1975
STEPHEN BURROWS
Dress
1975
Stephen Burrows, American, born 1943
Black synthetic knit and red thread
Purchase, Gilles Bensimon, Inc. Gift, 2020
1993
XULY.BËT
Dress
Ca. 1993
XULY.Bët, French, founded 1991
Black nylon net and red thread
Gift of Lamine Badian Kouyaté and Rodrigo Martinez, in celebration of the Museum’s 150th anniversary, 2020
Stephen Burrows became one of the first Black designers to achieve international acclaim in the 1970s with free-flowing and body-conscious designs that suited the lithesome figure fashionable during the period. Burrows is best known for his color-blocked designs and signature lettuce-edge hem, achieved by loosely overcasting raw edges of fabric. This dress and top of black synthetic knit from 1975 feature hems sewn with red thread.
Mali-born designer Lamine Kouyaté presented his first Xuly.Bët collection in Paris in spring/summer 1993. His sheath-like designs were composed of fabric and upcycled garments purchased at secondhand shops and discount department stores—anticipating the zero-waste, sustainability movement in contemporary fashion. Dresses like this one, patched together of black synthetic nylon with seams and edges finished in red thread, recall Stephen Burrows’s delicate finishes that resemble frilled lettuce leaves.
Mali-born designer Lamine Kouyaté presented his first Xuly.Bët collection in Paris in spring/summer 1993. His sheath-like designs were composed of fabric and upcycled garments purchased at secondhand shops and discount department stores—anticipating the zero-waste, sustainability movement in contemporary fashion. Dresses like this one, patched together of black synthetic nylon with seams and edges finished in red thread, recall Stephen Burrows’s delicate finishes that resemble frilled lettuce leaves.