Object: Robe à la française
Date: 1750s
Medium: Silk
Country: France (possibly)
Credit Line: Museum purchase
Object number: 2017.46.1
DescriptionRobe a la francaise of lace patterned silk with dense stylized floral and foliage in ivory with details in green on rose pink satin ground trimmed with serpentine ruched self fabric graduated in width from neck to hem and curving along lower front hem, bodice lining partially removed, alterations to dress date to the 18th century, sleeve flounces reattached 9. Silk of dress from 1720s; textile is from Spitalfields, England.
Label Text:Changing styles of dress have existed in many countries, but by the eighteenth century, fashion was increasingly associated with France—particularly, with Paris. Yet people in other countries often condemned “French fashion domination” because this “universal monarchy for clothes” was perceived as part of a wider French power grab. The color pink was not associated with either masculinity or femininity, but rather with elegance, novelty, and aristocratic splendor.
In Collection(s)
Exhibitions:
- Paris, Capital of Fashion
- Pink: The History of a Punk, Pretty, Powerful Color