 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| INTRODUCTION TO FASHION & COSTUME |
 |
Man has always held a fascination with the adornment of the human body. From primitive times, men used paint, decoration and eventually clothing to indicate tribal position and to attract women. Women likewise sought out the scarce, the rare, or the unusual to attract the attention of men. Although there is evidence of fashion in fresco paintings, it is not until the 17th century that the first "fashion plates" emerge. Holar depicts the dress of the day for women in the major European countries of that time. According to V. Holland in Fashion Plates: 1776-1899, fashion plates show the right type of clothes to wear to be in style. Costume plates show past styles, national dress, or fashions for special occasions or the theatre. It is in the 18th century that we see an ongoing effort to draw attention to fashion. John Kay in London showed current fashions and identified the wearers. The Bonnarts and LeJeune in France showed clothing for the times and activities of the day. Heidelaff in London picked up this trend at the end of the century. At the beginning of the 19th century, beautifully detailed and hand colored engravings continue (Ackermann’s Repository, Costumes Parisiennes), but are replaced in the mid-19thcentury by larger groupings of figures showing several types of apparel featured that particular month (Godey’s, Peterson’s, Journal des Desmoiselles, The Queen). Because ready-to-wear fashion for men and women did not yet exist, these illustrations were eagerly awaited and taken to one’s dressmaker or tailor to copy. The depictions therefore required great detail and clarity along with showing appropriate fabrics and accessories to use. In the 20th century the haute couturier, Paul Poiret, seeking to show the artistry and uniqueness of his designs, hired Iribe, LePape, and Barbier. Early in the 20th century, fashion began to divide into ready-to-wear clothing and haute couture. While showcasing new schools of artistic expression and utilizing a new printing process called Pochoir, their work not only reflected the changing status of women, but also defined style in an age where standards of dress were undergoing major changes.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
