Evening ensemble
Arnold Scaasi
ca. 1958 · silk, fur · Costume Institute
Arnold Scaasi, the designer of this ball gown, is best known for his evening wear designs, worn by a long list of celebrity clients primarily during the 1960s through the 1980s. Scaasi's work incorporates lavish surface decoration, often in the form of floral trimming, bright colors and full silhouettes that extend the proportions of the body. Scaasi creations are rarely easy to ignore; their ostentatious quality has become a signature of the designer's work. This example shows Scaasi's use of beadwork embroidery, applied braid and fur trim to enliven the surface of an otherwise conventional ensemble. Different materials all of the same color creates a play of textures as each element reflects light in a different way. This combination of trim ensuring this ensemble, although black, is anything but somber.
- Artist
- Arnold Scaasi
- Date
- ca. 1958
- Medium
- silk, fur
- Culture
- American
- Department
- Costume Institute
- Credit line
- Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Frances Carpenter, 1965
