Evening dress

Charles James

1951 · silk · Costume Institute

The slightly structured strapless bodice is overlaid with a diagonal panel originating at the right side waist, which is draped loosely around the back to curve in a fan over the shoulder. The skirt is similarly unconventional. Many of James’s other draped effects are made from continuous panels, but this asymmetrical skirt has multiple parts, each seamed in a pronounced curve. The seams lightly buttress the final draping. The effect may appear spontaneous, but the construction reveals James’s deliberate intentions.

Artist

Charles James

Date

1951

Medium

silk

Culture

American

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Gift of Eleanor Searle Whitney McCollum, 1975