Hat
ca. 1970 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This hat belonged to Patricia Harmsworth, Lady Rothermere. Famed for her colourful parties and generosity as a hostess she was also known for her exuberant and unconventional style of dress.
The informal, casual style of the hat with its large floppy brim and patchwork construction indicates the change in attitude toward hat wearing which occurred in the mid-20th century. As the high fashion world turned towards the emergent youth culture, traditional accessories such as hats, handbags and gloves were suddenly identified with an older generation and no longer regarded as essential items of dress.
The use of recycled denim jeans, the inexpensive method of construction and the colourful, roughly applied nylon flowers show that his hat was designed with an eye toward the fast fashion of the youth market. Denim was not such a universal fabric and was still very much identified specifically with jeans, giving the hat a novelty value.
The informal, casual style of the hat with its large floppy brim and patchwork construction indicates the change in attitude toward hat wearing which occurred in the mid-20th century. As the high fashion world turned towards the emergent youth culture, traditional accessories such as hats, handbags and gloves were suddenly identified with an older generation and no longer regarded as essential items of dress.
The use of recycled denim jeans, the inexpensive method of construction and the colourful, roughly applied nylon flowers show that his hat was designed with an eye toward the fast fashion of the youth market. Denim was not such a universal fabric and was still very much identified specifically with jeans, giving the hat a novelty value.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Denim with artificial flowers and wire |
| Brief description | Woman's hat, blue denim with artificial flowers and wire, Mr Denim, Great Britain, ca. 1970. |
| Physical description | Hat made from worn and variegated shades of faded blue denim recycled from jeans, bunch of artificial daisies and cornflowers at side, wired brim. |
| Object history | Purchased. Registered File number 1995/2336. |
| Summary | This hat belonged to Patricia Harmsworth, Lady Rothermere. Famed for her colourful parties and generosity as a hostess she was also known for her exuberant and unconventional style of dress. The informal, casual style of the hat with its large floppy brim and patchwork construction indicates the change in attitude toward hat wearing which occurred in the mid-20th century. As the high fashion world turned towards the emergent youth culture, traditional accessories such as hats, handbags and gloves were suddenly identified with an older generation and no longer regarded as essential items of dress. The use of recycled denim jeans, the inexpensive method of construction and the colourful, roughly applied nylon flowers show that his hat was designed with an eye toward the fast fashion of the youth market. Denim was not such a universal fabric and was still very much identified specifically with jeans, giving the hat a novelty value. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.126-1996 |
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| Record created | May 1, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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