On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Penny wise

Dress
1966 (designed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Dress, cotton, with a trompe l’oeil pinafore design with a peter pan collar and patch pocket. Designed by Mary Quant for Ginger Group in about 1966. This design, a parody of a school uniform pinafore and blouse demonstrates Quant’s desire for youthfulness and fun in adult fashion. Multiple images exist of Quant wearing a version of this dress.

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Object details

Categories
Object type
TitlePenny wise (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Cotton
Brief description
Dress, blue and white and red with pocket detail, designed by Mary Quant for Ginger Group, Wales, 1966
Physical description
Dress with short sleeves and short skirt. Trompe L'Oeil pinafore design with the 'pinafore' in white and the 't-shirt' in blue with a red peter pan collar. The centre of the 'pinafore' has a red pocket.
Gallery label
(30/03/2020)
[Mary Quant exhibition, 2019]

‘PENNY WISE’
1966
Worn by Deborah Cherry

With romper-suit straps, round collar and a patch pocket, this minidress is a literal expression of Quant’s borrowing from children’s garments. Worn while a schoolgirl, Deborah Cherry later said, ‘these were clothes for a young generation: bold, striking, easy to wear - they had a really strong feel-good factor for young women “walking tall”, with a style of our own’.

Cotton drill
Labelled ‘Mary Quant’s Ginger Group’
Made by Steinberg, Pontypridd, Wales (probably)
Given by Deborah Cherry
V&A: T.61-2018
Credit line
Given by Deborah Cherry
Object history
This object was acquired as part of the V&A's #WeWantQuant campaign. This was a public call-out for objects designed by Mary Quant. This was run as part of the preparation for an exhibition on Mary Quant 2019/2020
Historical context
This dress design was also available in a lime green, white and blue colourway, retailing at 5 guineas.
Summary
Dress, cotton, with a trompe l’oeil pinafore design with a peter pan collar and patch pocket. Designed by Mary Quant for Ginger Group in about 1966. This design, a parody of a school uniform pinafore and blouse demonstrates Quant’s desire for youthfulness and fun in adult fashion. Multiple images exist of Quant wearing a version of this dress.
Collection
Accession number
T.61-2018

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Record createdSeptember 26, 2018
Record URL
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