dress, 1 piece

The donor of this dress designed by Adrian was a fashion model during the 1920s and early 1930s, and she loved clothes. She purchased this dress at Garfinckels, which was a specialty store in Washington, D.C. When she donated the dress to the museum, she noted that it originally had a narrow belt constructed of the same fabric as the dress. She had used the belt as well as the shoulder pads with another dress at a later time.

Adrian was the best known Hollywood designer of the 1930s. He understood how films were made and designed his clothes accordingly. Knowing that close-ups would highlight the neck or bodice portion of an outfit, he often emphasized the upper portion of a garment. As head designer at MGM, his designs were featured in fashion and fan magazines and were also reinterpreted by many manufacturers. In 1942, Adrian decided to open his own commercial establishment in Beverly Hills, California. Instead of only offering couture clothing for the wealthy, he created a special line called “Adrian Original” to be sold ready-made in selected stores around the United States. To further enhance their cache, only one store was selected in each city to sell his designs.

This long length dress is constructed of black creped-back rayon fabric printed with large birds in yellow, red, and black. The bird at the bodice front is embroidered with red, black, and gold sequins. The short cap sleeves are cut in one with the bodice. There is a horizontal slit neck opening with a short center back opening that fastens with two self-covered buttons and loop closures. The skirt section is cut straight with a slit up the center front originating from the hemline. There is also a left side zipper opening.

Currently not on view