Knitwear in Fashion – Chanel to Westwood

This Autumn the Fashion and Textile Museum presents ‘Knitwear in Fashion – Chanel to Westwood’, a revolutionary exhibition exploring the evolution of fashion knitwear in the 20th century. The extensive retrospective traces the influence of Chanel in the 1920s and ’30s vintage woollen swimwear, leading to post-war Hollywood-style knits, right up to 1980s Vivienne Westwood and 1990s Julien MacDonald.

Running alongside ‘Knitwear in Fashion – Chanel to Westwood’ is ‘Visionary Knitwear – New Directions’, an archive chosen by Sandy Black, knitwear expert and Professor of Fashion and Textile Design and Technology at London College of Fashion. This segment celebrates influential UK knitwear designers, acknowledging the particular role of UK fashion education in their training. Finally, ‘Knitwear in Fashion Photography’ presents a selection of fashion photography by Norman Parkinson of the Norman Parkinson Archive, highlighting the prominence of knitwear in 20th century fashion imagery.

This exciting combination of knitwear design pioneers and visually stunning knitwear pieces charts the influence of art movements Pop, Punk and Deconstruction while exploring the impact of new knitwear technologies and design innovation.

‘Knitwear – Chanel to Westwood’ runs from 19 September 2014 till 18th January 2015.

Fashion and Textile Museum
83 Bermondsey St
London
SE1 3XF

olivia hepburn