Object: Evening dress
Designer:
Mariano Fortuny
(1871 - 1949)
Date: 1924
Medium: Silk velvet, silk, and glass beads
Country: Italy
Credit Line: Gift of Ann Schneider
Object number: 91.218.1
DescriptionLate day dress: grey beige velvet embossed with historical Italian design of stylized flowers and animals; pleated silk side inserts; Medieval gown; square neckline; floor length A-line shift; long sleeve; accordian pleated panel in sleeve and side seam held by crosswise silk cords buttoned to glass beads; right back hooks and eyes (added)
Label Text:Fortuny's interest in historical art and design is evident in this dress on the right that references the early Italian Renaissance. While the silhouette is a vague interpretation of a 14th-century gown, the fabric's paired griffins and palmette motifs are specific to textiles produced in Lucca. Fortuny owned a large collection of historical fabrics that informed his work, but he avoided anachronism by employing the lean line and unrestricted silhouette embraced by modern fashion.
In Collection(s)
Exhibitions:
- Fashion, A-Z: Highlights from the Collection of the Museum at FIT (Part One)
- Fashion, Italian Style