Evening ensemble
Schiaparelli designed many two-piece evening ensembles, all of which emphasized the female silhouette. The body-skimming dress, in a rich purple velvet, is complemented by the brashly, whimsically embroidered jacket. In classic Schiaparelli style, the embroidery is worked in pink foil, padded and oversized. Other designers of the period produced evening and dinner suits, but Schiaparelli's versions stand above, simply for their attention to detail and the boldness of the decoration. Here, even the button of the jacket is an avenue for her creativity - a black swan ornament is used instead of another, more typical, closure.
Artwork Details
- Title: Evening ensemble
- Designer: Elsa Schiaparelli (Italian, 1890–1973)
- Manufacturer: House of Lesage (French, founded 1924)
- Date: winter 1937–38
- Culture: French
- Medium: silk, metal
- Credit Line: Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Millicent Huttleston Rogers, 1951
- Object Number: 2009.300.1167a, b
- Curatorial Department: The Costume Institute
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