Dress
Designer
Jean Paul Gaultier
(born 1952)
Brand
Jean Paul Gaultier
(French, founded 1976)
Fall 1984
Orange shirred velvet
Museum purchase
Object numberP92.8.1
This "corset" dress, with an exaggerated cone bust and back lacing, is one of the most iconic designs of Jean Paul Gaultier's career. He based the design and slightly faded color on a corset found in his grandmother's closet, an object that fascinated him as a young boy. His interpretation is fetishistic and unusually sexy, with a look that helped launch the 1980s craze of underwear-as-outerwear. Pop singer Madonna later adopted the torpedo-like bust into her stage costumes, furthering Gaultier's reputation as the "enfant terrible" of Paris fashion.
DescriptionOrange shirred velvet corset dress; strapless sheath with exaggerated cone bust shaping; boned and shirred along full length seams; above-the-knee length, lacing at CBExhibitions