Evening Dress House of Worth. Circa 1910. | Live Auctioneers
Evening dress House of Worth, Paris, circa 1890. Shaped satin piping, metallic tulle, embroidery sequins and gold bullion. | Les Arts Décoratifs
Evening dress 1883. Charles Frédérick Worth, France. Printed silk moiré, faille, lace. | Chicago History Museum
Evening dress House of Worth. Jean-Philippe Worth.1898–1900. French. Silk & glass. | THE MET
Evening coat House of Worth. Jean-Philippe Worth. Ca. 1902. French. Silk. This dramatic coat is very indicative of the Art Nouveau style which was popular at the turn of the century. The sinuous curves of the textile and the symmetrical seaming make this exemplary of the House of Worth's design aesthetic which was well retained throughout its run. | THE MET
Ensemble House of Worth. Attributed to Charles Frederick Worth & to Jean-Philippe Worth. 1893. French. Silk, jet & metal. By the last quarter of the 19th century, shoes specifically matched to a particular evening dress became an increasingly common phenomenon. While white shoes could be economically dyed to match a special dress, the wealthiest clients would have shoes specifically made to coordinate. This pair of slippers is accompanied in the collection by a matching evening dress, by the renowned House of Worth. The decision to focus all the elaborate decoration on the bow is inventive for this period, and one mark of the high quality. | THE MET
Evening jacket House of Worth. Charles Frederick Worth, ca. 1890. French. silk, jet & linen.
This is an excellent example of late 19th-century dress imitating men’s wear of the late 18th century. This Worth jacket eloquently imitates the silhouette and the ostentatious quality of court costume of the previous century. The extraordinary jet beadwork embroidery is stylized to represent the elaborate silk floss embroidery of the past to great effect. | THE MET
Court presentation ensemble House of Worth. Designer: Charles Frederick Worth. ca. 1888. French. Silk, metal, feathers, glass & Feathers. | THE MET
Evening coat House of Worth, Designer: Jean-Philippe Worth. Ca. 1900. French. Silk. Historicism was a major hallmark of the House of Worth beginning with Charles Frederick Worth's interest in studying historical costume through museum research. This evening coat readily includes iconography of the Tudors with a Tudor rose pattern alongside the silhouette of alternative 16th century negligées in the full sleeves, standing collar and unfitted style. Worth ingeniously manipulates the textile to create an entirely new pattern on the back panel and has a keen eye for the creating the subtle black on black patterning on the top to counteract the stark contrast of the roses in the skirt. | THE MET
"Tulipes Hollandaises" (textile)" House of Worth (French, 1858–1956). Designer: Charles Frederick Worth. Designer: Textile by A. M. Gourd & Cie. Date: 1889. Culture: French. Medium: silk & metal. Worth was constantly interested in supporting the textile industry as evidenced in this cape, which is designed to showcase its textile to the extreme. The textile itself has a repeat which is over three feet long making it stunning but also making it extremely difficult to weave. The dramatic fabric, "Tulipes Hollandaises," was exhibited at the Exposition Universelle of 1889 in Paris and won a grand prize. The tulips have an aggressive dynamic quality about them with the brilliant, vibrant colors against the deep black background consistent with the seductive femme fatale sensibility of the 1880s and 1890s. | THE MET
Ensemble House of Worth (French, 1858–1956). Designer: Roger Worth (French, born 1908) Date: ca. 1940. Culture: French Medium: synthetic & beads. This is a good example of a House of Worth garment from a relatively undocumented period in its history. Roger Worth began designing for the House of Worth in 1935 at the time of his uncle, Jean-Charles Worth's, retirement. He continued his uncle's legacy of simple lines but included small amounts of elaborate trimmings which his great-grandfather, Charles Frederick Worth, had used continuously, such as lace, beadwork embroidery and creative effects with the fabric itself. Despite his efforts, the old house was troubled through the war years and never fully recovered before being purchased by the House of Paquin in 1954. The house was subsequently closed two years later when all attempts to revitalize were ceased. | THE MET
Tea gown House of Worth (French, 1858–1956), Designer: Jean-Philippe Worth (French, 1856–1926), Date: 1900–1901 Culture: French. Medium: silk. This is a nice example of the teagown made by the House of Worth. This shows the luxurious lifestyle indicative of prominent women of the time. The teagown could be worn without a corset and was therefore a more comfortable form of dress in which one could greet guests at home. Teagowns were a particular vehicle for historicism and fantasy as evidences here with its deliberate interpretation of the 18th-century robe and petticoat form. | THE MET
Evening dress House of Worth (French, 1858–1956), Charles Frederick Worth (French (born England), Bourne 1825–1895 Paris), 1888, French. Silk, metal. The love knot motif is elegant and lyrical representing the quintessential daintily fluttering bow which was an iconic motif of the 18th century. The treatment of the bust drapery by exposing the selvedge under the bust is a classic Worth design characteristic which was usually done on the skirt edges, but here is very prominently done on the bodice. | THE MET
Dinner dress House of Worth (French, 1858–1956), Charles Frederick Worth (French (born England), Bourne 1825–1895 Paris), 1880–90, French. silk, jet. | THE MET
Evening dress House of Worth (French, 1858–1956), 1925, French, silk, beads, metal thread.
As the nineteenth century came to a close, Jean-Philippe and Gaston Worth succeeded their father as designers for the House of Worth. The house continued its virtuoso technical achievements, as represented in this example, in which metallic thread is embroidered in a meandering floral motif. In the 1920s a silhouette at variance to any other period emerged—the chemise dress, nearly planar in construction, suggested that the body was flat in front, flat in back, and with no discernible articulation of chest, waist, or hips. This dress was worn by the Marquise de Polignac when she was presented at court and, despite its modern cylindrical silhouette, featured a back panel that acted as a faux train paying homage to the tradition of Charles Worth’s legendary relationship to the Second Empire court. | ↳ The MET
Afternoon dress House of Worth (French, 1858–1956), Charles Frederick Worth (French (born England), Bourne 1825–1895 Paris), 1889, French, silk, metal. | ↳ THE MET
Afternoon dress House of Worth (French, 1858–1956), Charles Frederick Worth (French (born England), Bourne 1825–1895 Paris), ca. 1872, French, silk. The bustle silhouette, although primarily associated with the second half of the 19th century, originated in earlier fashions as a simple bump at the back of the dress, such as with late 17th-early 18th century mantuas and late 18th- early 19th century Empire dresses. The full-blown bustle silhouette had its first Victorian appearance in the late 1860s, which started as fullness in skirts moving to the back of the dress. This fullness was drawn up in ties for walking that created a fashionable puff. This trendsetting puff expanded and was then built up with supports from a variety of different things such as horsehair, metal hoops and down. Styles of this period were often taken from historical inspiration and covered in various types of trim and lace. Accessories were petite and allowed for the focus on the large elaborate gowns. Around 1874, the style altered and the skirts began to hug the thighs in the front while the bustle at the back was reduced to a natural flow from the waist to the train. This period was marked by darker colors, asymmetrical drapery, oversize accessories and elongated forms created by full-length coats. Near the beginning of the 1880s the trends altered once again to include the bustle, this time it would reach its maximum potential with some skirts having the appearance of a full shelf at the back. The dense textiles preferred were covered in trimming, beadwork, puffs and bows to visually elevate them further. The feminine silhouette continued like this through 1889 before the skirts began to reduce and make way for the S-curve silhouette. | ↳ THE MET