Très Parisien 1923 No 11: 13.- PAPILLON. - Exquise cette robe de style... 1923

Curator: Well, here we have "Très Parisien 1923 No 11," specifically focusing on a dress design. It's a watercolor illustration, fairly small in scale. My first thought is how delicate the rendering is, almost like a fashion plate brought to life with soft colours. It really captures the "flapper" era. Editor: Yes, the application of watercolour, specifically, provides it with an aura of the period and of fashion. Notice how the illustration is less about presenting fine art but about something circulating within modes of production, reproduction, and, eventually, consumption. Curator: I see your point. It feels mass-producible, which certainly ties into the rise of consumer culture in the 1920s. But there's still a handcrafted quality here. The detail in the dress, for example. Look at the texture they create with the brushstrokes! Editor: The textiles become important in their own right, and that's reinforced by the text beneath the illustration indicating where one could obtain the fabric and, subsequently, commission a dress of this type to be made. The point is, who had access to the fabrics or who could afford the garment? These become material questions bound up with social relations. Curator: Right. And that impacts the reception of images like these, influencing trends and what gets produced. But I'm still drawn to how joyful this illustration is! The composition, colours, the dress – there's just something about the artistry and design that resonates with the spirit of the age. Editor: I see how you interpret that joy, but I tend to look beyond the surface into the means of circulation and networks of production that the artwork highlights. And even further into social constructs about fashion! But the piece undoubtedly presents interesting avenues for us to follow.