1918
AMERICAN
Red Cross Uniform
American, 1918
Blue wool twill appliquéd with
Red Cross insignia and rank strips
Gift of Frances Townsend Fisher, 1994 (1994.352.1a, b)
2020
JOHN GALLIANO for
MAISON MARGIELA
Ensemble
Spring/summer 2020
Maison Margiela, French, founded 1988
John Galliano, British, born Gibraltar, 1960
Cape of navy wool broadcloth; shirt of blue cotton chambray;
detachable sleeves of white cotton poplin; tabard of white synthetic organza; dress of blue wool twill and blue polyester charmeuse
Courtesy John Galliano for Maison Margiela
The American Red Cross grew exponentially when the United States entered World War I in April 1917; it increasingly deployed medical personnel and supplies to Europe while also ministering to civilians at home. Women who volunteered for the Red Cross either purchased their uniforms ready-made at department stores or had them custom made, as in this example from Bergdorf-Goodman. The uniform follows the general lines of the silhouette currently in fashion and the Red Cross insignia and rank stripes indicate the wearer’s dedication to the war effort.
John Galliano honored civilian contributions to both world wars in his spring/summer 2020 collection for Maison Margiela, which opened with this deconstructed nurse’s uniform. The seam lines of the dress suggest a pair of trousers that have been unpicked and reassembled to form a skirt, with the lining likewise undone, restitched, turned inside out, and raised over the torso to form a bodice. La mode Destroy, a recurring approach for both Galliano and Margiela, in this instance evokes the feminine appropriation of a masculine garment and may be read as either a symbolic expansion of feminine prerogative or a gesture of economy during wartime austerity.
John Galliano honored civilian contributions to both world wars in his spring/summer 2020 collection for Maison Margiela, which opened with this deconstructed nurse’s uniform. The seam lines of the dress suggest a pair of trousers that have been unpicked and reassembled to form a skirt, with the lining likewise undone, restitched, turned inside out, and raised over the torso to form a bodice. La mode Destroy, a recurring approach for both Galliano and Margiela, in this instance evokes the feminine appropriation of a masculine garment and may be read as either a symbolic expansion of feminine prerogative or a gesture of economy during wartime austerity.