1871-1949 Mariano Fortuny

[DosViolines]

Fortuny Aqua Pleated Silk Delphos Dress Delphos Dress
1930s
Pale aqua, sleeveless, falling straight from shoulders, with slight train at back, beige/brown Venetian glass beads, strung at sides from shoulders to hem, size 10 -12, linen tape label at shoulder: Fortuny.
Good condition, shows wear, pleats loose in places, especially at one shoulder, drawstrings loose and tangled.

doylenewyork

 

[SomethingElse]

1910s Light brown velvet with polychrome stencil print of Japanese traditional pattern; salmon-pink silk faille lining; straight-cut structure.

kci.or.jp

 

[DosViolines]

This dress is made of finely pleated rose-colored silk with silk cording along side seams, and multicolored glass beads threaded through the cording.

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Named after a Greek classical sculpture, the Delphos Gown was a simple column of vertical pleats permanently set in silk by a process never successfully duplicated.

[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Avant-garde American dancers Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis wore Fortunys because of their interest in the body and movement. Originally made to be worn as tea gowns for entertaining at home, the gowns were seen outside the home by the 1930s.

[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The dress was stored by rolling length-wise, twisting tightly into a ball, and placing it in an oval miniature hat box, thus preserving the pleats and keeping the shape.

[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Purchased in Paris in 1936, the dress was worn with a diamond necklace and silver shoes to the Metropolitan Opera.[/FONT]

americanhistory.si.edu

 

[DosViolines]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] This Fortuny jacket was worn by Mrs. Harrison Williams, an American socialite who was voted in 1933 by French designers Molyneux, Lanvin, Vionnet, Lelong and Chanel as the best-dressed woman in the world.

[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This three-quarter length orange-red cut velvet jacket was printed with metallic paints with Venetian glass buttons and silk loop closure at the center front.[/FONT]

americanhistory.si.edu

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][/FONT]

 

[DosViolines]

Mariano Fortuny
Evening Coat
ca. 1920s
wine velvet with gold stencil motifs

artnet.com

 

[SomethingElse]

Link to the Palazzo Fortuny, originally built by the Pesaro family: http://www.museiciviciveneziani.it/frame.asp?pid=5&musid=2&sezione=musei.







You can read a little bit about these pieces at the source, in Italian, here: http://www.museiciviciveneziani.it/frame.asp?pid=8&musid=2&sezione=musei

 

[DosViolines]

Fortuny Delphos Gown in Original Box

Mariano Fortuny first designed the Delphos dress in 1907. These dresses were made in Venice until 1948 with subtle variations in style.

This figure flattering black dress is accented with the signature Venetian glass beads on both sides. The neckline is threaded with a silk cord to adjust the fit. The silk is finely pleated in a process invented by Fortuny that no one has been able to duplicate. According to the instructions accompanying the dress, the owner was to twist the gown after wearing and place it in the round Fortuny box for storage.

katykane

 

[SomethingElse]

^ With box! Wow! B) I like the detail of the little studs down the side of the dress. Lovely!

 

[DosViolines]

^ With box! Wow! B) I like the detail of the little studs down the side of the dress. Lovely!

Yes, I too had no idea it came in it's own box.
Just another fun (useless ) fact.

 

[baguette]

I love Fortuny and I love how fragile his work is.
He had to repair the garments for customers.
Compare with Fortuny, Issey worth nothing.

 

[SomethingElse]

See more on Fortuny here: http://www.fortuny.com.

 

[DosViolines]

Fortuny Peplos Gown, Early 20th C.

whitakerauction

 

[DosViolines]

Plum Fortuny Delphos Gown, Early 20th C.

whitakerauction

 

[DosViolines]

Coral Fortuny Dephos Gown, Early 20th C.

whitakerauction

 

[SomethingElse]

Stenciled Velvet Coat, c. 1920

whitakerauction.com

 

[SomethingElse]

Oh I hope I can find more velvet pieces...

 

[Spike413]

I just recently become obsessed with his Delphos dresses. The way those pleats move along the body is so fantastic. I love that you can't even see the side seams, they're perfectly hidden. I read somewhere though that they pleats were done by hand, which is why they're irregular, as far as how they're sustained, I can't even imagine.

Much more impressive than Issey's stuff, since these were all done in silk as opposed to synthetics which hold pleats much easier.

And of course, his stenciled velvet pieces were gorgeous.

 

[gius]

^It's not that synthetics hold pleats better; rather it's that the pleats become permanent once you heat set the fabric. You can heat set pleats into silk as well, but once you wash it, the pleats will disappear

 

[DosViolines]

A MARIANO FORTUNY LILAC SILK DELPHOS, ITALIAN, CIRCA 1915

the sleeves trimmed with coloured glass Murano beads; together with three stencilled Fortuny belts stamped with maker’s name, in green, pink and yellow silk; and two pleated silk gowns in Delphos style probably 1930s

sothebys

 

[DosViolines]

A Fortuny Delphos
Italian, early 20th century

of copper coloured pleated silk, trimmed with amber and white Murano glass beads; with matching stencilled silk belt signed in silver Fortuny Dse

sothebys