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Hot Accession! Eva: The Journal of Educated Women
Everyone’s who’s been happening through the department recently has had plenty to say about our new accession, Eva. The Czech-language magazine marketed to “educated women” was first issued in 1928 and is simply smart, chic and drop dead gorgeous. We’re happy to report we have nearly the full-run of the title, lacking only the first…
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A Victorian Fashion History Mystery…
From time to time, we come across beautiful items in our collection that cause us to stop, take note, and delve more into their history. These dainty and diminutive sketches of Victorian millinery may have been executed by Auguste Félix, or the designs of a milliner of that same name, for…
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Bare Beauties
During the 1920s, publishers circumvented the laws concerning the publication of nude photos by ostensibly purposing them “FOR ARTISTS ONLY.” “While this magazine is of general interest, particular stress is laid upon the fine arts and crafts; and an especial appeal is made to artists, designers, architects, drawing teachers, photographers, art supervisors, curators of museums,…
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Muriel King and Gone With the Wind
Keren Ben-Horin’s recent post on one of our favorite blogs, ON PINS AND NEEDLES, has inspired us to speak about a little more about the American couturière Muriel King and her work in Hollywood. King established a successful couture house in New York City during the early 1930s—at the height of the Great Depression. Her clients included…
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The Muppet Show Style Book
One of the staff favorites in the department isn’t necessarily due to its precious nature, but rather its nostalgia… The Muppet Show Style Book was created in 1979, three years after the launch of popular television show, by Jim Henson & Associates, Inc.: “This book of style sheets and character personality descriptions has been compiled to…
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Fashion Designers A-Z: The Collection of The Museum at FIT
The much anticipated publication featuring highlights from The Museum at FIT’s costume collection is finally here! Published by Taschen, with a forward by Suzy Menkes, and text by The Museum at FIT’s Director Valerie Steele, the initial copies of the title are gorgeous limited-editions housed in lucite display cases. Six ‘Designer Editions’ are available, featuring…
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The Extraordinary Life of Gerda Wegener
The fact that Danish artist Gerda Wegener was one of the few female artists to find commercial success in Paris during the teens and twenties, is perhaps one of the least intriguing aspects of her extraordinary life. Born in Denmark in 1885, Wegener studied art at the Academie des Beaux-Arts in Copenhagen. In 1912, she…
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The Frances Neady Collection of fashion illustration
A series of three fashion illustrations by famed fashion illustrator, and FIT alumni, Antonio Lopez. This year, 2013, marks the 30th anniversary of The Frances Neady collection of fashion illustration, a unique collection of the works by prominent fashion illustrators from the 1920s to present. Established in 1983 as a…
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Devastating Deco
One of the hidden gems of the Department of Special Collections and FIT Archives (SPARC) is the large collection of what we like to call ‘books of design and ornament.’ These types of books, which feature patterns and designs suitable for reproduction, date back at least to the middle of the eighteenth century when Thomas…