Silk

Silk shirts, blouses, dresses and gowns from the archive.

Silk is not one cloth. Crepe de chine is matte and fluid with a fine grain. Satin is the weave, not the fibre — which is why a silk satin falls and a polyester satin only shines. Chiffon and sheer silks are woven open, so they drape rather than hold a shape. The weight is what decides how a piece moves.

Print is the other half. Baroque and medallion prints, florals, animal print and the painterly maxi gowns of the 1980s and 90s all read as a specific moment, and genuine silk holds that colour in a way a printed synthetic does not.

Drape is a property of the fibre rather than the pattern — The Silk Story covers the filament structure behind it.

Each piece here is one of one. When it is gone, it is gone.