Fashion Design as an art form wasn’t recognised until the nineteen century, prior to that clothing design was the domain of anonymous dressmakers.
The father of Haute Couture, Charles Worth, an Englishman and a favourite of Empress Eugenie, Napoleon III’s wife, changed all that. In 1858 he set up his fashion salon, the House of Worth in Paris, establishing Paris as the fashion capital of the world.
I think just about every fashion or costume student at some point on their scholastic journey has had to have researched designers that came before them and written a fashion history paper on their favourite era and a designer they admired or found influential. I have always been drawn to the simplicity and elegance of the 1920s and 30s and my favourite designer of the period Madeleine Vionnet, for her cutting techniques and of course, the bias cut and Elsa Schiaparelli for the unconventional artistry she brought to her designs.
While I was aware of Stephen Burrows and Patrick Kelly, Black designers who were popular during my time at college in the late 1980s, as I scoured reference library archives, there wasn’t a tidbit to be found, leading to any evidence of notable Black designers or dressmakers, from any period. Forward to 2013 when I renewed my efforts and delved into the topic, I still found the information scarce and challenging to come by, on black designers.
“ We are not “black” designers, but American designers, the way Bill Blass is an American designer…as soon as you categorize us, you can erase us. “~ Arthur McGee (first Black designer to run a Seventh Ave design studio)
The history of fashion design embodies a collective of creative artists who pride themselves on being part of a selective cabal… “the fashion industry”. And in recent years the fashion industry has been criticized for its lack of racial diversity[1]. Specifically on the Fashion Week runways but the push for racial diversity doesn’t end with models and while there has been a concerted effort to see more Black models on the runway, the inclusion of Black designers has been overlooked.[2]
Nevertheless, please join me as I stroll through history and uncover and highlight the names and work of Black Designers who have contributed to and shaped the fashion of their times, some who have never received credit on any fashion history timeline.
Long before there was Black History Month or Fashion Week, Black designers practiced their craft in slave quarters on plantations and eventually in urban dress shops. They weren’t known as fashion designers back then, they were dressmakers, modistes, and seamstresses.
Before the US Civil War, black tailors and black dressmakers contributed their talents to the development of the fashion industry. Between 1863 and 1913, African Americans owned businesses in dressmaking, millinery, and tailoring. By 1860, black tailors’ annual incomes ranged as high as $10,000 annually[3] which would translate to approximately $347,000 in today’s economy.
Dressmaking has proved to be a profitable calling for Black women dating back to slavery. The slave trade brought hundreds of thousands of Africans to the southern region of the United States where the enslaved females were responsible for designing and sewing beautiful garments for their owners.
Many plantations had a weaving room and weaving was a skill the enslaved brought with them, applying it to make cloth from cotton and wool; even silk was produced on some plantations. The women were responsible for the majority of the household sewing and most importantly the wardrobe of the mistress of the house. Gowns were constructed from only a picture or illustration as a guide. While in the northern states, women did their own sewing or hired a dressmaker, in the south enslaved women were expected to do the work.
An enslaved woman with accomplished sewing skills was very valuable to her owners and was not only able to hire herself out but also to keep a percentage of the earnings, thus she had greater freedom than other slaves and could travel freely to purchase fabrics and to the homes of clients. Consequently, many women were able to purchase their freedom with their earnings.
Once free, many Black women launched dressmaking businesses although most were reduced to “seamstress” by their exclusively White clientele who refused to publicly acknowledge them as dressmakers. Dressmaking was a rewarding vocation for Black women, who did quite well financially and after Emancipation were also fortunate to maintain both Black and White clientele.
While Charles Worth was dictating fashion and revolutionising the business of fashion in France, across the pond in the US, a formerly enslaved woman, Elizabeth Keckley was making waves of her own.
[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/16/fashion/Fashion-diversity-bethann-Hardison-diversity-coalition.html
[2] https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/12/fashion/fashions-racial-divide.html
[3] http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1995-02-23/features/9502230107_1_fashion-designers-slave-lois-alexander
The Errant Modiste 