Evening dress

Madame Grès (Germaine Émilie Krebs)

fall/winter 1972–73 · silk · Costume Institute

Madame Alix Gres' career spanned five decades and throughout them all she excelled in her ability to manipulate fabric and use its innate characteristics to enhance her designs. Best known for her classically inspired form-fitting evening gowns in silk jersey, in the mid-1960s, Grès began experimenting with geometrically cut pattern pieces to create more free-flowing designs. Using the lightweight but slightly stiff quality of silk taffeta, the semicircular layers of fabric give the garment a sense of freedom and movement as they flutter around the fitted underdress. The use of bright colors further enhances the sense of vibrancy.

Artist

Madame Grès (Germaine Émilie Krebs)

Date

fall/winter 1972–73

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. William Randolph Hearst, Jr., 1988