Babydoll, cocktail dress
1965 {spring-summer 1965–66}
Medium
silk (lace, lining), metal (fastenings)
Measurements
76.0 cm (centre back) 38.0 cm (waist, flat)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Gift of Krystyna Campbell-Pretty AM and Family through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gift Program, 2023
Gallery location
Not on display
About this work
A defining late 50s—60s Balenciaga silhouette, the ‘babydoll’ saw Balenciaga transform the lingerie style into couture avant-garde. Originally made in opaque fabrics, Balenciaga’s Babydoll evolved with the appetite for more youthful and provocative clothing, comprising a fitted slip and lace overdress.
This sculptural Cocktail dress exemplifies Balenciaga’s renegotiation of the relationship between garment and body with its fluted, inverted silhouette. Innovating with cut and construction, he created a lexicon of new silhouettes for women defined by abstraction and soft volume, among them; the chemise, tunic, cocoon, sack and ‘baby-doll’ styles.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
France
Inscription
label, left side, woven in black on cream polyester: (triangular sides) BALENCIAGA / 10, AVENUE GEORGE V. PARIS
Accession Number
2023.175
Department
International Fashion and Textiles