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Evening dress

1877–82
Not on view
With mechanized sewing becoming ubiquitous, as well as the Victorian penchant for machine-made trimmings such as braid, lace, and ribbons, women's dress became the foundation on which elaborate surface decoration was applied. This example was seen in its day as à la sirène, or mermaidlike, in outline. Its extended bodice, called the "cuirasse" since it encased a woman's torso like body armor, was the clearest nineteenth-century expression of the hourglass shape.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Evening dress
  • Date: 1877–82
  • Culture: European
  • Medium: silk
  • Credit Line: Gift of Aline Bernstein, 1937
  • Object Number: C.I.37.61.1a, b
  • Curatorial Department: The Costume Institute

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