Coat
Like Paul Poiret’s capacious cocoon coats of the 1910s, this James design is meant to wrap around the wearer, completely concealing her figure. Constructed with exaggerated raglan sleeves and a center back seam but no side seams, the coat is draped to create a deep dolman and to taper to the hem. James claimed that the cut eliminated the need for fundamental changes in proportion, no matter his client’s shape, size, or height.
Artwork Details
- Title: Coat
- Designer: Charles James (American, born Great Britain, 1906–1978)
- Date: early 1950s
- Culture: American
- Medium: wool
- Credit Line: Purchase, Costume Institute Benefit Fund, Friends of The Costume Institute Gifts, and Acquisitions Fund, 2013
- Object Number: 2013.380
- Curatorial Department: The Costume Institute
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