Julianne's Fashion Sourcebook: Gender Specification Garments

Humans are social beings that construct and express images of themselves: who we are or how we want to be perceived, through garments and accessories that satisfy particular social rules and gender norms of the society in which we live. In the Western world, there is a history of certain "symbolic elements" of appearance and dress that define the female gender. These elements include long hair, make-up, skirts, wide necklines, corsets and lingerie.

Long Hair

Long hair has historically been symbolic of the feminine. Such “symbolism dates back to the Greeks”, who viewed long hair as a means of displaying the “domestic character”.[1] While long hair on a man has often been viewed as a separation from the structure of western culture, short hair on a woman has historically been considered a similar act of rebelliousness and has been perceived as “manish”.[2] This first image below displays a terracotta, Greek statuette of a standing woman from the late 4th-3rd century from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Notice the woman's hair is long, parted in the middle and pulled back in a "twist". Today, long hair is still symbolic of feminine beauty in many cultures.

Make-up

Historically, make-up was worn by both sexes as a way to improve the complexion and enhance facial features. It was not until the French Revolution that make-up became considered particularly feminine. The first image is a portrait of Charles Beauclerk, Duke of St. Albans (ca. 1690) from The Metropolitan Museum of Art. This portrait displays a common appearance for men of high society including luxurious clothing, wig and make-up. The second image shows how make-up is now considered a product for women and marketed to enhance a woman's beauty.

Skirts

In western culture, skirts were worn by both sexes up until the Middle Ages when “skirts began to represent the people who stayed at home” and thus became associated with the female.[3] Until the twentieth century, skirts for women were predominately long though the silhouette of the skirt has varied throughout the times. Throughout the twentieth century, the length and silhouette of women’s skirts have fluctuated greatly from floor length hemlines to the ultra short mini. The first image displays the popular early 1900 “hobble” skirt, appropriately named as the skirt literally hobbled the movement of the wearer. This skirt trend grew out of fashion with the invention of the automobile, as it became difficult for women to get in and out of the car.[4] On the opposite spectrum is the mini skirt depicted in the second image, which became a popular skirt trend in the 1960’s, and has drifted in and out of fashion ever since.

Wide necklines

Low and wide necklines were fashionable from the Gothic era through the Renaissance and then again in the Rococo period.[5] Along with the corset, the wide and low neckline allowed for a display of “skin” and feminine sex appeal. The first image is of a 1750 court dress with a decorative stomacher covering the corset. The second image is an 1872 ball gown by Charles Frederick Worth displaying a wide and low neckline with supported bust. The last image is an evening gown from 1902 that depicts the “monobosom”, where the breasts are supported and “corralled” in a tight single mass that was appropriately displayed only at night.[6] All three images come from The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute online.

Corsets

Corsetry became widespread during the Renaissance period as a means of shaping and accentuating the upper torso. Early corsets were extremely restraining and rigid and were made from iron, wood and even whalebone. Throughout the centuries the designs, styles and materials used to make the corset vacillated until it fell out of fashion in the 1910’s.[7] While corsets today are mostly worn in the context of lingerie, corsets were an integral part of female (and sometimes male) fashion, as they molded the upper body to create the desired fashion silhouette. The first two images display eighteenth and nineteenth century corsets. The third image is a twenty-first century corset by Frederick’s of Hollywood.

Lingerie

Lingerie dates back to the Rococo period, when courtesans wore “lace and ribbon-embellished underwear”.[8] Lingerie has since become an important staple for women of all classes as the vast majority of women in industrialized societies own brassieres, underwear, and stockings. Lingerie has come along way since the Rococo period as a plethora of materials and designs are available from the practical and conservative to the highly embellished and even fetish inspired. The first image is of an oil painting entitled "Before the Mirror" (1873) by French artist Pierre-Paul-Leon Glaize from The Metropolitan Museum of Art's website. The following images display 20th century lingerie designs.