Cocktail dress

Madame Grès (Germaine Émilie Krebs)

ca. 1960 · silk · Costume Institute

Always interested in the non-tailored options of Eastern dress, Grès was especially inspired by Indian dress in the 1950s. In this evening dress, she fits and wraps a sari over the underbodice. The fabrication is of two worlds, combining the planar and untailored concept of the sari with a retention of Western dressmaking. Like her caftans, adroitly draped to cleave to the body, the sari is an accommodated convention for Grès.

Artist

Madame Grès (Germaine Émilie Krebs)

Date

ca. 1960

Medium

silk

Culture

French

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Purchase, Gifts from Various Donors, 1993