In this exclusive talk Cally Blackman looks at fashion as it was represented through the autochrome. It is based on her new book The Colour of Clothes: Fashion and Dress in Autochromes 1907-1930 (Thames and Hudson, March, 2025) which celebrates the unique beauty of the autochrome in 370 images that reflect the broad sweep of its usage. Couturiers embraced the way the process showcased their exquisite designs to luminous perfection—among them Fortuny, Poiret, Doucet, Vionnet, Lucile, Chanel, and Lanvin. Beyond the sphere of fashion, there are also examples from the Salon du Goût Français, France’s 'virtual' autochrome exhibition of luxury items, and Albert Kahn’s Archives de la Planète, a bold attempt to record the world’s cultures in autochrome
Cally Blackman studied Fashion Design at Central Saint Martin’s from 1972 to 1975 and returned to teach on BA Fashion History & Theory course in 2001. She is a fashion historian, lecturer, and author. Her research into autochromes is both original and extensive, with a large number of images she has sourced that have either never or very rarely been published since they were first made more than one hundred years ago. She has written several books including 100 Years of Fashion Illustration (2007), 100 Years of Menswear (2009), 100 Years of Fashion (2012) and co-author of A Portrait of Fashion (2015).
Fashion and Dress in Autochromes
Cally Blackman
1 April 2025 at 1800 (BST)
Free. Register here: https://tinyurl.com/mvpywvd4
Image: Robert B Bird, Autochrome, c.1917. RPS, Bristol.
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