Mainbocher—The Most Important American Designer You’ve Never Heard Of—Is Getting His Due in Chicago Inline
Photographed by Irving Penn, Vogue, June 19611/15“Main Bocher and five new Mainbochers, from left to right: [on Sunny Harnett] silk surah morning glories—pink and fuchsia on black, one of the few long dresses Mainbocher showed this season. This has his famous bias cut, a cowboy fling of scarf trickling off the shoulders. At Main Bocher’s, left, one of those short evening dresses that look almost too fragile to breathe on—embroidered white organdy. Over [Isabelle Albonico’s] arm, a short red faille coat. The coat half-hidden by this one [on Anne St. Marie] is fitted white cotton, with a dotty pink-and-white lining. The other dots—mauve on white—belong to one of the famous Mainbocher suit blouses, and account for much of the charm of the mauve jersey suit in the foreground [on Dorothy McGowan]. Finally, a cashmere dress with its own flick of jacket in white and yellow checks. The coiffures by Kenneth of Lily Daché.”
Illustrated by Douglas Pollard, Vogue, March 19312/15Douglas Pollard, who illustrated Mainbocher’s draped blouse and gloves here, was the designer’s partner in life and work.
Photographed by Toni Von Horn, Vogue, June 19313/15Left, “Folds of heavy geranium-red crepe fall into interesting lines in this Mainbocher dress with circular fullness. The scarf worn at the high neck gives a new evening chic.”
Photographed by George Hoyningen-Huene, Vogue, September 19334/15Toto Koopman
“All the attention goes to the neck, with a hundred ways to accent its importance. Mainbocher adds a jabot of crinkly pleated white chiffon to a little guimpe that mounds about the throat of a black wool dress, ‘412,’ garnished by a pleated bertha of crinkly black satin ribbon. The black antelope bag is from Germaine Guérin; the Mainbocher hat is of black felt.”
Illustrated by Rene Bouet-Willaumez, Vogue, November 19335/15Diana Vreeland in Mainbocher
Diana Vreeland posing in a Mainbocher top-coat, black and white velvet scarf and feathered hat. *** Local Caption *** Diana Vreeland;
