In an Influential Fashion: An Encyclopedia of Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Fashion Designers and Retailers Who Transformed Dress

390 Pages·2002·2.29 MB·English

by  Kellogg A.T.

In an Influential Fashion:
An Encyclopedia of
Nineteenth- and
Twentieth-Century
Fashion Designers and
Retailers Who
Transformed Dress
Ann T. Kellogg
Amy T. Peterson
Stefani Bay
Natalie Swindell
GREENWOOD PRESS
In an
Influential
Fashion

In an
Influential
Fashion
(cid:1)(cid:2)
An Encyclopedia of Nineteenth- and
Twentieth-Century Fashion Designers
and Retailers Who Transformed Dress
Ann T. Kellogg, Amy T. Peterson,
Stefani Bay, and Natalie Swindell
with illustrations by Kamila Dominik
GREENWOODPRESS
Westport,Connecticut • London
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Inaninfluentialfashion : anencyclopediaofnineteenth-andtwentieth-centuryfashion
designersandretailerswhotransformeddress / AnnT.Kellogg...[etal.],withillustrations
byKamilaDominik.
p. cm.
Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex.
ISBN0–313–31220–6(alk.paper)
1. Fashiondesigners—Biography—Encyclopedias. 2. Clothingtrade—
Encyclopedias. 3. Fashion—History—19thcentury—Encyclopedias. 4. Fashion—
History—20thcentury—Encyclopedias. I. Kellogg,AnnT.,1968–
TT505.A1I5 2002
391'.0092'2—dc21 2001045124
BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationDataisavailable.
Copyright(cid:1)2002byAnnT.Kellogg,AmyT.Peterson,StefaniBay,andNatalieSwindell
Allrightsreserved.Noportionofthisbookmaybe
reproduced,byanyprocessortechnique,withoutthe
expresswrittenconsentofthepublisher.
LibraryofCongressCatalogCardNumber:2001045124
ISBN:0–313–31220–6
Firstpublishedin2002
GreenwoodPress,88PostRoadWest,Westport,CT06881
AnimprintofGreenwoodPublishingGroup,Inc.
www.greenwood.com
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
TM
Thepaperusedinthisbookcomplieswiththe
PermanentPaperStandardissuedbytheNational
InformationStandardsOrganization(Z39.48–1984).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Introduction vii
Designers and Retailers 1
Glossary 327
Appendix A: Designers and Retailers by Decade 329
Appendix B: Designers and Retailers by Country 339
Appendix C: Designers and Retailers by Specialty 345
Appendix D: Colleges with Fashion Design Programs 351
Appendix E: Museums with Costume Collections 357
Appendix F: Professional Organizations 361
Selected Bibliography 363
Index 367

Introduction
Amy T. Peterson
The word fashion conjures many ideas in people’s minds: trendy styles, a
person’s external appearance, or the work of an elite group of designers.
But fashion does not exist in a vacuum; its context is the society around
it. “Fashion is a style...that is temporarily adopted [by a social group]
...because that chosen style...isperceivedtobesociallyappropriatefor
the time and situation” (Sproles and Burns, 1994).
Fashion and social development have a dynamic relationship; each one
influences the other, affecting numerous aspectsofpeople’slivesfromgen-
der rolesto politicalexpressionandsocialacceptance.Thisbookexamines
this relationship through the designers and shapers of fashion in Western
society from the late nineteenth century to the year 2000. Thisbooklooks
at the prevailing fashion trends through the years, places those trendsinto
historical context, and examines the ways in which they impact socialhis-
tory.
The entrants in this book were not selected on their artisticmeritalone.
Instead, they were chosen because their influenceonfashionisreflectiveof
societal, political, or economic change. For example,CocoChanel’s1920s
knits, Christian Dior’s 1947 New Look, and Yves Saint Laurent’s 1960s
pantsuitreflecttheever-changingimageofwomenandtheirroleinsociety.
Companiescanbeasinfluentialasdesigners;theirmarketinginfluencesand
reacts to fashion trends. For this reason, select companies have been in-
cluded in this book under the same merits as designers. In a similar sense,
movies reflect society, and costume designers have an impact on fashion
trends; therefore, they were included as well. Although this book contains
entrants from around the world, it focuses primarily on America and its
designers.
Eachentryincludesbasicbiographicalinformationaboutthedesigneror
founding information about the company. This information includesbirth
and death dates, birthplace, founding dates, awards, honors, education,
andtraining.Eachentrydescribestheentrant’ssignaturestylesandoutlines
viii Introduction
the career or company history. When appropriate, the entry summarizes
anylicensingagreementsandinfluentialmarketinginnovations.Finally,the
entrydefinestheentrant’ssignificancewithinfashion.Throughoutthetext,
illustrations that were specifically drawn for this book are included. The
illustrations are interpretations of the designers original works and are in-
tended to represent some of the key changes in fashions trends.At theend
of this book, appendixes list cross-references of each entrantby decadesin
business, primary country of business, and specializations.
FASHION: A SHORT HISTORY
Fashion emerged at the close of the Victorian period, an era when the
predominantChristianvaluesofvirtueandmoralpietywerecontrastedby
outward displays of affluence and luxury. The last half of the nineteenth
century witnessed the rise of a new class of money born out of the Indus-
trial Revolution, a movement in which the nations of Europe and the
United States gradually shifted to economies based on factoriesandindus-
tryratherthanagriculture.Thismoniedgroupwascalledthenouveauriche
(new rich), and many of them spent their wealth on the abundant new
material goods produced by the factories of this new industrial economy.
The Industrial Revolution impacted all social classes, not just the
wealthy. A middle-class began to emerge, and the standard of living ofthe
lower-class began to rise. Many products that had been too expensive for
the lower and middle-classes could be produced more efficiently and less
expensivelyinthenewfactories.Soon,peoplefromeveryclasscouldafford
these new material goods and adopt elements of the latest fashions.Visual
class distinctions, previously displayed through dress, began to erode. The
elaborate trims and richly colored fabricsfashionableduringthisperiodfit
into the budget of the socialite and maid alike.
The wealthy, who deplored the erosion of class distinction, found new
ways to separate themselves from the other classes. One way of retaining
the class distinction was to have one’s clothes designed by a high-priced,
exclusive designer. Charles Frederick Worth is often cited as the first fash-
iondesigner.HecateredtowealthyAmericansandEuropeansinhisprivate
Paris salon. His popularity was immediate, and he influenced fashion
changes with his opulent designs.
Worth’sinfluencealsostrengthenedtheChambreSyndicaledelaCouture
Parisienne, an organization of couturiers founded in 1868. The group,
which originally served as a guild for craftsmen, evolved into a governing
body which controls the standards and guides the marketing of couture
fashion. Currently, the Chambre Syndicale’s main function is the organi-
zation and oversight of twice-yearly collection showings. The Chambre
Syndicale schedules the showings and organizes the press and buyers. The
Introduction ix
group also helps protect designs by copyrighting the designs that are reg-
istered with it. Furthermore, aspiring couturiers can be trained by the
schooloperatedbytheorganization.TheChambreSyndicaleprotectedand
nurtured couture during the twentieth century.
The dawn of the twentieth century saw significant changes in society.
People had witnessed how technologyandsciencehadimprovedtheirlives
during the end of the previous century, and they looked forward to the
new centurywithitspromiseofmodernityandinnovation.Inventionsthat
modernized everyday life had an effect on fashion as well.Electricitypow-
eredclothingandtextilefactories,trainsspedthegoodstothemarketplace,
the telegraph facilitated communication between buyers and sellers, and
photography disseminated new fashion trends.
As technology was changing the everyday lives of Americans, the dem-
ographiccompositionofAmericawasalsobeingtransformed.Aninfluxof
immigrants from Europe came to America inhopesoftakingadvantageof
the opportunities offered by the numerous factories. Over 50 millionEast-
ern and Western Europeans migrated to the United States during thenine-
teenthcentury,radicallyalteringthemakeupofthepopulation.Whilesome
immigrants retained their cultural dress and customs, others adoptedfash-
ionable dress in an effort to seem more “American.” For thesenewcomers
America was the land of opportunity. With hard work, more and more
lower-class immigrants and their families acquired thecomfortsofmiddle-
class life.
The growth of the middle-class resulted in an ever-increasing democra-
tization of society and fashion. The factories of the Industrial Revolution
began to produce ready-to-wear clothing for men and someaccessoriesfor
women.Men’ssizesbecamestandardized,allowingthemtopurchasecloth-
ing off the rack instead of having it custom made. Soon, men and women
could purchase clothing from mail-order catalogs such as Sears and Roe-
buck. These catalogs allowed people who lived in rural areas to purchase
mass-produced goods, continuing the spread of a democratized American
society.
Justasclothingsizesandproductionwerebecomingsimplified,women’s
clothing was becoming less complex. Sumptuous swathes of fabric and
elaboratedecorationdisappeared.Clothingbecamemorefunctional,allow-
ing women to work, play sports, and move about more freely in their
garments. One of the key silhouettes of the era, the Gibson Girl, featured
simple, bell-shapedskirts and separateshirtswithexaggerated,puffed,leg-
of-mutton sleeves. This look was starkly different from the bustles, bro-
cades, and heavy velvets of the preceding period.
Theonset of World WarI(1914–1918)stimulatedfurthersimplification
ofclothing.Therationingoffabricandmetalswasresponsibleforwomen’s
fashions that served multiple purposes with fewer fasteners and shorter