Dress, ca. 1950
Claire McCardell (American, 1905–1958)
Black rayon jersey
Technical Glossary
Claire McCardell (American, 1905–1958)
Black rayon jersey
Purchase, Gifts from various donors, 1997 (1997.193.2)
Tying at the waist and neckline became an element used universally by Claire McCardell. The folk tradition yielded to First Empire proto-modernism, especially in clothing for the evening. For McCardell, this plebeian and even rustic naturalism could be sustained for evening through the force of its simple lines and its approximation to the haute-couture draping of Madeleine Vionnet and Madame Grès.
