Journal des Dames et des Modes, Costume Parisien, 1805, An 13 (639) Bonnet de Lingère... 1805

Horace Vernet made this print titled 'Journal des Dames et des Modes, Costume Parisien' in 1805. It's a fashion plate displaying current trends in Parisian women's clothing. Fashion plates such as this played an important role in the social and economic life of early 19th-century France. In the years following the French Revolution, older aristocratic styles were abandoned in favor of simpler, more classical designs, which could also be mass produced. Publications like the 'Journal des Dames et des Modes' emerged to dictate these trends to a wider public. The woman in the image wears a high-waisted gown, typical of the Empire silhouette, along with a bonnet. The print itself becomes a tool in shaping social identities, as the rising middle class turned to these journals to learn how to perform their new social roles through fashion. To fully understand this work, we can consult fashion history archives, periodicals, and social histories to examine how art shapes and reflects social change.