Victoria and Albert Museum
fashion illustration, London, 1953
Jean Demarchy (dates unknown) was a 1950s
fashion illustrator who worked in soft pastels to create romantic,
abstract, images of couture. Arguably, illustrations such as these
fitted better with the luxurious and feminine ideal of couture than
photography. These illustrations, especially from the Stiebel collection
of 1953, display some of those shared aesthetics in the way they convey
the soft, tactile nature of the fabrics.
However, the privileged
status of fashion drawing faded rapidly during the 1950s, and
photography soon gained more prominence in post-war magazines that
wanted harder-hitting imagery.
22) This illustration features an evening dress by the London
couturier Victor Stiebel (1907-76), drawn for Harper's Bazaar in 1953.
Stiebel liked using bold, contrasting stripes in his designs, and also
typically referenced historical dress with voluminous panniers and
bustles.
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