One could say that I am almost morbidly fascinated by panniers. They are just so HUGE, and even on a court gown (which is really what they were made for), it's just too much. So where did they begin, and why?
Most say (i.e., Wikipedia!) that panniers began in Spain in the 17th century, as evinced by the portraits of Velazquez. Though I half- thought they might have had a brief preview in Elizabethan fashion. I was unable to discover, though, if their underclothing included panniers. From my research, I only discovered hoop skirts. Though the portrait of Queen Elizabeth (below) certainly implies panniers, I think!
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| panniers or hoop-skirt - what do you think? |
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| Portrait of the Infanta by Velazquez. |
Of course, the French took the pannier and ran with it. French court dresses, Marie Antoinette, you name it!
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| Not only the panniers, but a huge train as well! |
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| 18th century stays & pannier |
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| 18th C. (Victoria & Albert collection). |
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| A portrait of Marie Antoinette. |
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| Another corset and the top part of the panniers (compare with picture above) in some interesting display with a mask. |
After this heyday of the pannier, we don't really see them much after that. The late 18th century tones itself down and slips into the regency style that most women know and love through Jane Austen films. After that there were crinolines and hoop-skirts, and bustles galore, but not (that I can tell) panniers.
They resurface (greatly toned down) in the 1920s, again in court dresses.
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| A lovely pink and mauve ensemble. |
Maybe I'm crazy, and certainly I'm partial to the 1920s, but I think the 1920s version of the pannier really works. Here are a couple non-court dress versions:
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| A *beautiful* dress worn by the young Joan Crawford in "Our Dancing Daughters" 1928. |
We see a bit of the pannier in the 1940s, and it probably cropped up in the 1980s as well (I looked a little and couldn't find anything). But is there a future for the pannier? Is it still alive and well?
Well...I did find a few examples, surprisingly. They are even more toned down than they were in the 1920s, but I think they can still pass as panniers.
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| A dress designed by Vivienne Westwood (kudos to Pippa, one of my Young Women, who told me about her - I hadn't heard of her before!) |
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| The lovely Emma Stone wearing a dress with something of a pannier beneath. |
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| Another Vivienne Westwood design. |
So, what do you think? Would you wear a dress with panniers? And how wide would you go?
I, personally, am in love with that second 20's dress shown! The way you can see through to the panniers is genius! I don't know if there's a "future" for them more than the possibility of fads here and there. The ultimate problem is, they accentuate a part of a woman's body that doesn't want acccentuating. But, hopefully, it will still crop up from time to time!
ReplyDeleteI would love to wear panniers!! I agree with Morag about that 20's dress--LOVE it!! Love the pink one, too. I wish they would return. There is something inherently faddish about all those hoop/bustle/panniers items--they are (often gross) exaggerations of our regular body parts. But that is what makes them so fun!!
ReplyDeleteWays you can unabashedly use panniers today: 1) Star in an opera or play set in the 18th century. We make/use them from time to time in our costume shop; 2) Wear giant 80s shoulder pads, for they are just neck panniers. 3) Get a set of pannier baskets for your bike.
ReplyDeleteI personally would consider that gold Vivienne Westwood number.
Just googled myself here after reading about a panier dress in a 1920's brothel in Alec Waugh's novel "The Fatal Gift" . . .
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