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

Dress Fabric

1937 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This crepe dress fabric is printed with a repeat of flowers and stems in brown, white, green and red, 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 crêpe
Brief description
Printed cotton crepe dress fabric, Calico Printers' Association, Manchester, 1937.
Physical description
Printed cotton crepe printed with a repeat of blossom clusters in white, gold and black. Registered number: 372785
Dimensions
  • Length: 18in
  • Width: 35in
Production typeMass produced
Marks and inscriptions
Transliteration
.
Credit line
Given by Manchester Design Registry
Summary
This crepe dress fabric is printed with a repeat of flowers and stems in brown, white, green and red, 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.79-1979

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Record createdJanuary 14, 2004
Record URL
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