Suit

Oscar de la Renta|House of Balmain

ca. 1991 · a) wool, silk, plastic; b,c) wool, silk · Costume Institute

Mrs. Kempner's closets yielded a seemingly endless array of tailored suits. Many of the designs incorporated sartorial variations on iconic menswear elements: the spencer, the "Eisenhower" or blouson jacket, the double-breasted "gangster" suit, and the formal blazer. While acknowledging the virtues of traditional menswear, Mrs. Kempner was also an advocate of innovations of cut and detailing in her tailoring. The virtuosity of Balmain's jacket lapel incorporated into a seam to create a trompe l'oeil waistcoat or Saint Laurent's nautical ensemble that supplants a naval uniform's white duck with feminine cotton piqué suggests her interest in witty and novel details.

Artist

Oscar de la Renta|House of Balmain

Date

ca. 1991

Medium

a) wool, silk, plastic; b,c) wool, silk

Culture

French

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Gift of Thomas L. Kempner, 2006