Galerie Des Mode et Costumes Français

Operating between 1778 and 1787, Galerie Des Mode et Costumes Français was a series of fashion plates published by print merchants Jacques Esnauts and Michel Rapilly. The plates were issued at random intervals in cahiers, or sets, of six and sold for 36 livres. This work is a near complete set of the first collected volume of the journal, which brought together 96 plates from 16 portfolios and includes a 45 page introduction by lawyer G Francois-Roger Mole. 

The primary artists associated with the journal are represented in this volume, including Claude-Louis Desrais, Pierre Thomas Leclerc, Francois Louis Joseph Watteau and Augustin de Saint Aubin. Following engraving, the plates were hand coloured. This volume is a rare and important surviving collection of one of the first illustrated fashion journals. 

Various artists, Gallerie des Modes et Costumes Francais Desinés d’après Nature [Gallery of French Fashions and Costumes drawn from life]Paris: Messrs Esnauts and Rapilly, with the privilege of the king, no date (1778), hand coloured engravings. Krystyna Campbell-Pretty AM Fashion Research Collection, NGV Archive. Donated by Krystyna Campbell-Pretty AM and Family through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gift Program, 2026.