Dress

Since garments with patterning or complex ornamentation are less easily combined into new ensembles than those of plain cloth and neutral color, much of Mrs. Kempner's collection is of solid hued fabrics. Her love of high-key effects, however, made for a substantial number of exceptions to this approach. Photographs of her in the 1960s are as likely to show her in a psychedelic print Pucci gown as in a Saint Laurent "smoking." Her love of prints veered toward the unabashedly feminine, as in a chiffon gown by Valentino. The designer has draped a panel-printed fabric into a masterwork of construction. Both the overskirt and long trained underskirt are uncut lengths of border-printed panels. Valentino creates a deceptively supple effect while preserving the aesthetic integrity of his costly materials.