Dressed to Impress: Fashion in the Collection

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Explore a selection of key
artworks from the museum’s collection with a focus on fashion, looking at how
representations of dress and costume through the ages express ideas about both
the subject and the artist.

 

Pocket Mirror (2016) by Mickalene ThomasNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Dressed to Impress

The worlds of fashion and art continually enjoy a rich dialogue and exchange of ideas. Fashion designers think critically about form and color, requiring a mastery of skills, techniques, and innovations. Similarly, painters, sculptors, and photographers use the clothing and accessories of their subjects to reflect on appearance, identity, and environment. In their use of cultural and historical references, these two creative fields have become vehicles for both social commentary and personal expression. Accompanying “Rodarte,” NMWA’s Fall 2018 exhibition featuring the eponymous American luxury fashion label, this online exhibition explores a selection of key artworks from the museum’s collection with a focus on fashion, looking at how representations of dress and costume through the ages express ideas about both the subject and the artist. 

Lady in an Evening Dress (Renée) (1911) by Lilla Cabot PerryNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Lilla Cabot Perry, “Lady in an Evening Dress (Renée),” 1911

Fashions
of the 1910s revived the Directoire style. This early 19th-century silhouette was
a reaction against stiff-boned corsets and heavy, layered fabrics, instead trending
toward simpler, cylindrical chemises reminiscent of classical Greece. Styles in
the early decades of the 20th century also took inspiration from the soft
contours, raised waistlines, and lowered busts of Eastern, particularly
Japanese, dress. 

Lilla Cabot Perry’s graceful and fashionable woman is seen wearing a dress with the faint S-curve, raised Empire waist with a monobosom and columnar shape, and more natural silhouette than previous decades. Her gown of silvery lilacs and blush pinks features a generous train that gathers at her feet. Sheer fabric ties drape from her arms in delicate wisps.

In an Impressionist-inspired painting style, Perry renders fabric with gauzy textures, beaded surfaces, and simple floral patterns.

American Collection #4: Jo Baker’s Bananas (1997) by Faith RinggoldNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Faith Ringgold, “American Collection #4: Jo Baker’s Bananas,” 1997

In
the summer of 1926 at Paris’s famed Folies Bergère music hall, the American
entertainer Josephine Baker (1906–1975) emerged onstage wearing a string of
pearls, wrist cuffs, slicked-back hair, and what would become a legendary
fashion statement—a skirt made of 16 rubber bananas. Baker performed the danse sauvage, which played on the long
history of Western prejudices and preconceptions of African cultures. With
her bold appearance, Baker reclaimed her image as a black woman, earning fame,
fortune, and iconic status. 

Faith Ringgold narrates stories of the African American experience through her painted quilts, honoring Baker, who went on to leverage her celebrity status in support of the Civil Rights movement in the United States. Ringgold depicts Baker’s costumed figure five times across the top of the quilt, evoking the frenetic movement synonymous with the banana dance. Baker’s legacy persists in contemporary popular culture—Beyoncé paid homage to the entertainer at the 2006 Fashion Rocks event, and Prada created a Baker-inspired 2011 Spring/Summer line.

Bullets Revisited #3 (2012) by Lalla EssaydiNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Lalla Essaydi, “Bullets Revisited #3,” 2012

Lalla
Essaydi’s complex and visually exquisite photographs recall 19th-century
paintings of Orientalist harem fantasies, while also disrupting stereotypical
representations of passive, sexualized, colonized women. Delicate henna designs,
commonly practiced by women, inscribe the bodies and flowing fabrics of
Essaydi’s female figures in the form of Arabic calligraphy, traditionally a
male art form. 

In Bullets Revisited #3, Essaydi reflects on her experiences as a woman, Muslim, Arab, and African. Thousands of silver and gold bullet casings permeate the composition—the decorative backdrop, the divan and throw, and the reclining woman’s diaphanous robe. Weighed down by the .22-caliber shells, the metallic dress suggests a protective armor. What initially appears as a seductive atmosphere, titillating the viewer with glittering gold textures, suddenly holds an aura of peril and violence.

The artist uses bullet imagery to critique the use of violence against women following the Arab Spring uprisings in 2010, as well as to symbolize a shield against Western male voyeurism and domination. Essaydi says, “Everything about my work is metaphorical and symbolic. Working with materials associated with violence and blood, and trying to make it look beautiful and show that beauty can be made from anything. Women are strong, solid and beautiful.”

Shan Mountain (2012) by Hung LiuNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Hung Liu, “Shan-Mountain,” and “Shui-Water,” 2012

Best known for her highly expressive portrayals of Chinese women, Hung Liu bases a number of her figures on antique photographs of 19th- and 20th-century courtesans. These women appear to be wearing the fashionable qipao, also known as the cheongsam, the long shirt/dress worn by women in the early 20th century and popularized in the 1920s and 1930s in Shanghai. 

The style is characterized by stiff high collars, fitted bodices, and side slits. Liu depicts the clothing and accessories from the black-and-white photographs, including the piping on the collar and the elaborate headdress, but conceives the color combinations from her imagination.

Shui-Water (2012) by Hung LiuNational Museum of Women in the Arts

The turquoise accents on the crimson-red garb in Shan-Mountain, as well as orange and fuchsia carnations on the seafoam-colored qipao in this work, Shui-Water, offer a sense of liveliness and character to these anonymous women, whom Liu wishes to recover from the forgotten annals of history.

The striking details include subtle touches of gold leaf to suggest the shimmer and sparkle of a brooch, earrings, wrist cuff, and buttons.

Jackie (India) (2003) by Andrea HigginsNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Andrea Higgins, “Jackie (India),” 2003; and “Hillary,” 2002

Using
raised brushstrokes to emulate textured fabrics, Andrea Higgins portrays well-known
women abstractly by simulating textile swatches from their wardrobes. “Jackie (India)” (right) and “Hillary” both come from the artist’s series “The
President’s Wives,” in which Higgins creates a link between the first ladies
and the clothes they wear. The compositions are based on actual garments worn
by each figure. 

The pink-and-orange jacquard pattern of Jackie (India) mimics a pale orange dress, designed by Oleg Cassini, which was worn by Jacqueline Kennedy when she accompanied her husband on a state visit to India in 1962. Known as a fashion icon, Jackie Kennedy presented herself to the American public and foreign dignitaries through her chic style. By depicting her through this fabric, Higgins reinterprets traditional portraiture and underscores the idea that women—especially public figures—are often defined by what they wear.

Hillary (2002) by Andrea HigginsNational Museum of Women in the Arts

In Hillary, Andrea Higgins layers oil paint in thick, textured brush strokes to create a black-on-fuchsia pattern, a reference to Hillary Clinton’s fondness for pantsuits and penchant for “power dressing” while her husband was in office.

Employing highly precise, detailed brushwork to emulate stitching, the artist imitates iconic articles of clothing worn by her subjects to highlight how expectations of the look and role of first lady are often conflated. While presidents typically receive recognition for their politics, their spouses have been more commonly defined by their fashion choices, regardless of their other contributions. Higgins explores clothing not only as a means of self-presentation, but also as a way to communicate political, social, and historical messages.

Self-Portrait Dedicated to Leon Trotsky (1937) by Frida KahloNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Frida Kahlo, “Self-Portrait Dedicated to Leon Trotsky” 1937

In
her self-portraits, as in her life, Kahlo adorned herself in the traditional
clothing of the Tehuantepec people of Southwest Mexico, her mother’s native
region. This matriarchal culture stood in contrast—socially and stylistically—to
European and American societies and fashions of the early 20th century. Through
her clothing, the artist communicated her alignment with Mexicanidad, a Mexican
nationalist movement that rejected European influence in favor of a return to
the country’s native roots and folk traditions. 

Frida Kahlo depicts herself in this self-portrait in traditional Mexican clothing and accessories. She paints herself wearing a long, embroidered skirt and a fringed rebozo, a woven shawl traditionally made by, and for, women in Mexico. Though her blouse is mostly covered by her shawl in this portrait, Kahlo often wore huipils, woven, square-cut tops that feature patterns unique to the wearer or their culture.

For Kahlo, clothing reflected not only her personal style, but also her political beliefs, cultural identity, and feminism. Her style was so distinctive that she was occasionally featured in fashion magazines such as Vogue and Vanity Fair. An image of Self-Portrait Dedicated to Leon Trotsky was printed in the October 1937 issue of American Vogue alongside photographs of the artist.

America (ca. 1730) by Rosalba CarrieraNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Rosalba Carriera, “America,” ca. 1730

“America,” by Venice-born artist Rosalba Carriera, personifies
America as a female figure adorned with accessories symbolizing stereotypical
characteristics of the continent and its inhabitants. The painting is likely
part of a series depicting Africa, Asia, Europe, and America (the four
continents recognized by Europeans in the 18th century) as women. Images like
this were often featured in atlases, identifying geographical regions of the
world through the clothing and accessories each woman wears.

 

Carriera, whose mother was a lace-maker in Venice, pays special attention to detail in the accessories that she gives America’s personification: the colorful headband, feather hair accessory, and quiver of arrows all reflect 18th-century stereotypes of the continent and its native peoples.

Black Roses (In Memory of Isabella Blow) (2007) by Audrey NiffeneggerNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Audrey Niffenegger, “Black Roses (In Memory of Isabella Blow),” 2007

Created as part of a
2007 exhibition titled “Elegy for Isabella
Blow,” the work “Black Roses” honors
the late British fashion icon and editor Isabella Blow (1958–2007). Audrey Niffenegger
depicts Blow as a skeleton adorned in a lavish, three-dimensional skirt made of
tissue, thread, and Japanese paper, mimicking the silky texture and volume of
expensive designer fabric. 

Blow’s life often paired fashion with art. She is said to have discovered now-famous talents such as designer Alexander McQueen and model Sophie Dahl. She also acted as Anna Wintour’s assistant, and she was rumored to be one of Andy Warhol’s Factory denizens as well as an acquaintance of painter Jean-Michel Basquiat. Blow believed in clothing as an art form, a means of self-expression, and a way to communicate emotion.

Known for her extreme and eccentric style of dress, Blow was particularly recognizable for wearing elaborate headpieces. Niffenegger alludes to this with the floral fascinator adorning the skeletal head—a nod to the icon’s friend and hat designer Philip Treacy, whose creation she was dressed in for her funeral. The portrait reflects Blow’s iconic style, portraying her in an over-the-top outfit even in death.

Pocket Mirror (2016) by Mickalene ThomasNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Mickalene Thomas, “Pocket Mirror,” 2016

Mickalene Thomas’s work
critiques the fetishistic treatment of black female bodies in contemporary
culture by appropriating the aesthetics of Blaxploitation films of the 1970s,
the decade in which she was born. Thomas uses clothing to create a sense of
nostalgia for that era and to celebrate the power of her subjects. Thomas’s
mother, one of her earliest subjects, was a fashion model in the 1970s and ’80s,
and the artist learned early on that fashion is used for both personal and
cultural expression. 

Thomas says, “I look at fashion photography specifically through the lens of 1970s Black is Beautiful-era photography. The afro became an important signifier, as an expression of beauty, not conforming to a construct of having to straighten your hair. It was, for Black women, a very needed expression of redefining their own beauty.”

Portrait of a Noblewoman (ca. 1580) by Lavinia FontanaNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Lavinia
Fontana, “Portrait of a Noblewoman,” ca. 1580

Clothing in Renaissance
Bologna, Italy, signified status and wealth. Judging by the sumptuousness of the
dress of this portrait subject, there is no doubt that she came from a very
wealthy family. It is possible that Lavinia Fontana was commissioned to paint
this portrait to commemorate the woman’s engagement. 

Her belt, or girdle, as it was more commonly known, is encrusted with pearls and rubies and may have been a gift from her fiancé.

Attached to the girdle is a golden chain, from which hangs an animal pelt. The head and front paws of the animal—most likely a marten—have been replaced with expensive jewels set into gold to mimic the missing limbs. Beyond signifiying its owner’s wealth, these pelts were believed to aid women in conceiving and delivering children. They appear frequently in Renaissance-era portraits of engaged, married, and pregnant women.

Mirella Cinderella (1997) by Mirella BentivoglioNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Mirella Bentivoglio, “Mirella Cinderella,” 1997

Shoes, particularly
women’s shoes, are synonymous with fashion. In the Western tradition, however,
high heels were initially worn by men. This fashion was brought to Europe in
the 17th century by emissaries of Shāh Abbās I of Persia, whose calvary wore
them to keep their feet in their stirrups.

While not made out of glass, Mirella Bentivoglio’s rendition of Cinderella’s slipper is made out of an equally unexpected material—china. Intended as a self-portrait, this work depicts Bentivoglio as the heroine in a story where her savior is not Prince Charming, but books. Not only is the shoe displayed on top of an open book (made of marble), but the bow at the toe is a miniature book with individual paper pages.

Susan Avery and Isaac Avery (1821) by Sarah Miriam PealeNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Sarah
Miriam Peale, “Susan Avery,” and “Isaac Avery,” 1821

Susan Avery, like any other wealthy woman in Philadelphia in the early 19th century, would have looked to Europe, particularly France, for the latest fashion trends. At the time this portrait was painted by Sarah Miriam Peale, high-waisted dresses were still à la mode, as they had been since the beginning of the 19th century. 

Susan Avery (1821) by Sarah Miriam PealeNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Susan Avery’s outfit is conservative and tasteful, but it is richly embellished by the embroidery at the shoulders and cuffs, as well as the fine lace collar. Her shawl, most likely a costly import made of cashmere, is another indicator of wealth.

Isaac Avery (1821/1821) by Sarah Miriam PealeNational Museum of Women in the Arts

Her husband, Isaac Avery, is equally well attired in a high-collared shirt tied with a cravat, over which he wears a pleated jabot, secured with a jeweled straight pin. His cropped, double-breasted coat is worn over a cream-colored waistcoat (vest).

Credits: Story

This exhibition features works part of the collection of the National Museum of Women in the Arts.

Project Team:
Virginia Treanor, Associate Curator
Orin Zahra, Assistant Curator
Hannah Shambroom, Curatorial Assistant
Elizabeth Lynch, Editor
Mara Kurlandsky, Digital Projects Manager

To see more works from the museum, visit Our Collection.

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.