1920s Jazz Age Fashion celebrates haute couture, ready-to-wear and mass market fashion in America, Britain and France from 1919 to 1929, with an in-depth focus on women's clothing. Illustrated with specially commissioned photography, the book brings together leading experts to examine the social, political and cultural influences of the period, setting into context the role fashion played in it. This book accompanies the exhibition 1920s Jazz Age Fashion and Photo at the Fashion and Textile Museum, London, 23 September 2016-15 January 2017. Characterised by exuberance and optimism, the jazz age was a symptom of the end of the First World War and the birth of America as a new world power. It was a period of unprecedented social change for women who were, for the first time in history, given the vote on a par with men (1920 USA, 1928 Britain). The birth of Modernity in the 1920s established women's lives as `active' and fashion reflected and celebrated these new social roles. A new `boyish' silhouette, la garconne, became the look for women of the twenties with a gradual acceptance of trousers as fashionable dress. The passive sun bathing became the active swimming, and companies such as Jantzen recognised these changes creating the `speed suit' for women. The 1920s saw technology and innovative textiles, with the introduction of the artificial silk Rayon and the zip, contributing to an easier approach to fashionable dress.
