Afternoon dress

Mme. Jeanne Paquin|House of Paquin

ca. 1901 · silk · Costume Institute

Acclaimed for the artistry and originality of its head designer, Mme. Jeanne Paquin, the House of Paquin was arugably the pre-eminent house of couture during the Belle Époque. In this costume, the interest and originality is in the bodice, which is both draped and tailored, giving an ambiguity of form between a soft jacket and a tailored blouse. To combine tailoring and draping in the same piece at this early date was prescient, for within ten years women were more active and in need of clothing that would take them from day into evening.

Artist

Mme. Jeanne Paquin|House of Paquin

Date

ca. 1901

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 Mrs. Helen Gahagan Douglas, 1965