Fashion Drawing
1953-1954 (published)
| Artist/Maker |
This is an original artwork for a fashion illustration by Marcel Fromenti for The Lady, a weekly magazine for women published since 1885. At the time it was made, Fromenti was the main artist for The Lady's fashion articles. The glamorous women in his drawings modelled both couture and high-end ready-to-wear garments with equal panache and elegance. Couture dresses and suits by leading Paris and London couturiers such as Christian Dior, Pierre Balmain and Norman Hartnell were drawn with the same flair as designs from British ready-to-wear labels such as Susan Small, Roecliff & Chapman, and Marcus. The articles described the fashion developments of their day in simple, accessible terms that contributed greatly to The Lady's popularity with its readers. Pencil notes record the designers, fabric and colour details, alongside technical instructions to the printers as to how these images should be incorporated into the printed page and at what scale.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Pen and ink, wash and chinese white |
| Brief description | Marcel Fromenti. Coat and dress afternoon ensembles by Antonio del Castillo for Lanvin-Castillo and Pierre Balmain, drawn for The Lady. 1953-54 |
| Physical description | Drawing of two models in coat-and-dress afternoon ensembles by Antonio del Castillo for the House of Lanvin and Pierre Balmain. On the left, a Lanvin-Castillo ensemble in blue printed silk, the loose duster coat worn open over a sheath dress with slim pencil skirt in matching printed silk, with a square neckline and a draped half-bow at the bust. The model wears a pill-box hat with a hanging bow over one ear. On the right a Balmain ensemble in black and white checked silk, the loose duster coat swinging open over a sheath dress with slim pencil skirt in matching checked silk, wide black waistband. The bodice draped with a deep V neckline and loose knot at the waist. The model wears a wide-brimmed black and white hat, and both models wear dark gloves. 1 of 94 sheets of fashion drawings. Inscribed with the designers' names, descriptions in French, and dated on the back. |
| Marks and inscriptions | (Inscribed with the designers' names, descriptions in French, and dated on the back) |
| Credit line | Given by the Editor of 'The Lady' |
| Summary | This is an original artwork for a fashion illustration by Marcel Fromenti for The Lady, a weekly magazine for women published since 1885. At the time it was made, Fromenti was the main artist for The Lady's fashion articles. The glamorous women in his drawings modelled both couture and high-end ready-to-wear garments with equal panache and elegance. Couture dresses and suits by leading Paris and London couturiers such as Christian Dior, Pierre Balmain and Norman Hartnell were drawn with the same flair as designs from British ready-to-wear labels such as Susan Small, Roecliff & Chapman, and Marcus. The articles described the fashion developments of their day in simple, accessible terms that contributed greatly to The Lady's popularity with its readers. Pencil notes record the designers, fabric and colour details, alongside technical instructions to the printers as to how these images should be incorporated into the printed page and at what scale. |
| Bibliographic reference | Victoria and Albert Museum Department of Prints and Drawings and Department of Paintings Accessions 1954 London: HMSO, 1963 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.1578-1954 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | June 30, 2009 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSON
