Woman's Ensemble (Swimsuit and Skirt)

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Woman's Ensemble (Swimsuit and Skirt)

United States, California, 1942
Costumes; ensembles
Cotton plain weave, glazed cotton rick-rack, elastic (Matletex)
Length (a) Swimsuit, overall): 29 1/2 in. (74.93 cm) Center back length (b) Skirt): 44 1/2 in. (113.03 cm)
Gift of The Fashion Group, Inc., of Los Angeles (48.39.24a-b)
Not currently on public view

Curator Notes

One of California’s most influential contributions to American fashion was the bathing suit ensemble—consisting of any combination of bathing suit, skirt, shorts, pants, and top of the same fabric to ...
One of California’s most influential contributions to American fashion was the bathing suit ensemble—consisting of any combination of bathing suit, skirt, shorts, pants, and top of the same fabric to mix and match to fit the occasion. Margit Fellegi’s two-piece ensemble could be worn as a bathing suit or, with the addition of the skirt, as seen here, for cocktails by the pool.

(California Design, 1930-1965: "Living in a Modern Way," 2011-12)
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Bibliography

  • Maeder, Edward.  Salute to California: 50 Years of Fashion, 1930-1980.  Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1980.
  • Barron, Stephanie, S. Bernstein and I. S. Fort, with essays by Stephanie Barron, Sherri Bernstein, M. Dear, Howard N. Fox and Richard Rodriguez.  Made in California: Art, Image, and Identity, 1900-2000.  Los Angeles:  Los Angeles County Museum of Art and Berkeley:  University of California Press, Berkeley, 2000.

    View this publication in LACMA's Reading Room

  • Maeder, Edward.  Salute to California: 50 Years of Fashion, 1930-1980.  Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1980.
  • Barron, Stephanie, S. Bernstein and I. S. Fort, with essays by Stephanie Barron, Sherri Bernstein, M. Dear, Howard N. Fox and Richard Rodriguez.  Made in California: Art, Image, and Identity, 1900-2000.  Los Angeles:  Los Angeles County Museum of Art and Berkeley:  University of California Press, Berkeley, 2000.

    View this publication in LACMA's Reading Room

  • Kaplan, Wendy, ed. California Design, 1930-1965: Living in a Modern Way. Los Angeles: Los  Angeles County Museum of Art; Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2011.
  • Kaplan, Wendy, ed. Living in a Modern Way: California Design, 1930-1965.  Los Angeles: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2013. 
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Exhibition history

  • California Design, 1930–1965: "Living in a Modern Way" Los Angeles, CA, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, October 1, 2011 - June 3, 2012