Ancient Egypt

The earliest traces of shoes were shown in ancient murals by the Ancient Egyptians around 200 B.C. These shoes are more commonly known as sandals and were made of wood, goatskin and papyrus and many of these sandals had a point at the end as well. The more elaborate sandals, which also had a small heel, were reserved for the Pharaohs and these designs became even more elaborate with gold and jewels with each new rising Pharaoh.


This image was adopted from: http://pro.corbis.com/images/PG13634.jpg?size=67&uid={60E1C267-75D5-4508-8522-D8F842135104}

12th Century - High Middle Ages

Was he really trying to hide his deformed toes? According to history, King Henry II of England created this long pointed boot in order to hide his deformed feet in 1154. Either way, it started a trend in the court and led to the development of pointed shoes up to 30 inches long in the 13th Century. However, these shoes were restricted for Kings and Queens.



This image of King Henry II of England was adopted from: http://media.photobucket.com/image/king%20henry%20II%20%25252B%20pointed%20shoes/midtowng/henryII.jpg

14th Century - Late Middle Ages

The Poulaine or crackowe were extremely long pointed shoes popularized in Poland during the late 14th Century and in the 15th Century. According to Wikipedia, Sometimes the point of the shoe would need support from a whalebone or a string tied to the leg (just below the knee) to stop the point getting in the way when they were walking. King Henry IV of England banned these extreme pointed shoes from being worn in the 16th Century and required all shoes to be a maximum of 2 inches long.

This image was adopted from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poulaine

16th Century - Renaissance

Leonardo da Vinci is credited with inventing the high heel, primarily for Catherine d'Medici's wedding at the age of 14 to the Duke of Orleans in 1533. Catherine d'Medici was so small that she wore these two inch heels to exaggerate her height. These heels set the trend for many women thereafter, including Mary Tudor "Bloody Mary".

This image was adopted from: www.mysexyhiheels.com/history/history.html

18th Century - Rococo Period

From mistress of Louis XV to style icon, Madame Pompadour's narrow pointed embroidered shoes was one of her biggest fashion innovations during the Rococo Period in late 18th Century France. The "Pompadour" was a heel so high and narrow that many women fainted at court because they tried to hide the actual size of their feet. Madame Pompadour had heels with every sort of embellishment, including silver piping, a variety of brocades and silver buckles and she once "wore red heels in defiance of public opinion," according to Eliza Azria in "Costume: Fanciful, Historical, Theatrical".

Two modern shoe designers, Sergio Rossi and Charles David have even created a pump called "Pompadour" after her innovative design.

This image of Madame Pompadour was adopted from: http://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%EC%82%AC%EC%9A%A9%EC%9E%90:Applebee/%EB%B2%88%EC%97%AD_%EC%98%88%EC%A0%95_%EB%AC%B8%EC%84%9C/%ED%94%84%EB%9E%91%EC%8A%A4%EC%9D%98_%EB%A3%A8%EC%9D%B4_15%EC%84%B8

The image of Sergio Rossi's Pompadour pump was adopted from: http://lifestyleforlease.com/uploaded/product_images/thumb_big/1232281236Sergio%20Rossi%20pump%20brown%20sz39%20pompadour%20Prima.jpg

History of Tailoring

Where was the first tailored trench coat manufactured? And by who? The Manchester Weather Coat Company has a great article explaining the history of Burberry Trench which was started by Thomas Burberry in Basingstoke in Hampshire in 1856. It began as a quest to keep his customers, such as farmers and agriculturists dry from the rainy conditions. However, after working with a cotton mill owner, they created a woven fabric that not only repelled rain, but was untearable. According to The Manchester Weather Coat Company's article, "Burberry patented this cloth called gabardine in 1879. He then began making all types of gabardine clothes for field sports and items that are today country classics. He opened a shop in London in 1891 and then the firm spread to Paris, Berlin and New York. It has had the royal seal of approval for over a century and Princes, Princesses, Kings and Queens, cult film stars and celebrities, like Kate Moss, have all owned Burberrys. In its original form the trench coat was part of First World War airmen's military uniform. Today it is a classic garment. Throughout the 1990s the House Of Burberry has employed various well known international designers to update its image globally." Check this article out at: http://www.raincoatsdirect.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/StaticContentSpot?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10051&spotName=History&pageTitle=History+of+the+Trenchcoat

The Kate Moss for Burberry advertisement picture was adopted from: http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/8620/burberrykatemoss1iv.jpg

The World War I trench was adopted from: http://www.popculturepost.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/345px-wwitrenchcoat.jpeg

History of Tailoring

The University of British Columbia posted some great images and articles about Renaissance Dress during the Renaissance. "International Gothic styles continued to be popular well into the first decades of the 16th century. A gradual transformation to a rigid, geometric silhouette came with the introduction of the cone-shaped Spanish farthingale, which consisted of a series of hoops, graduated in size, sewn into a petticoat. The bodice was tightly stretched over the corset - or stays - giving an inverted cone shape to the upper body. Gowns were layered one over the other, the wide funnel sleeve of the outer gown showing off the slashed undersleeve. Necklines were square and shoulders pulled down tightly. Overskirts were split at center-front, to expose the underskirt, which was often of a figured cut velvet in a large floral pattern. The young Elizabeth wears this style in a portrait dated 1546. Her headdress is one of two frequently seen styles of the time, a crescent-shaped "French hood", here edged with pearls."

More images and passages can be read at: http://www.theatre.ubc.ca/dress_decor/renaissance_dress_northern.htm1530-1575

History of Tailoring

After doing some research about who invented the first tuxedo...who could have either been Pierre Lorillard IV of Tuxedo Park, New York or King Edward VII of London. I came across an article stating that, "at a formal ball, held at the Tuxedo Club in October 1886, the young Lorillard wore a new style of formal wear for men that he designed himself. He named his tailless black jacket the tuxedo after Tuxedo Park." More about this article can be read at: http://inventors.about.com/od/tstartinventions/a/tuxedo.htm.

This image was adopted from: http://www.blacktieguide.com/History/19th_Century/1894_BT&WT.gif

History of Draping

The Inca Civilization has a deep history in the traditions of weaving colorful wool garments and blankets. This image downloaded from Corbis depicts what some of the draped and woven costumes the First Incas wore, most probably around the 16th Century. Check out this image and brief description at: http://pro.corbis.com/search/Enlargement.aspx?CID=isg&mediauid={4F3E22FC-5970-4DF8-99E6-7FC5045602CE}.

History of Draping

Madeleine Vionnet (1876-1975) changed history with her bias-cut draping at the end of World War I. "She introduced the bias cut for whole garments, in which the fabric was cut diagonally across the grain to make a springy type of drape." This statement and image was posted on New York Public Library's blogspot: http://www.nypl.org/blogs/subject/haute-couture.

History of Draping

This is a magnificent image that depicts a woman in her drape garments in Iraq in the 13th Century. It is of "a female servant attending a birth: From the Maqamat of al-Hariri painted by the same artist, Iraq 1237. This woman wears a simple gown with a round neck that has decorative bands on the upper sleeves. Her white pants show beneath, as the garment has been drawn up with a belt. Note the veil with what appears to be a decorative band along the upper edge of the face. This type of garment and veil were used as a model for the undergarments we made for the costume."

You can read more about this time period at: http://home.comcast.net/~mikibu/Articlefolder/Bedouin%20Costume%20project.htm.

Sexual Enhancement

"Would you like me to seduce you? Is that what you're trying to tell me?" These questions were made famous by Anne Bancroft in the film "The Graduate" in 1967. However, George Michael incorporated them in an evocative way in his song, "Too Funky" in 1992. Not only was this song absolutely seductive, but his video was insane. George Michael took every hot 90s model and basically used them to sell sex in his videos. The best part was, he used famous designers as well, like Thierry Mugler, to design the garments for the models to parade around in on the catwalk. Who could forget Emma Sjöberg wearing this motorcycle style corset with rear view mirrors? Just absolutely sexy. This image remains in my head since I was 12 years old and I think the idea of sexual enhancement as a function of clothing goes something like this.


According to YouTube: "George Michael - Too Funky - Release Date 1992 Number 2 In The Uk Charts - From The Album Red Hot + Dance - Red Hot + Dance is an album produced by the Red Hot Organization, an organization dedicated to raising money and awareness to fight the onslaught of HIV/AIDS.Pop star George Michael was instrumental in bringing the project to fruition and the album was notable for featuring three new songs by him."

This image was adopted from: http://sxyfashionqueen.blogspot.com/2008/11/dj-vu-beyonc.html

Ceremonialism

Ceremonialism as a function of dress has been used in many religious, cultural and civil events throughout time. This image depicts "a ceremony that already lay three centuries in the past, an illustration from Rashid al-Din’s 14th-century Jami‘ al-Tawarikh (Universal History) shows Mahmud ibn Sebuktekin, the first independent Ghaznavid ruler, receiving a richly decorated robe of honor from the caliph." The elaborateness of details on these silken robes in incredible.

This photograph was downloaded from: http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/200805/suitable.luxury.htm and is from the EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY LIBRARY / BRIDGEMAN ART LIBRARY.

Group Membership

"The Other Katherine"
I truly cannot imagine not being allowed to wear pants in public or in my private space for that matter. Gladys Perint Palmer recently held a lecture on the History of Fashion and spoke about her new book, "From Eve to Yves". Gladys told us this very witty story about London in the 1920s. She said that articles and ads were published in London stating that, "when women smoke they must wear trousers". Katherine Hepburn was one of the first celebrities to wear pants and make it mainstream, however, there was the group of women who wore them before her as a garment and fashion necessity as well as a statement. And this specific group of women define the idea of group membership as a function of dress. I personally thank every woman involved in this matter. There is a time for a skirt or dress and always a time for a pant.


This image was downloaded from the website: (http://sewingforlife.wordpress.com/2008/03/12/katherine-hepburn-inspired-trouser-pants-part-1-of-3-drafting-the-pattern/). She also has a great pattern for sewing these trousers!!

Gender Differentiation

When reviewing gender differentiation as a function of dress and understanding the style of dress from the Renaissance to the 18th Century, there is no way around thinking about Marie Antoinette in France during that time period. The men and women in her court wore lavish lavish dresses, wigs, make-up, etc., however, none of them could out-do her eccentric look. Their lifestyles completely matched their elaborate garments and looks as well. The men seen in these photographs wore tights, wigs, make-up, ruffles, etc. They look like how a man would dress in that time period yet isn't that crossing the line for any heterosexual male in today's society? "Let them eat cake!"

This image was downloaded from (www.tops2bottoms.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/...) and is a shot taken from Sofia Coppola's film "Marie Antoinette".

Decoration

"Having a clear idea of concepts like "self" and "other," both as individuals & groups, humans work hard in devising ways to represent those differences." This quote was taken from our History of Fashion's course, which discussed the concept of Decoration as a very important function of dress. This topic brought to mind a story I had once read about the history of Tahitian tattooing and the different ways in which they "stood apart" within their group. Tahitians used tattooing as the most identifiable element when doing this. One incredible form of this studied by Jane Resture is as follows:
"In ancient Tahitian society all women were tattooed. Young girls were tattooed at a very young age with marks on the inside of their arms to show that they were free from food tabus. Until that time they could only accept food prepared by their mothers - no-one else. There are no illustrations of these marks, just a few descriptions. Young women were again tattooed and they began to wear clothes as they reached puberty.

These tattoos are often described as heavy black patches on their posteriors, and were absolutely required before a woman was permitted to engage in intercourse. As a young woman grew slightly older, the smaller designs in arch shapes across the top were added. As a sign that they were sexually mature and desired a man, women were reported to lift their bark cloth skirts showing their tattoos. Quite often this was directed at the Europeans who were surprised, if not shocked, particularly the missionaries."

This image can be seen on her website:http://www.janeresture.com/oceania_tattoos/tahiti.htm

Environmental Protection

Ann Demeulemeester brings a whole new deconstructed edge when thinking about what to wear within the idea of environmental protection as a function of dress. In this day and age, wearing jackets and coats is not confined to fine tailored wool or fur jackets. It can be deconstructed and manipulated with certain cuts, shapes, and prints. The idea of wearing "just a coat" is not the same as it used to be, not only is it function but it is also a personal statement.

This image was downloaded from style.com from Ann Demeulemeester's show in Paris last February 2008. The photograph was taken by Marcio Medeira.

Levi's

Oh the rebellious look of wearing denim in the 1950s...and no one looks better in them than James Dean. He was the perfect poster boy for the denim company in the 1950s. Today, Levi's is still producing an amazing variety of denim. In addition, the number of other companies and designers throughout the world designing denim is inconceivable. Just for an example, I own two pairs of jeans from one of my favorite fashion designers, Martin Margiela.

Schiaparelli

Elsa Schiaparelli's, trompe l'oeil "Tear" dress and veil in 1937 created a sensation in the fashion world because of her great collaboration with the surrealist, Salvador Dali. Schiaparelli was remarkably innovative in the way she combined the art world with the fashion world, as seen her combination of silks and prints.

Rodarte

More recent on the scene is the design sister duo behind the incredibly intuitive line of Rodarte. They have taken the concept of leggings to a whole new realm with their cashmere "cut-out" leggings, as well as their silk/nylon "cut-out" leggings. Both leggings are artistic, comfortable and cutting-edge. This image is from their Spring/Summer 2008 Collection.