Dress Fabric thumbnail 1
Dress Fabric thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

Dress Fabric

1930 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This georgette dress fabric is printed with a repeat of flowers, stems and leaves, in yellow, white and mauve, on a black background. Floral printed fabrics held a prominent place in every smart woman's wardrobe in the 1930s. Motifs floating on a plain ground worked admirably; navy, black and brown background colours were perennially in vogue. The use of floral decoration on cloth was hardly new but the flowers of the 1930s blossomed with fresh life and vigour. Detailed, naturalistic representations in the traditional manner were replaced with a freedom of line and form closely allied to contemporary movements in the fine and graphic arts.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Screen-printed georgette
Brief description
Dress fabric of screen-printed georgette, designed and made by Tootal, Broadhurst, Lee & Co., England, 1930
Physical description
Dress fabric of georgette screen-printed with a repeat of flowers, stems and leaves in yellow, white and mauve on a black background.
Dimensions
  • Diameter: 87mm
Production typeMass produced
Summary
This georgette dress fabric is printed with a repeat of flowers, stems and leaves, in yellow, white and mauve, on a black background. Floral printed fabrics held a prominent place in every smart woman's wardrobe in the 1930s. Motifs floating on a plain ground worked admirably; navy, black and brown background colours were perennially in vogue. The use of floral decoration on cloth was hardly new but the flowers of the 1930s blossomed with fresh life and vigour. Detailed, naturalistic representations in the traditional manner were replaced with a freedom of line and form closely allied to contemporary movements in the fine and graphic arts.
Bibliographic reference
Webb & Bower / Michael Joseph, Thirties Floral Fabrics, V&A Colour Books
Collection
Accession number
T.53-1982

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Record createdJanuary 14, 2004
Record URL
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