Uniform

Designer Vera Maxwell American

1942

Not on view

Rosie the Riveter--the woman who replaced enlisted men in the war industries--required practical attire. In 1942, Sperry Gyroscope commissioned this "Rosie the Riveter" ensemble from Vera Maxwell with the plea that the garment be ready for use in heavy industry, but that it would also make women feel attractive when it was worn. Norman Rockwell's famous aircraft-worker Rosie on the cover of the May 29, 1943 Saturday Evening Post is an ironic copy after Michelangelo's Isaiah, but Maxwell's canny solution was to combine service need with an attractive, streamlined jumpsuit as suitable as any other sportswear to contemporary beauty as well as utility. Of course, one can see that the McCardell "Popover" worked for the homemaker in the same way for another work category, including several buttoning options.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Exhibition History

Title: Uniform
Designer: Vera Maxwell (American, 1901–1995)
Date: 1942
Culture: American
Medium: cotton
Credit Line: Gift of Vera Maxwell, 1947
Object Number: C.I.47.60.1
Curatorial Department: The Costume Institute

More Artwork

By Vera Maxwell

In the same medium

From the same time and place

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Ensemble, Vera Maxwell American, wool, synthetic fiber, American — Ensemble
Vera Maxwell
1957

Suit, Vera Maxwell American, wool, American — Suit
Vera Maxwell
fall/winter 1937–38

Ensemble, Vera Maxwell American, wool, American — Ensemble
Vera Maxwell
1950s

Boots, Vera Maxwell American, [no medium available], American — Boots
Vera Maxwell
1966

Evening ensemble, Vera Maxwell American, wool, silk, American — Evening ensemble
Vera Maxwell
fall/winter 1962–63

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