La Modiste Parisienne, 1897, Pl. 3386 D1, No.5 1897

Curator: Let's discuss "La Modiste Parisienne," Plate 3386 D1, No. 5, from 1897, by an anonymous artist. It appears to be a watercolor and pencil illustration. The piece showcases three women wearing elaborate hats adorned with flora. What are your immediate impressions? Editor: Well, it's utter madness, isn't it? Beautiful madness. Those hats are practically portable gardens! I imagine wearing one feels like carrying a secret, blossoming world upon your head. Gives you a little spring in your step, I reckon. Curator: Indeed. These illustrations offer a window into the Parisian fashion scene of the late 19th century. Fashion magazines and journals served a vital role in disseminating style trends and shaping consumer desires across various social strata. Editor: They are aspirational objects, those hats, almost aggressively fashionable. I wonder, were these women empowered by such extravagant displays, or were they simply dolls in the window of consumerism? The pencil lines almost look like delicate cages containing the florid chaos. Curator: That's a potent observation. There's a tension between empowerment and objectification inherent in such imagery. The delicate rendering belies the sheer weight of social expectation these women would have faced, a weight manifested quite literally in those hats. And of course, a reflection on access: who had the luxury, literally, of buying into this image? Editor: Makes you wonder how long it took to secure all those botanical illustrations on their heads. Also, do they represent some of their "clientele", the "faces behind the hats" ? You imagine the daily life is one of almost a performance. Curator: Precisely. Fashion at this time became intrinsically linked to identity. These images helped to create, as well as maintain these identities. Editor: A powerful thought to leave us on...a constructed garden on our head. Curator: A constant construction then. One we all can recognize to some degree even today.