Evening dress

Madame Grès (Germaine Émilie Krebs)

1937 · silk · Costume Institute

Madame Alix Grès' career spanned five decades and throughout she excelled in the ability to manipulate fabric and use its innate characteristics to enhance her designs. She executed flowing body-skimming forms inspired by Greek dress; minimalist, sculptural forms, and voluminous, dramatic shapes. This early example of Grès' classically derived gowns uses two lengths of draped silk jersey to create an unstructured columnar form. The style would continue to evolve throughout her career, eventually incorporating a rigid underbodice in its later incarnations.

Artist

Madame Grès (Germaine Émilie Krebs)

Date

1937

Medium

silk

Culture

French

Department

Costume Institute

Credit line

Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Bettina Ballard, 1952