2012 06 Inspiration Board Salmon Light Aqua

Just as the female body had become toned and tanned during the 1920s, so the male physique had also been modified into the new ideal shape of wide shoulders, prominent chest, and narrow hips. If wholehearted participation in outdoor sports had failed to produce results, then his suit might do the trick. The master of the flattering cut was the London tailor Frederick Scholte, who distilled three characteristics of the uniform of the Household Cavalry—narrow waists, wide shoulders, and roomy armholes—into what came to be known as the “London cut.” First popularized in the US by the Prince of Wales, this was soon followed by Hollywood celebrities, who began to displace the British aristocracy and upper class as fashion icons. Double-breasted coats, peaked lapels, and striped suiting were popular, since they further helped to achieve the desired athletic silhouette.

 

Surrealists tried to trick the subconscious into revealing itself by using methods influenced by the writings of Sigmund Freud: free association, dream analysis, and automatic writing. Seeking to achieve freedom from rationality, much of the output of this loose, Paris-centered group of artists, writers, and filmmakers had a dreamlike quality. Ordinary objects were taken out of their natural environments and plunged into new ones, creating a world “beyond realism.” Many surrealists were fascinated with disguise and costume dress, and some were directly involved in the creation of fashionable clothes and imagery.

 

Man Ray’s fashion and advertising photographs were published in Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. Salvador Dali, Alberto Giacometti, Meret Oppenheim, and Jean Cocteau all collaborated with Elsa Schiaparelli on designs of clothes and accessories. Startling juxtapositions and the use of motifs from other contexts could be found in the work of several couturiers in the late 1930s and early 1940s, and surrealism continues to influence fashion today.

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