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Evening ensemble

Designer Gilbert Adrian American

1945

Not on view

In February 1945 Adrian was awarded the third annual American Fashion Critics Award. Thirty-two of the designer's garments were displayed at the award ceremony, including this ensemble which was part of his "Modern Museum" collection. With a palette inspired by Cubism, Adrian extended the abstractions of his earlier designs of the 1940s. Harper's Bazaar described this series as, "intricate as a puzzle and as modern as Picasso." Exploiting the dynamism of the Futurists and the geometric minimalism of the Constructivists, the interconnecting cell-like shapes reflect an abstract bimorphism. Adrian, however, eschewed the utopianism of the Futurist and Constructivist movements with a design philosophy that was firmly grounded in the realities of American life.

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American — This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

Evening ensemble, Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California), silk, American

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Title: Evening ensemble

Designer: Gilbert Adrian (American, Naugatuck, Connecticut 1903–1959 Hollywood, California)

Date: 1945

Culture: American

Medium: silk

Credit Line: Gift of Eleanor Lambert, 1958

Object Number: C.I.58.25a–c

Chronology

The United States and Canada, 1900 A.D.-present

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