1925
JEAN PATOU
Dress
Ca. 1925
Jean Patou, French, 1880–1936
Black silk chiffon embroidered with
polychrome glass beads
Purchase, Friends of The Costume Institute Gifts, 2018 (2018.34)
2018
LIBERTINE
“Lingering Garden” Dress
Autumn/winter 2018–19, edition 2020
Libertine, American, founded 2001
Black silk chiffon embellished with
polychrome glass beads and crystals
Courtesy Libertine
Jean Patou, one of the leading couturiers of the 1920s, advanced an aesthetic of simple lines and refined ornamentation. The flat silhouette of this evening dress provides an uninterrupted canvas for an embroidered landscape of pagodas and foliage populated with figures swinging and holding parasols, which evokes the chinoiserie designs of Jean Pillement (French, 1728–1808). The embroidery is finely drawn, and the varied color and transparency of the beads create subtle effects of depth and shading.
Johnson Hartig’s designs for Libertine typically feature elaborate prints and embroideries that combine references to popular culture and the history of art. The designer’s autumn/winter 2018–19 collection paid tribute to past fashions that connect with maximalist aesthetics, in particular the beaded dresses of the 1920s. While this dress takes direct inspiration from Patou’s model, Hartig modernizes the original by employing both hand-sewn and heat-applied embroidery.
Johnson Hartig’s designs for Libertine typically feature elaborate prints and embroideries that combine references to popular culture and the history of art. The designer’s autumn/winter 2018–19 collection paid tribute to past fashions that connect with maximalist aesthetics, in particular the beaded dresses of the 1920s. While this dress takes direct inspiration from Patou’s model, Hartig modernizes the original by employing both hand-sewn and heat-applied embroidery.