerged. These one-piece lounge pajamas from the FIDM Museum collection are shaped with a self-fabric sash and fasten with a 3-button closure on the left side. Like menswear of the same period, these lounge pajamas feature a wide leg.

Lounge pajamas
c. 1935
Gift of the Manlove Family
2006.870.1AB

Swimwear in the twentieth century

In 1913, Vogue magazine featured its first patterns for bathing costumes. These do-it-yourself patterns were intended to fill the "distinct need for smart bathing costumes," an indication that swimming had become a widespread and fashionable activity.¹ Swimwear editorials began to appear regularly in Vogue and swimwear itself became more varied. With the appearance of elasticized fabrics in 1917, the modest nineteenth century bathing costume began to disappear and was slowly replaced by progressively lighter and more form-fitting swimwear. By the end of World War I in 1919, increased social freedom for women made it widely acceptable to wear more revealing swimwear in public.

During the 1920s, swimwear became an important component of a fashionable wardrobe. Designers such as Schiaparelli and Patou created swimwear demonstrating the most current design trends. These slim, form-fitting, one-piece swimsuits often featured stark geometric patterning and resembled men's swimwear. Overall, they were in tune with the boyish silhouette popular for women throughout the 1920s. These bathing suits did not stand alone; they were accompanied by a plethora of accessories, including hats, beach carryalls, and appropriate footwear. Beach pajamas were a popular cover-up and also functioned as casual resort wear.

In the 1930s, California became a center of swimwear design and production. Catalina, which was originally a sweater and underwear manufacturer, quickly became the most prominent name in American swimwear. Catalina capitalized on its proximity to Hollywood and recruited stars such as Marilyn Monroe and Ronald Reagan for their ad campaigns. Catalina also used beauty pageants to promote their product, supplying swimwear for the for "Swimsuit" portion of the Miss America Pageant until 1950.

Bathing suit
Catalina Inc.
c. 1965-66
Gift of Louise Coffey-Webb
2001.20.1

Side view of 2001.20.1

Back view of 2001.20.1

This mid-sixties example of a Catalina swimsuit demonstrates the close alignment of streetwear and swimwear which occurred in the twentieth century. The colorful, mildly psychedelic pattern is typical of 1960s dress, which featured a wide variety of patterns. Metallic accents were also popular in the 1960s, a demonstration of the popularity of new, man-made materials in clothing. Though it features some shaping in the bust, the overall silhouette is fairly natural and would reflect the body underneath the suit. 1960s streetwear reflects this same trend away from the corseted silhouette so widespread during the 1950s. The tiny skirt is a nod to modesty but also demonstrates how far the nineteenth century bathing costume had evolved.

Despite the availability of extremely revealing swimwear, it is still possible to find swimsuits which make direct reference to the history of swimwear. The Moschino suit below, though thoroughly twentieth century, makes direct reference to nineteenth century swimwear. Its black and red coloring is an updated version of the nautical styling popular so common in early bathing costumes. Though lacking a concealing skirt, the double ruffle at the hip references the modest skirts of nineteenth century bathing costumes. Can you imagine how it would be received at a nineteenth century seaside resort??

Bathing suit
Moschino
2006
Museum Purchase
2006.5.15

Back view of 2006.5.15 

Bodice detail of 2006.5.15

A recent article in the Los Angeles Times demonstrates that swimwear can still be controversial. To read about the controversy surrounding the burkini, a recent innovation in swimwear, click here.

1 Probert, Christina. Swimwear in Vogue Since 1910.New York: Abbeville Press.pg. 8.

"Catalina." In An Influential Fashion: An Encyclopedia of Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Fashion Designers and Retailers Who Transformed Dress. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2002. 3 pp. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Fashion Inst of Design & Merchandising. 26 Aug. 2009.

Ward, Susan. "Swimwear." Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion. Ed. Valerie Steele. Vol. 3. Detroit: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2005. 6 pp. 3 vols. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Gale. Fashion Inst of Design & Merchandising. 26 Aug. 2009.
 

Would you like to go for a swim?

As August turns to September, we're all thinking about how to best enjoy the last days of summer. For many, this means getting in one last swim. Imagine what it would be like to paddle around in the water wearing the wool "swimsuit" below. Seems difficult, doesn't it?

Woman's bathing ensemble
c. 1875
Museum Purchase
2006.25.3AB