Dressmaking, considered a natural extension of women's proper work in the home, was a common and lucrative employment for women in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It afforded creative expression, prestige in the community, and even the possibility of financial independence. Yet as entrepreneurs, dressmakers faced unique business pressures, and with the advent of department stores and widespread mass production of women's clothing, most were forced out of business. Coinciding with the exhibition Cynthia Amneus organized for the Cincinnati Art Museum, this work examines the nineteenth-century ideology of women's separate sphere, the early feminist movement, women in the workplace, and dressmakers as artisans and professionals. More than 140 stunning custom-made garments, historical photographs, and dressmakers' labels document the superb artistic and technical skill of the women who produced fashionable dress in Cincinnati from 1877 to 1922. Bracketing Amneus's incisive study are essays by Anne Bissonnette on the eccentric tea gown, Marla Miller on the pitfalls of researching women's cultural work, and Shirley Teresa Wajda on the dressmakers' wealthy clientele. In all, A Separate Sphere offers a careful look into the lives of women struggling with ideological boundaries. Chronicling choices made by and imposed on both working-class women and their affluent counterparts, it reveals how these women managed to enhance their prescribed sphere for themselves and for the community at large. Anne Bissonnette is costume curator at Kent State University Museum. Her most recent exhibition is The Hours of the Woman of Leisure. Marla Miller teaches history at the University ofMassachusetts, Amherst. Her book on craftswomen in rural New England, 1740-1820, is forthcoming from the University of Massachusetts Press. Shirley Teresa Wajda teaches history and American studies at Kent State University. Her book "Social Currency: Commercial Portrait Photography and the Fashioning of an American Middle Class, 1839-1889" is forthcoming from Temple University Press.

A Separate Sphere (Costume Society of America Series)

Arts & Photography

Amnéus, Cynthia

History & Criticism

Texas Tech University Press

Spanning East to West, kimonos and kimono-influenced designs are everywhere, from high-end couturiers such as Yohji Yamamoto and Gucci to Main Street fashion chains such as Uniqlo and H&amp;M. In Kimono Refashioned, contributors explore the impact of the kimono on the fashion world, charting how these striking and elegant unisex garments came to transcend their traditional Japanese design origins. Featuring highlights from the renowned Kyoto Costume Institute, this lavish volume documents Japanese and Western designs, men's and women's apparel, and both exacting and impressionistic references to the kimono. Contributors from the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, the Newark Museum, and the Cincinnati Art Museum join curators from the Kyoto Costume Institute to reflect upon the wide-range of motifs used to decorate kimonos, the form and silhouette of the Japanese traditional dress, and how its basic two-dimensional structure and linear cut have been refashioned into a wide array of garments. As captivating as the kimono itself, this book will be a must-have for fashionistas and Asian art aficionados alike.

Kimono Refashioned: Japan's Impact on International Fashion

Morishima, Yuki

Nii, Rie

Graphic Design

Asian Art Museum

Wedded Perfection: Two Centuries of Wedding Gowns explores the compelling allure of the white, single-use wedding dress for modern women and its iconic stature in Western cultures. Full-length colour plates and exquisite details of nearly 60 wedding gowns and dresses from the late 18th century to the present day, drawn from Cincinnati Art Museum’s internationally renowned permanent collection, are supplemented with loans from major designers. These include work by Jeanne Lanvin, Christian Dior, Paco Rabanne, Vera Wang, Bob Mackie, Yohji Yamamoto and Zac Posen. Cynthia Amnéus examines the role of women within society, the institution of marriage and the evolving aesthetics of wedding gowns. Two further essays discuss the establishment of the bridal industry after World War II and the democratization of the white wedding gown for working class brides. An interpretive entry is provided for each gown detailing construction techniques and fashionable characteristics, original bridal photos, comparative illustrations, and information about the designers.

Wedded Perfection: Two Centuries of Wedding Gowns

Individual Artists

GILES

Offering fresh insight into the art of Edward Henry Potthast (18571927), Eternal Summer features over one hundred works, covering the full range of the artist’s oeuvre. Potthast’s famous beach scenes are considered within the wider scope of his art, from his early portrayals of European agricultural laborers to his stunning landscapes and less well-known portraits and nudes. A technical study of Potthast’s paintings provides an invaluable resource for museums, collectors, and dealers, and a detailed illustrated chronology traces his full career. This lavishly illustrated volume offers a unique opportunity to consider PotthastCincinnati native and American Impressionist.

Eternal Summer: The Art of Edward Henry Potthast

Aronson, Julie

Buening, Anne

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Books by Amnéus, Cynthia