Fashion Design
Fashion Design
1990 (made)
1990 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Ian Thomas is most well known for having been the Queen’s dress designer for over 20 years until his early death in 1992. Born in Oxford in 1929, he went onto study fashion at Oxford College of Art. On graduating in 1952, he worked as an assistant designer to Norman Hartnell, where he worked on Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation robes.
After 17 years working for Hartnell, Thomas opened his own couture business in Lowndes Street, Belgravia, in 1969. Under his own label he dressed many members of the royal family, notably making day and evening clothes for the Queen. Thomas was awarded a Royal Warrant as dressmaker in 1973. His success, according to The Independent lay in the fact that the Queen and ‘many members of society appreciated the restrained and understated elegance of his clothes.’
After 17 years working for Hartnell, Thomas opened his own couture business in Lowndes Street, Belgravia, in 1969. Under his own label he dressed many members of the royal family, notably making day and evening clothes for the Queen. Thomas was awarded a Royal Warrant as dressmaker in 1973. His success, according to The Independent lay in the fact that the Queen and ‘many members of society appreciated the restrained and understated elegance of his clothes.’
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Fashion Design (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Drawn in pencil and ink then coloured in gouache, notes written in ink, façonné with staples previously stapled to top of the page. |
| Brief description | Ian Thomas; fashion design, 1990 |
| Physical description | 2 images of woman wearing garments designed by Ian Thomas; the design in the centre of the page shows a woman wearing a red and black façonné jacket over either a dress or skirt of the same material. A sketch on the right side of the page shows the same jacket over a plain black dress. A same of the red and black façonné is stapled (but has become detached due to weight of fabric) to the upper left hand corner of the page. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Production type | Design |
| Marks and inscriptions |
|
| Credit line | Given in memory of Mr Ian Thomas by his executors |
| Summary | Ian Thomas is most well known for having been the Queen’s dress designer for over 20 years until his early death in 1992. Born in Oxford in 1929, he went onto study fashion at Oxford College of Art. On graduating in 1952, he worked as an assistant designer to Norman Hartnell, where he worked on Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation robes. After 17 years working for Hartnell, Thomas opened his own couture business in Lowndes Street, Belgravia, in 1969. Under his own label he dressed many members of the royal family, notably making day and evening clothes for the Queen. Thomas was awarded a Royal Warrant as dressmaker in 1973. His success, according to The Independent lay in the fact that the Queen and ‘many members of society appreciated the restrained and understated elegance of his clothes.’ |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.2862-2016 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | November 15, 2016 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSON
