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Evening Dresses for Vogue

Photograph
1930 (photographed), ca. 1966 (printed)
Artist/Maker

This photograph appeared in the American edition of Vogue fashion magazine. It epitomises the glamour of 1930s fashion and captures the desirable look of the period. Here you can see a dress made of extravagant and luxurious fabrics. Dramatic contrasts of light and dark bring out the tactile and visual qualities of the silk georgette, satin and ermine fur trim.

Many of the most important photographers of the day worked for Vogue, which became well-known for the quality of its fashion photography. Edward Steichen took this photograph. In the late 1930s he was the principle 'in-house' photographer for Condé Nast, the publisher of Vogue.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleEvening Dresses for Vogue (popular title)
Materials and techniques
Gelatin silver print
Brief description
Evening Dresses for Vogue, 1930, by Edward Steichen
Dimensions
  • Paper height: 557mm
  • Paper width: 449mm
  • Image height: 349mm
  • Image width: 274mm
Gallery label
(07 03 2014)
‘Selling Dreams: One Hundred Years of Fashion Photography’, 2014. Label text:

Edward Steichen (1879–1973)
Mrs. E.E. Cummings (Marion Morehouse, left) and model wear evening dresses by Vionnet
American Vogue, 1930

As fashion photographs increasingly replaced illustrations in magazines, new schools and agencies for models opened in New York. Steichen described Morehouse as ‘the best fashion model I ever worked with.’ Her willowy silhouette was ideal for displaying the fashions of the 1920s and ’30s, such as Madeleine Vionnet’s Grecian-inspired, bias-cut dresses.

Gelatin silver print
Museum no. Circ.969-1967
Subject depicted
Literary referenceVogue, 1930
Summary
This photograph appeared in the American edition of Vogue fashion magazine. It epitomises the glamour of 1930s fashion and captures the desirable look of the period. Here you can see a dress made of extravagant and luxurious fabrics. Dramatic contrasts of light and dark bring out the tactile and visual qualities of the silk georgette, satin and ermine fur trim.

Many of the most important photographers of the day worked for Vogue, which became well-known for the quality of its fashion photography. Edward Steichen took this photograph. In the late 1930s he was the principle 'in-house' photographer for Condé Nast, the publisher of Vogue.
Bibliographic references
  • Taken from Departmental Circulation Register 1967
  • Personal Choice, V&A, London, 1983. Plate 56.
Collection
Accession number
CIRC.969-1967

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Record createdDecember 1, 2003
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