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Cocktail dress

Design House House of Vionnet French
Designer Madeleine Vionnet French
Retailer Hattie Carnegie, Inc. American
1936
Not on view
Vionnet offered an ultimate performance in lithe equilibrium with a bodice constructed of one piece, seamed at the waist. All shaping is created by the graduated hexagons. Thus, Vionnet imposed form through the illusion of embellishment but carefully concealed a system of miniscule adjustments into the design of the tucking. This sublimated essential structure is akin to modern architecture's streamlined vocabulary of ornament to serve compositional needs.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Cocktail dress
  • Design House: House of Vionnet (French, active 1912–14; 1918–39)
  • Designer: Madeleine Vionnet (French, Chilleurs-aux-Bois 1876–1975 Paris)
  • Retailer: Hattie Carnegie, Inc. (American, 1918–1965)
  • Date: 1936
  • Culture: French
  • Medium: silk, metal
  • Credit Line: Gift of Mrs. John Chambers Hughes, 1958
  • Object Number: C.I.58.34.15
  • Curatorial Department: The Costume Institute

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