Brocade Dress 1935 - 1942

Editor: Here we have "Brocade Dress," a drawing made between 1935 and 1942 by Fanchon Larzelere, rendered in colored pencil and watercolor. I'm struck by the dress’s almost dreamlike quality – soft blues and delicate floral patterns. What catches your eye in this piece? Curator: Well, first off, isn't it interesting how a garment – even just an *image* of one – can evoke an entire era? Larzelere created a design that seems pulled straight from a fairy tale, doesn't it? But look closer… What does the empty space where the body should be suggest to you? Editor: Perhaps a sense of absence? Or maybe it’s inviting the viewer to imagine themselves wearing it. Curator: Exactly! Maybe Larzelere wasn't just designing clothes; she was creating spaces for imagination. I think she asks us to consider the performative nature of dress and how it can embody or project ideals. Do you notice how the palette also subtly nods to earlier eras, particularly, in its color choices and in its general opulence, perhaps even a *memory* of Marie Antoinette’s court? Editor: Now that you mention it, the sleeves and neckline definitely have a touch of historical drama about them. It feels like a modern take on something classic. Curator: And it’s the ‘modern take’ where I see her subtle genius. It makes one wonder what these women imagined for themselves during the Depression era while the world changed so radically around them. Do you agree that in Larzelere's capable hands fashion became more than clothing—it became a space for cultural reverie? Editor: Absolutely. I initially saw it as just a pretty drawing, but I now see that there is so much historical and cultural information embedded within its deceptively simple lines and delicate hues. Curator: Precisely! It is one thing to *see*; it’s quite another to *look closely.* Now you see that dresses tell stories too!