Not on display

Dress Fabric

1935 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This crepe dress fabric is printed with a repeat of flowers and stems in pink, light mauve, light pink and green, on a black and white 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 silk crêpe de chine
Brief description
Dress fabric of printed silk , designed and made by Calico Printers' Association, England, 1935
Physical description
Dress fabric of silk crêpe de chine. It is printed with a repeat of flowers and stems in pink, light mauve, light pink and green, on a black and white background.
Dimensions
  • Length: 35in
  • Width: 23in
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 pink, light mauve, light pink and green, on a black and white 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.406-1980

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Record createdJanuary 14, 2004
Record URL
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