Not currently on display at the V&A

Coat

1937 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Cecil Beaton designed and wore this 18th-century-style jacket, with surreal touches, for a fête champêtre he hosted at his country house, Ashcombe. Gordon Anthony photographed him wearing it, gazing into a flower-framed mirror with a rabbit mask on the back of his head.

Cecil Beaton compiled a significant part of the V&A's Twentieth Century Dress Collection. This jacket is shown here to acknowledge this important contribution and to reveal how the collection inspires designers.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Corduroy decorated with muslin, woollen yarn and plastic
Brief description
Surrealist corduroy coat with muslin roses, woollen yarn, and plastic, designed by Sir Cecil Beaton, Great Britain, 1937
Physical description
Cream corduroy coat decorated with applied muslin roses, irregular shaped pieces of woollen yarn pulled through canvas, and cellulose nitrate egg shells glued to PVC egg whites.
Dimensions
  • Height: 150cm (Mounted on a stockman mannequin )
  • Width: 68cm (Mounted on a stockman mannequin )
  • Depth: 68cm (Mounted on a stockman mannequin )
Style
Production typeUnique
Gallery label
Cecil Beaton designed and wore this 18th-century-style jacket, with surreal touches, for a fête champêtre he hosted at his country house, Ashcombe. Gordon Anthony photographed him wearing it, gazing into a flower-framed mirror, with a rabbit mask on the back of his head. Cecil Beaton compiled a significant part of the V&A's Twentieth Century Dress Collection. This jacket is shown here to acknowledge this important contribution and to reveal how the collection inspires designers.(1997)
Object history
This coat was worn by Cecil Beaton in 1937 for his Fête Champêtre party at Ashcombe House, his home in Wiltshire.
Historical context
A copy of Gordon Anthony's photograph of Cecil Beaton wearing this coat is in the National Portrait Gallery's collection (NPG x126402).
Subjects depicted
Association
Summary
Cecil Beaton designed and wore this 18th-century-style jacket, with surreal touches, for a fête champêtre he hosted at his country house, Ashcombe. Gordon Anthony photographed him wearing it, gazing into a flower-framed mirror with a rabbit mask on the back of his head.

Cecil Beaton compiled a significant part of the V&A's Twentieth Century Dress Collection. This jacket is shown here to acknowledge this important contribution and to reveal how the collection inspires designers.
Associated object
Collection
Accession number
T.47-1997

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Record createdSeptember 30, 2003
Record URL
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