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In Memory of Elizabeth Howe, Salem, 1692

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Look 43 presented at Lee Alexander McQueen: Mind, Mythos, Muse at Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec

In Memory of Elizabeth Howe, Salem, 1692[a] is the thirtieth collection by British fashion designer Alexander McQueen, made for the Autumn/Winter 2007 season of his eponymous fashion house. Elizabeth Howe was inspired by the Salem witch trials, and also incorporated elements from occult symbolism and the ancient Egyptian religion. McQueen was distantly related to Elizabeth Howe, one of the women hanged during the trials, and he travelled to Salem, Massachusetts, to do research for the collection. Compared to his previous two collections, which were melancholy and romantic, the narrative was noticeably more Gothic, with themes of persecution and desire. The palette was largely dark shades, with jewel tones and gold for contrast.

The runway show was staged on 2 March 2007 at Le Zénith Arena in Paris during Paris Fashion Week. The collection was presented in a dimly-lit room. A 45-foot screen in the shape of an inverted pyramid was suspended above the dark circular stage, where models walked along the lines of a red pentagram. A film directed by McQueen accompanied the show, depicting occult and macabre imagery. Forty-nine looks were presented. The most notable are a series of long dresses with beading which resembles hair, and a gold bodysuit evoking gilded Egyptian statuary.

Response to the collection was negative. Irritated reviewers complained that it was difficult to see the designs due to the dim lighting and decried the macabre theatrics for overshadowing the designs. In retrospect, it is not one of his better-remembered collections. Academic analysis has focused on interpreting McQueen's narrative and references. Items from the collection have appeared in exhibitions like the retrospective Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty.

Background

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British fashion designer Alexander McQueen was known for his imaginative, sometimes controversial designs, and dramatic fashion shows.[2][3] During his nearly twenty-year career, he explored a broad range of ideas and themes, including historicism, romanticism, femininity, sexuality, and death.[2][3][4] He learned tailoring as an apprentice on Savile Row, and dressmaking as head designer at French fashion house Givenchy.[b][7] Although he worked in ready-to-wear – clothing produced for retail sale – his showpiece designs featured a degree of craftsmanship that verged on haute couture.[8][9][10]

McQueen's work was highly autobiographical: he incorporated elements of his memories, feelings, and personal fixations into his designs and runway shows.[11][12] He had a difficult upbringing, which led him to identify with the persecuted and the vulnerable all his life.[13][14][15] McQueen's mother Joyce was interested in genealogy, and she passed this interest to her son, who became fascinated by his heritage.[16][17] Several of his collections, including Joan (Autumn/Winter 1998) and Eye (Spring/Summer 2000), examined the persecution and oppression of women.[18][19] McQueen's earlier shows Highland Rape (Autumn/Winter 1995) and The Widows of Culloden (Autumn/Winter 2006) drew on his feelings about his Scottish ancestry and English violence toward Scotland.[20]

Variations on a hard moulded bodice appeared in a number of McQueen's collections. The idea originated in Banshee (Autumn/Winter 1994), in the form of a heavy plaster of Paris breastplate, then in The Hunger, which featured a clear plastic corset with worms inside.[21][22] For No. 13 (Spring/Summer 1999), McQueen worked with product designer Kees van der Graaf to create plaster of Paris life casts of model Laura Morgan, from which several moulded leather bodices were made. The same casts were used to create bodices for several future collections, including The Overlook (Autumn/Winter 1999) and It's Only a Game (Spring/Summer 2005).[23]

Concept and collection

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Greyscale painting of a courtroom scene
Painting of two alleged witches on trial during the Salem witch hunts
Gold funerary mask of Tutenkhamen with blue glass paste stripes

In Memory of Elizabeth Howe, Salem, 1692[a] (Autumn/Winter 2007) is the thirtieth collection McQueen designed for his eponymous fashion house.[24] His previous two collections, Widows and Sarabande (Spring/Summer 2007), had been melancholy but softly romantic.[1][25] Elizabeth Howe took a noticeably darker, more Gothic tone, with themes of persecution, revenge, and desire.[1][26][27] The collection's primary inspiration was the Salem witch trials, a series of religiously-motivated prosecutions of people accused of witchcraft in colonial Massachusetts between February 1692 and April 1693; nineteen of the accused were hanged.[28] McQueen also drew on The Crucible, a 1953 play by Arthur Miller which dramatises the Salem events, as well as the 1996 film version.[29]

McQueen became interested in the trials toward the end of 2006. According to his mother's genealogy research, they were distant relatives of Elizabeth Howe, one of the women hanged.[c][1][30] That December, he took a research trip to Salem, Massachusetts, an exception from his usual reluctance to travel for work.[16][30] He was accompanied by his second-in-command Sarah Burton, McQueen's friend Kerry Youmas, and fashion journalist Sarah Mower; Mower had been commissioned by Vogue to write a feature article about the research process for the collection.[30] While in Salem, the group undertook research at local libraries and the Salem Witch Museum, and visited historical locations such as Howe's grave.[16][30]

The overall palette was sombre, with mostly dark shades like black, brown, and maroon.[1] For contrast, there were rich green, purple, and blue jewel tones, including in iridescent greens said to resemble insect wings and dip-dyed fox furs.[1][21][32] Gold saw heavy use as both an accent and a main colorway.[1][32] The collection's saturated colours would have violated the sumptuary laws in place in Salem during the time of the witch trials, because of the amount of dye required to achieve them.[33]

Look 19 and Look 29 pictured at Lee Alexander McQueen & Ann Ray – Rendez-Vous

Elizabeth Howe also incorporated elements from occult symbolism and the ancient Egyptian religion.[1][34][35] Two long black dresses, Looks 43 and 44, were adorned with beading that appeared to resemble locks of hair, which can be associated with witchcraft and femininity.[29][32] Jeweller Shaun Leane, a frequent McQueen collaborator, created a pair of headpieces that drew on neopagan moon goddess symbolism: a crescent moon and a large star, each covered with Swarovski crystals.[1][36][26] Look 42, a sheer black dress paired with the moon headpiece, was covered in what Karen Homer took as "pagan symbols".[37] Critics have viewed some ensembles from a series of blue-and-gold and all-gold looks in the middle of the collection to be evocative of gilded ancient Egyptian statuary and sarcophagi.[1][38] The patterns on some of these resembled stylised ibis wings, a bird that was sacred to the Egyptians.[21]

Leather and other stiff materials appeared in several items. There were bustiers in brown leather and what Wilcox described as "scarab-shaped leather carapaces", paired with thigh-highs.[1][32] Morgan's torso cast was used again to create a moulded leather bodice in chocolate-brown leather.[23][34] The design extended downward past the hips and upward to cover the entire face, save the eyes.[1][39] Look 45 juxtaposed hard and soft with a stiff exterior and a fuzzy inner layer.[40]

The designs looked back to McQueen's previous collections in other ways. The hourglass silhouette found in Look 45 was a McQueen standard, heavily present in Sarabande; and wide necklines recalled similar designs from Pantheon ad Luceum (Autumn/Winter 2004).[40] There were multiple apparent callbacks to Irere (Spring/Summer 2003). Katherine Gleason suggested that a gem-covered cross on Look 40 was similar to that collection's religious elements, while Judith Watt identified the final four looks from Elizabeth Howe as drawing on a nude bodysuit with elaborate black patterning from Irere.[41][42] McQueen had experimented with hair in Eshu (Fall/Winter 2000), which a coat made entirely from large loops of synthetic hair.[43]

Other garments evoked the work of designers McQueen admired. The gown with hair-like beading reminded Kate Bethune of designs made by Jean Cocteau for Elsa Schiaparelli.[1] Gleason thought that Look 17, a blue and gold cocktail dress with origami-like pointed folds, was evocative of a 1989 Issey Miyake design.[44] Some concepts were more novel. Several items had rounded or bulging silhouettes which departed heavily from both McQueen's typical style and the fashionable norm.[38][40] Some authors felt they resembled the ovum – the female egg cell.[1][21]

Runway show

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A woman wearing heavy blue eyeshadow and black winged eyeliner
Elizabeth Taylor portraying the lead character in Cleopatra (1963)
Side profile of woman wearing heavy blue eyeshadow and black winged eyeliner
Close-up of Magdalena Frąckowiak on the runway
Comparison of make-up looks from Cleopatra and Elizabeth Howe

The runway show was staged on 2 March 2007 at Le Zénith Arena in Paris.[24] Guests were provided with a copy of a genealogy chart documenting McQueen's relation to Howe.[45] The show opened with the song "Red Tape" (1995) by Agent Provocateur.[45] Other tracks included a hard rock cover of the 1956 song "I Put a Spell on You".[38]

McQueen typically worked with a consistent creative team for his shows. McQueen's longtime collaborator Katy England was responsible for overall styling; it was her last show with McQueen.[1] Gainsbury & Whiting handled production.[24] Joseph Bennett, who had designed all of McQueen's runways since No. 13 (Spring/Summer 1999), took care of set design.[46][47] Eugene Souleiman styled hair, while Charlotte Tilbury handled make-up.[d][24][49]

Styling for the collection was dramatic. McQueen was heavily involved in determining the details of the final look. He told Elle magazine he felt there was no point doing shows without elaborate hair and make-up: "We already know what we really look like in clothes. We want the fantasy."[49] Years later, Burton recalled how McQueen's philosophy on runway styling, which downplayed models' identities in favour of emphasising the designs, was expressed in extreme fashion in Elizabeth Howe. One model was sent down the runway in a leather bodice that extended upward to cover her entire face, save the eyes.[39]

Hair was styled in buns that were elongated behind the head.[38] Souleiman described the look as "Alien meets Predator, a really bizarre silhouette, with a kind of Cleopatra-slash-Joan of Arc-y front".[49] Make-up for the collection was dramatic, evoking the colourful styles worn in the 1960s. Models wore heavy matte green and blue eye shadow with thick black winged eye liner, inspired by the looks worn by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1963 film Cleopatra and the popular conception of Egyptian glamour.[21][32][50] MAC Cosmetics later released a limited-edition "MAC for McQueen" collection featuring eye shadow inspired by the runway make-up.[50]

The collection was presented in a dimly-lit room with a circular stage covered with dark gravel.[51] A red pentagram, a symbol commonly associated with witchcraft and paganism, was laid into the rocks while a 45-foot screen in the shape of an inverted pyramid was suspended above.[29][52][47] The show opened with an image of three women projected on the screen, while a voice whispered "I open my heart to you, I open my spirit to you, I open my body to you."[30] Throughout the show, a film played on the screen depicting macabre imagery of flames, blood, insects, owls, decaying human heads, and naked women.[1][36] Models walked along the outline of the pentagram rather than in the traditional straight line.[30][38] The overall effect was of a Satanic ritual.[52]

Forty-nine looks were presented in total.[53] The first ensembles focused on a soft look, with rounded silhouettes, padded hips, and quilted fabric. The show then moved to blue and gold Egyptian-inspired items, followed by a series of more commercial skirts, wrap jackets, and denim items, interspersed with leather bustiers.[42] The final phase comprised mostly black or very dark dresses with various embellishments, including the long beaded gowns. The last four ensembles had elaborate patterns rendered in black beading; the closing look featured a model dusted with gold pigment.[54]

Reception

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Shoes from the collection at Mind, Mythos, Muse

The collection was poorly received.[48] The show was held late at night at a venue far from the heart of Paris. Traffic was heavy, the weather was badly inclement, and the audience was forced to wait in the dark for the show to start. As a result, many reviewers were already irritated by the time the show began, and were not inclined to judge it kindly.[48][53]

Critics found the show unacceptably dark, especially in contrast to Widows and Sarabande.[1][52][55] Vogue cancelled Mower's feature article.[52] Mower herself was disappointed by the collection. She thought McQueen's statement about persecution had been lost in the noise, and called the show "one of the season's most deleterious cases of concept overwhelming clothes".[53] Mower felt that "quieter pieces" were overwhelmed by the gory visuals.[53] Although she enjoyed some of the designs, highlighting the experimental rounded silhouettes and the long gowns, she concluded that they were not enough to make the runway show worth seeing.[53]

The runway show was criticised for putting "macabre theatrics" over the practicalities of design and presentation.[1] Many complained that it was difficult to see the designs due to the dim lighting and the distance between the audience and the stage.[48][56]

Some critics found things to appreciate. There was praise for designs that "connoted fertility and protection".[1] Dolly Jones of British Vogue thought that a green satin parka with fur hood from Look 31 would be commercially successful.[40]

In a 2008 article, Bridget Foley of W described it as a "study in vitriol expressed via fashion".[25] She reports that McQueen himself by the considered the execution of the collection "at least partly a mistake".[25] In her 2012 biography of McQueen, Watt explicitly argued against Foley's remark, saying that McQueen was responding to the "outrage of what had happened to innocent women".[42] She felt the rounded silhouettes were an interesting development of McQueen's effort to create silhouettes that did not focus on the waist, as Western fashion traditionally had.[21]

Archie Reed, McQueen's on-again, off-again boyfriend, described the collection in a 2013 interview as "the start of [McQueen] saying goodbye".[e][52]

Analysis

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Lilith, Adam's First Wife, woodblock print by Ernst Barlach, 1922[58]

Interpretation of the visuals that accompanied the collection is not straightforward. Claire Wilcox assessed them as a "contemplation of the powers of feminine enchantment".[32] Others have found them macabre.[53] Textile curators Clarissa M. Esguerra and Michaela Hansen suggested that the image of three women which opened the show represented the three protagonists of The Crucible.[29]

Some theorists place Elizabeth Howe in the context of fashion history. Textile theorist Petra Krpan noted that McQueen was following a long tradition of making Cleopatra – both the actual woman and the cinematic portrayal – an inspiration for fashion and art.[59] Academic Kristen J. Sollée positioned it as one of many collections that draw on what she termed "witch fashion": styles which invoke the dark feminine power associated with the folkloric figure of the witch.[60] Dazed magazine recalled it as one of the "witchiest" collections in fashion history.[56]

Knox felt that Look 20, the gold bodysuit, epitomised the collection's Egyptian elements. She suggested it resembled a "golden statuette of some ancient divinity" or perhaps a stereotypical gilded Egyptian sarcophagus.[61] Gleason thought it "glowed like the sun", which she noted was revered in both ancient Egyptian and pagan practice.[44] Bethune read Leane's headpieces as pagan symbols, while Wilson called them a "reminder of nocturnal sorcery".[1][36]

Authors have compared the collection to Widows in terms of its basis in McQueen's ancestry.[29][45] Katherine Gleason considered it another instance of McQueen exploring the concept of persecution and stigmatisation.[45] Caroline Spooner interpreted the show's aesthetic as using occult symbolism to present the "persecuted witches" as "exotic femmes fatales" instead of as victims.[62]

Esguerra and Hansen interpreted the dresses with beading resembling hair symbolised freedom, feminine power, and temptation. For them, the image was a subversion of the practice of shaving or cutting the hair of suspected witches; conversely they also felt it resembled fire, invoking the European practice of burning witches at the stake.[f][29] They compared these dresses to a series of woodblock prints by German expressionist Ernst Barlach, in which hair and witchcraft are visually linked. One depicts the mythological figure of Lilith. Traditionally portrayed as demonic, modern re-imaginings often consider her a "symbol of feminine strength"; Esguerra and Hansen felt McQueen was making a similar re-interpretation of witches with Elizabeth Howe.[58] Although she acknowledged that McQueen was probably not thinking along these lines, Colleen Hill felt these dresses evoked the long-haired fairy tale character Rapunzel.[43]

Bethune found meaning in the leather items, especially the bustiers and moulded bodice. She felt the bustiers indicated "defiance against persecution", while the full-length bodice conversely "hinted at the suppression of religious freedoms".[1] Catherine Evans described the leather bodice as an "object with agency" – a thing that, by its design, makes something happen in a particular way. In this case, the bodice's length and rigidity forces the wearer to walk in a restricted way.[63] Ana Honigman described it as a way of reframing victimhood into a warrior state, with elements of "high-end BDSM kink"; her mouth both "silenced and ominously missing".[27]

Legacy

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Several items from Elizabeth Howe, particularly the dresses beaded to resemble hair, have appeared in museum exhibits. Three items from Elizabeth Howe appeared in the 2011 exhibition Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty: the gold bodysuit from Look 20, the leather face-covering bodice from Look 22, and a handbag made from silver-plated metal and brown leather.[64] The original bronze-beaded version of Look 43 appeared in Fairy Tale Fashion, a 2016 exhibition at The Museum at FIT.[65] Look 45, another of the beaded long black dresses, was the centrepiece of the exhibition The Salem Witch Trials: Reckoning and Reclaiming, originally staged in 2021 at the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) of Salem.[33] The 2022 exhibition Lee Alexander McQueen: Mind, Mythos, Muse featured several items from Elizabeth Howe. There were two black dresses with silver beading: Look 43 as presented on the runway as well as a variant of Look 44.[66][53] There were also two pairs of shoes and two pairs of boots.[66]

The National Gallery of Victoria owns copies of a gold quilted coat from Look 9, the gold beaded dress from Look 18, and the black velvet dress from Look 45.[67][68][69] The PEM owns the copy of Look 45 that appeared in their exhibition.[33]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b Some sources use the spelling "Elizabeth How".[1]
  2. ^ From 1996 to October 2001, McQueen was simultaneously head designer at Givenchy and his own label.[5][6]
  3. ^ Some sources inaccurately refer to Howe as an ancestor of McQueen's. She was a distant relative on his mother's side.[1][30][31]
  4. ^ Judith Watt reports the hairstylist as Guido Palau.[48] Backstage photographer Robert Fairer reports the make-up artists as Terry Barber and Val Garland in collaboration with MAC Cosmetics.[24] These sources appear to be in error, as contemporary sources quote Souleiman and Tilbury discussing their respective work backstage.[49]
  5. ^ McQueen committed suicide in February 2010.[57]
  6. ^ They note that this was a European practice; in America, witches were executed by hanging.[29]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Bethune 2015, p. 318.
  2. ^ a b "Alexander McQueen – an introduction". Victoria and Albert Museum. Archived from the original on 17 March 2021. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  3. ^ a b Mora & Berry 2022, pp. 126, 128, 132.
  4. ^ Bolton 2011, pp. 13–14.
  5. ^ Wilcox 2015, p. 327.
  6. ^ Wilson 2015, p. 255.
  7. ^ Bowles, Hamish (15 July 2010). "Alexander McQueen: Noble farewell". Vogue. Retrieved 30 January 2025.
  8. ^ Socha, Miles (4 November 2002). "King McQueen: A mature Alexander McQueen cast aside the shock values (and even the adolescent rants) to produce a dazzling spring collection. (Movers Shakers)". Women's Wear Daily. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
  9. ^ Mower, Sarah (9 March 2010). "Alexander McQueen Fall 2010 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  10. ^ Menkes, Suzy (9 March 2010). "McQueen's mesmerizing finale". The International Herald Tribune. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 14 January 2025. Retrieved 6 February 2025.
  11. ^ Thomas 2015, pp. 85, 153, 329.
  12. ^ Fairer & Wilcox 2016, p. 52.
  13. ^ de Beauharnais, Guillaume (3 July 2021). "Inverno de fogo: o desfile Joan de Alexander McQueen" [Winter of fire: Alexander McQueen's Joan show]. Elle Brazil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  14. ^ Wilson 2015, p. 139.
  15. ^ Steele 2008, p. 79.
  16. ^ a b c Bolton 2011, p. 228.
  17. ^ Gleason 2012, p. 8.
  18. ^ Bethune 2015, p. 309.
  19. ^ Watt 2012, p. 161.
  20. ^ Faiers, Jonathan (30 June 2011). "McQueen and Tartan". Metropolitan Museum of Art. Archived from the original on 7 September 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2025.
  21. ^ a b c d e f Watt 2012, p. 241.
  22. ^ Evans 2015, pp. 190, 192.
  23. ^ a b Evans 2015, pp. 191–192.
  24. ^ a b c d e Fairer & Wilcox 2016, p. 346.
  25. ^ a b c Foley, Bridget (31 May 2008). "Hail McQueen". W. Vol. 42, no. 6.
  26. ^ a b Homer 2023, p. 107.
  27. ^ a b Honigman 2021, p. 132–133.
  28. ^ Ray, Benjamin (2022). "The Salem Witch Trials Digital Archive: How and Why". Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project. University of Virginia. Retrieved 4 March 2025.
  29. ^ a b c d e f g Esguerra & Hansen 2022, p. 83.
  30. ^ a b c d e f g Wilson 2015, p. 306.
  31. ^ Watt 2012, p. 238.
  32. ^ a b c d e f Fairer & Wilcox 2016, p. 238.
  33. ^ a b c McGreevy, Nora (27 October 2021). "Reckoning with – and reclaiming – the Salem witch trials". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  34. ^ a b Knox 2010, p. 79.
  35. ^ Gleason 2012, pp. 163, 168.
  36. ^ a b c Wilson 2015, pp. 306–307.
  37. ^ Homer 2023, p. 105.
  38. ^ a b c d e Gleason 2012, p. 165.
  39. ^ a b Bolton 2011, p. 226.
  40. ^ a b c d Gleason 2012, p. 166.
  41. ^ Gleason 2012, pp. 166–168.
  42. ^ a b c Watt 2012, p. 244.
  43. ^ a b Hill 2016, pp. 119–120.
  44. ^ a b Gleason 2012, p. 164.
  45. ^ a b c d Gleason 2012, p. 163.
  46. ^ "Interview: Joseph Bennett on Lee McQueen". SHOWstudio. 16 March 2015. Archived from the original on 15 February 2024. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  47. ^ a b "Day 2: Joseph Bennett". SHOWstudio. Retrieved 28 February 2025.
  48. ^ a b c d Watt 2012, p. 240.
  49. ^ a b c d Bullock, Maggie (15 October 2007). "Prince of darkness". Elle. Retrieved 9 March 2025.
  50. ^ a b Betts, Hannah (17 November 2007). "The eyes have it". The Times. p. 59. Retrieved 8 March 2025.
  51. ^ Watt 2012, pp. 238, 240.
  52. ^ a b c d e Wilson 2015, p. 307.
  53. ^ a b c d e f g Mower, Sarah (2 March 2007). "McQueen Fall 2007 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  54. ^ Watt 2012, pp. 241, 244.
  55. ^ Gleason 2012, p. 168.
  56. ^ a b Van Dyke, Isobel (30 October 2024). "Bad witches: 8 times fashion referenced witchcraft". Dazed. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  57. ^ Wilson 2015, pp. 335–337.
  58. ^ a b Esguerra & Hansen 2022, p. 83–84.
  59. ^ Krpan 2022, p. 181.
  60. ^ Sollée 2022, pp. 178–179.
  61. ^ Knox 2010, p. 81.
  62. ^ Spooner 2015, p. 154.
  63. ^ Evans 2015, pp. 195–196.
  64. ^ Bolton 2011, p. 235.
  65. ^ "Fairy Tale Fashion". The Museum at FIT. 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  66. ^ a b Esguerra & Hansen 2022, pp. 173–174.
  67. ^ "Look 9, coat". National Gallery of Victoria. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
  68. ^ "Look 45, dress". National Gallery of Victoria. Retrieved 17 March 2025.
  69. ^ "Look 45, dress". National Gallery of Victoria. Retrieved 17 March 2025.

Bibliography

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