Revue de la Mode, Gazette de la Famille, dimanche 15 juillet 1886, 15e Année, No. 759: Etoffes de la M.on Le Houssel (...) 1886

This fashion plate, created by A. Chaillot in 1886, showcases two figures with a study in contrasts through colour and form. The figure on the left appears in cool blues, her dress a mass of draped fabric over dark lace, suggesting weight and formality. Conversely, the right figure is adorned in warm pinks and greens, with lighter fabrics that evoke a sense of airy grace. The composition plays with the semiotics of fashion as a language. The linear patterns of the pink dress disrupt the expectation of opulent curves, while the architectural column behind it adds a structural element that frames the model and hints at the constructed nature of beauty itself. Ultimately, the artist uses line and colour to not only display current trends, but also to subtly comment on the interplay between nature and artifice, freedom and constraint. The plate thus serves as a visual text, inviting us to consider the social codes embedded in each carefully rendered fold and flourish.