Alex Cooper Auctioneers is pleased to offer its first Discovery Auction featuring luxury fashion and accessories. The pieces include vintage and contemporary fashion.
Amongst the lots are several dresses from the 1920s. The enduring glamour of the 1920s is still popular with collectors today. The fashion of the period conjures images of Great Gatsby style parties, prohibition-era gin-fueled speakeasies and flapper girls dancing the Charleston. The fashion of the 1920s was revolutionary and liberating from a world still reeling from the atrocities of World War I. The clothes were looser and flowing, the silhouette slim to accentuate the popular boyish figure. Women, for the most part, discarded their corsets. Hemlines shortened. The Art Deco period style emerged and new motifs were reflected in the clothing of the time. Black was no longer strictly reserved for mourning and was considered chic for evening wear. Lot 260 incorporates a design within the fabric reflecting the new interest in geometric architecture. The design is subtle but innovative. Lots 262 and 263 highlight how beaded embellishment was used to decorate a simple shape and make it sophisticated for evening functions. The dress in lot 278 is an example of an Art Nouveau stylized floral motif on an Art Deco silhouette highlighting the transition from one period style to another.
Also included in the sale is a Diane von Furstenberg wrap dress. Introduced in 1974, the iconic design was revolutionary in women’s clothing and cemented the dress as an early style of effortless but sophisticated dressing for the modern working woman. The style endures today and is considered a classic every working woman should own. The dress is one of several 1970s examples in lot 289.
Alex Cooper Auctioneers sincerely hopes that you enjoy the array of fashion and accessories on offer. For full auction listings click here.
Lisa Jones, USPAP, AAA
Decorative Arts & Silver Specialist
lisa@alexcooper.com