Journal des Dames et des Modes, Costumes Parisiens, 1913, No. 124 : Manteau de Putois (...) 1913

This is Jan van Brock’s illustration, *Journal des Dames et des Modes, Costumes Parisiens, 1913, No. 124 : Manteau de Putois...*, from 1913. It feels like a fashion plate, a record of a fleeting moment. I bet Jan was thinking a lot about line here, about the power of a single stroke to capture the drape of fabric, the curve of a shoulder. There's this real sense of play with the graphic potential of fashion. The fox fur stole wraps around the body, becoming almost abstract in its repetition. I mean, look at how Jan uses the vertical lines in the coat to suggest form, yet also flatten the image. It’s kind of like cubism, but with clothes! It makes me think about the relationship between fashion and art, and how both are constantly borrowing and riffing off each other. Artists look at fashion for inspiration; designers look at art. It’s an ongoing conversation through time.