Evening ensemble
Displaying a Chinoiserie delicately appropriated from the decorative arts, Drécoll's coral-orange bolero is worn atop her Western-style (but cheongsam- or qi-pao-related) column dress. The result is a Shanghai-like synthesis of East and West. By the 1930s, the frequent trade expositions in Paris had encouraged keen awareness of Chinese costume and arts among French fashion designers, including Grès, Lanvin, and Drécoll. Drécoll cleverly used the exoticism of the bolero to set the rank badges onto Western dress as a kind of acknowledged appliqué.
Artwork Details
- Title: Evening ensemble
- Design House: Maisons Agnès-Drecoll (French, 1931–1963)
- Designer: Jeanne Havet (French, ca. 1860–1948)
- Date: ca. 1932
- Culture: French
- Medium: a) wool
b) silk
c) coral, silver, rhinestones - Credit Line: Gift of Miss. Julia P. Wightman, 1990
- Object Number: 1990.104.11a–c
- Curatorial Department: The Costume Institute
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Maisons Agnès-Drecoll
Jeanne Havet
1930s
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fall/winter 1949–50 haute couture
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