Afternoon Dress
1937 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This afternoon dress by Gabrielle Chanel for CHANEL, from Spring Summer 1937 is made from alternating panels of delicate machine-made lace and tulle, the translucent fabrics and gracefully scalloped neckline giving the garment a lingerie feel. The combination of lace and other sheer fabrics was a Chanel signature during the 1930s. The dress originally had a large satin bow attached at the waist and a delicate tulle and lace cape designed to be draped around the shoulders, fixed at one side with a brooch. Chanel often paired her dresses with capes and fichus, as described by The Times: ‘triangular scarves of tulle and chiffon edged with lace go with picture-frocks’.
The dress was worn by Fern Bedaux at the wedding of the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson in June 1937. The ceremony took place at the home of Fern and Charles Bedaux, the Château de Candé, in the Loire Valley. Charles Bedaux, a wealthy French-American industrial consultant, was arrested in Algiers in 1944 and transported to America where he was charged with treason for collaboration with Nazi forces.
The dress was worn by Fern Bedaux at the wedding of the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson in June 1937. The ceremony took place at the home of Fern and Charles Bedaux, the Château de Candé, in the Loire Valley. Charles Bedaux, a wealthy French-American industrial consultant, was arrested in Algiers in 1944 and transported to America where he was charged with treason for collaboration with Nazi forces.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 3 parts.
|
| Materials and techniques | Net and machine made lace |
| Brief description | Afternoon dress, belt and scarf of lace, designed by Coco Chanel, Paris, 1937 |
| Physical description | Afternoon dress, belt and scarf all made of cream net and cream, machine made lace. |
| Production type | Haute couture |
| Gallery label | [Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto exhibition, September 2023 - March 2024]
LIGHTNESS AND REFINEMENT
Lace was a favourite medium of Chanel’s for eveningwear. It remained a staple of her collections throughout the 1920s and 30s. In the French magazine L’Illustration in 1939, Chanel shared her thoughts: ‘I consider lace to be one of the prettiest imitations that has been made from the fantasies of nature . . . For me it evokes the incomparable designs that embroider the sky, the leaves and the branches of trees.’
Spring/Summer 1937
Lace and net
V&A: T.748 to B-1972
Bequeathed by Mrs Fern Bedaux(September 2023) |
| Credit line | Bequeathed by Mrs Fern Bedaux |
| Object history | Worn by the donor at the marriage of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, which took place at the donor's home, Chateau de Candé in France, in June 1937. |
| Historical context | This object is part of the collection of Mrs Fern Bedaux, given to the museum by Miss E Hanley, the heiress and niece of Mrs Bedaux. Mrs Bedaux purchased her whole wardrobe regularly from Balenciaga and other couturiers and the collection was very large; some was kept by Miss Hanley, some send to the Costume Museum in Bath; and some was received by the V&A. Mrs Bedaux was the very wealthy widow of American millionaire office systems pioneer Charles Bedaux. Mr and Mrs Bedaux lived in the sixteenth century Chateau de Candé in France. In June 1937, the Duke of Windsor married Wallis simpson at the Chateau, after his abdication as King Edward VIII in 1936. This dress is the one that Fern Bedaux wore to the ceremony. A TV documentary entitled "The Champagne Safari", follows the Bedauxs and their entourage on an expedition through Canada. Charles Bedaux had some ties with the Nazi party and was a controversial figure. |
| Summary | This afternoon dress by Gabrielle Chanel for CHANEL, from Spring Summer 1937 is made from alternating panels of delicate machine-made lace and tulle, the translucent fabrics and gracefully scalloped neckline giving the garment a lingerie feel. The combination of lace and other sheer fabrics was a Chanel signature during the 1930s. The dress originally had a large satin bow attached at the waist and a delicate tulle and lace cape designed to be draped around the shoulders, fixed at one side with a brooch. Chanel often paired her dresses with capes and fichus, as described by The Times: ‘triangular scarves of tulle and chiffon edged with lace go with picture-frocks’. The dress was worn by Fern Bedaux at the wedding of the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson in June 1937. The ceremony took place at the home of Fern and Charles Bedaux, the Château de Candé, in the Loire Valley. Charles Bedaux, a wealthy French-American industrial consultant, was arrested in Algiers in 1944 and transported to America where he was charged with treason for collaboration with Nazi forces. |
| Bibliographic reference | Cullen, Oriole and Karol Burks, Connie. "Gabrielle Chanel". London: V&A Publishing, 2023
p 178
This afternoon dress is made from alternating panels of delicate machine-made lace and tulle, the translucent fabrics and gracefully scalloped neckline giving the garment a lingerie feel. The combination of lace and other sheer fabrics was a Chanel signature during the 1930s. The dress originally had a large satin bow attached at the waist and a delicate tulle and lace cape designed to be draped around the shoulders, fixed at one side with a brooch. Chanel often paired her dresses with capes and fichus, as described by The Times: ‘triangular scarves of tulle and chiff on edged with lace go with picture-frocks’.
The dress was worn by Fern Bedaux at the wedding of the Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson in June 1937. The ceremony took place at the home of Fern and Charles Bedaux, the Château de Candé, in the Loire Valley. Charles Bedaux, a wealthy French-American industrial consultant, was arrested in Algiers in 1944 and transported to America where he was charged with treason for collaboration with Nazi forces. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.748 to B-1972 |
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| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
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