Intro Gallery
Fashion is a world of extreme, and sartorial expression can range from minimalist to maximalist. Based on a reductive approach to design, minimalism – the aesthetic of “less-is-more” – celebrates the beauty of purity and restraint. Minimalist fashions prioritize reduction and function, and often employ clean lines and silhouettes to accentuate the relationship between body…
18th and 19th Century (1780s – 1850s)
Every fashion movement is a response to what came before it, perpetuating a design cycle that alternates between the exuberant and the restrained. In the 18th century, the Rococo emphasis on luxury was sartorially expressed through extravagant silk textiles and elaborate embroideries that projected an ethos of “more is best.” Opulence was a hallmark of…
19th and Early 20th Century (1850s – 1920s)
During the 19th century, minimalist and maximalist fashions began to diverge along gender lines. Men’s dark business suits, somber and sensible at once, contrasted with the highly ornamented styles and extreme silhouettes of women’s fashions, especially the opulent couture gowns by Charles Frederick Worth. By the late 19th century, however, leisure sports such as cycling…
1920s – 1940s
Maximalist tendencies quickly rose to the front once again, in line with the dynamism of the Jazz Age. Art Deco style, for example, fused the modernist tendencies of the Machine Age with visually stimulating eclecticism. However the stock market crash of 1929 signaled the start of the Great Depression, and precipitated a trend for understated…
1950s – 1970s
After the Second World War, women’s fashion moved toward ornamentation and hyper-femininity. Fashions evoked a nostalgia for full skirts, cinched waists, and the luxuriant craftsmanship of the haute couture. However, by the 1960s, fashion was breaking from tradition, and looking toward the future. The minimalist Space Age look of Andre Courrèges – with its streamlined…
1980s – 1990s
During the 1980s, ostentatious glamour and self-confident fashion were manifested in a variety of extravagant styles. Those associated with “power dressing,” a hallmark of the decade, often challenged conventional notions of “good taste.” Postmodernism also precipitated a merging of sartorial styles, signs, and motifs never before attempted. In contrast, the 1990s emphasized “invisible luxury” that…
2000s – 2010 (ish)
As the first decade of the twenty-first century unfolded, the focus turned toward theatre and spectacle, exemplified in designs by Alexander McQueen and Jun Takahashi of Undercover. Their penchants for drama and fantasy indicated a new direction for maximalist fashion. In addition, the economic upswing after the recession of the 1990s precipitated a return of…
2015 – 2019
Most recently, fashion has gravitated toward the maximal. Creations by contemporary designers draw from a multitude of visual references and experiment with pattern, volume, and proportion. This new trend has been influenced, in part, by an over-stimulated society driven by social media, the accessibility of information via the internet, and “selfie” culture. As many journalists…