Très Parisien, 1923, No 7: 9.- MA GRANDE SOEUR. - 1. Robe de jeune fille... 1923

This is a fashion plate, Très Parisien, made in 1923 by an anonymous artist, which to me, brings up questions around notions of authorship and value. The colour palette is muted, almost faded, and yet the composition is so striking, the arrangement of shapes so bold. It’s amazing how the artist uses a limited number of colours to create depth and texture. Look at how the purple ribbon cinches the waist of the older sister. It’s just a flat plane of colour, but it suggests volume, a sculptural form. The whole thing feels like a stage set, the figures like actors in a play. I’m reminded of Erté, another artist who worked in fashion and theatre design, creating similarly glamorous and stylized images. Both artists understood that art is a conversation, a constant exchange of ideas across time. So, the images are fixed, but our ideas about them never are.