Object: Evening dress
Designer:
Halston
(1932 - 1990)
Date: 1972
Medium: Polyester jersey and sequins
Country: USA
Credit Line: Gift of Lauren Bacall
Object number: 74.107.30
DescriptionDeep blue / violet sequinned jersey evening shift; floor length pullover dress with deep scoop neck, long narrow sleeves, slightly flared; machine applied sequins
Label Text:The long sequined shift exemplifies the "glitter principle" characteristic of many of Halston's designs for evening. Luxurious and glamorous in appearance, the dress is a simple pullover, devoid of closure or detail. The fabric is a stretchy polyester knit to which the iridescent sequins are machine-stitched with clear synthetic thread. Halston's choice of inexpensive "sequins by the yard" over the costly hand-sewn type strengthens the garment, making it marketable as well as wearable. The sequined jersey is cut as yardage in a narrow, slighly A-line shape that has a theatrical "second skin" quality. As the fabric adapts to the wearer's shape and movement, the sequins shift to catch the light, which was perfect for the milieu of discothéques like Studio 54 in New York, where Halston and his associates spent many a night. Deep lapis or blue-violet is in sharp contrast to the muted colors that Halston used in his early collections. From the mix of rich, ethnographic inspiration prevalent in the fashions of the 1970s, Halston chose color alone as a sign of exoticism for this model. The iridescence emphasizes the surface of the fabric, correlating with artistic minimalism in form and substance.
In Collection(s)
Exhibitions:
- Halston: Absolute Modernism, Retrospective and Minimalism
- Yves Saint Laurent + Halston: Fashioning the 70s
- Eleanor Lambert: Empress of Seventh Avenue