Extravagance and Excess at the Walker

You wait ages to see a costume exhibition, and then two come along at once! Next year is the 150th anniversary of the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool, and the celebrations are starting early with this exhibition looking at fashions from the decade when the gallery opened.

Part of the exhibition

There are 11 outfits on display; 10 female and one male. Sadly, the combination of dark cloth and reflections from the glass cases made the latter impossible to photograph, but then this blog doesn't really concern itself with men's clothing.

As ever with costume exhibitions at the Walker, the mannequins are arranged to give good all-round views - especially important for an era when the bustle was a major element of an outfit.

Backs visible as well as fronts

That said, one of the most interesting (to me, at least) outfits was the least fancy. This printed cotton house dress would have been worn in the morning to attend to chores - which could be cleaning or just correspondence, depending on how many staff the household was able to employ. Such dresses were often cut up for reuse, making this one a rare survivor.

House dress, 1875-80

Wedding dresses, such as this one, were far more likely to be kept. They also have the advantage for museum curators of being tied to an exact date.

Silk satin wedding dress, 1875

Back view

Not all brides wore white; a darker dress which could be worn again was a popular and thrifty choice.

Corded silk and silk satin wedding dress

The wedding took place on 20 December 1877

A lot of the dresses on display are lavishly trimmed and have asymmetrical bustles, with some carrying the asymmetry on to the front as well. This day dress however is far more restrained.

Corded silk day dress, 1875-78

One thing which it does have, along with several other dresses in the exhibition, is a pocket. Which tied in nicely with my observation about costumes in the Cosprop exhibition being made as 'real' clothes.

Lots of pockets

As well as wedding dresses, there are a couple of mourning dresses in the exhibition. I was amazed that these were in such good condition, given that the substances used to make black and purple dyes at the time were not conducive to the long life of silk.

Silk and lace mourning afternoon dress

The exhibition also includes reproductions of some cartes de visite in the museum's collection, showing these fashions being worn.

Some of the cartes de visite

The most extravagant dress in the exhibition is also the oldest. It dates from around 1870, and the skirt shape still shows a little echo of the cage crinoline era.

Moiré and corded silk afternoon dress

The amount of work which must have gone into making and applying all those trims does not bear thinking about.

So much piping and edging

It belonged to the wife of a wealthy industrialist, who could not only afford such ornate clothes but probably also required them as a demonstration of the family's wealth. If this was a day dress, the mind boggles at what her evening dresses must have looked like.

Ornate sleeve detail

'Less is more' clearly doesn't apply here!

While I have no intention of ever trying to make anything that ornate, the exhibition did make me think that I should resurrect my 1874 pattern project. Once I have finished my currently stalled 1915 project, of course!

Extravagance and Excess: Fashion in the 1870s runs until 9 Apr 2027, and is free to visit.