Mainbocher

Mainbocher

Company type	Private
Industry	Fashion, Haute couture
Founded	1929
Founder	Main Rousseau Bocher
Defunct	1971
Headquarters	Paris (1929–1939), New York City (1940–1971) , France, United States
Area served	Worldwide
Products	Clothing, Haute couture fashion, Uniforms, Costume design
Website	www.mainbocher.com

Mainbocher is a fashion brand created by American designer Main Rousseau Bocher (1890–1976) in 1929. The label was active in Paris from 1929 to 1939 and later in New York from 1940 until 1971.

French period (1929–1939)

In November 1929, Mainbocher launched "Mainbocher Couture" at 12 Avenue George-V in Paris, quickly gaining acclaim for sophisticated pieces such as the strapless gown and cashmere sweaters adorned with jewels. His polished aesthetic attracted a distinguished clientele including fashion editors like Carmel Snow and Diana Vreeland, aristocratic figures such as Princess Karam of Kapurthala, socialites including Millicent Rogers, as well as Hollywood icons like Mary Pickford and Claudette Colbert.

Among his most prominent clients was Wallis Simpson, for whom he crafted the 1937 bridal dress and trousseau following her marriage to the Duke of Windsor. This wedding gown, regarded as "one of the most photographed and most copied dresses of modern times," is preserved within the Metropolitan Museum's Costume Institute. Fashion authority Hamish Bowles commended Mainbocher’s intricate detailing and luxurious sensibility, emphasizing Wallis Windsor’s lasting connection to his creations.

Mainbocher's concluding Paris collections sparked debate by introducing the "wasp waist" silhouette—featuring a sharply cinched waist—nearly a decade before Christian Dior unveiled his "New Look." Dior himself credited Mainbocher as being "really in advance of us all." The corset defining this style was famously captured in Horst P. Horst's renowned 1939 photograph titled "Mainbocher Corset." This Victorian-inspired silhouette influenced 1940s fashion trends significantly. Designer Cameron Silver dubbed Mainbocher "the designer of the 30's," highlighting the exclusivity and elegance of his work.

American period (1940–1971)

With the onset of Second World War, Mainbocher was compelled to leave France. In 1940, he transferred his operations to New York City, setting up "Mainbocher Inc.” on 57th Street, close to Tiffany's. There, he recreated the ambiance of his Paris salons while upholding haute couture standards.

The controversy surrounding his corset designs turned into a promotional asset; Mainbocher collaborated with the Warner Brothers Corset Company to adapt these designs for mass-market production. His inaugural New York collection debuted on October 30, 1940, establishing him as a leading figure in American fashion. To cope with wartime fabric restrictions, he innovated shorter evening dresses and introduced "cocktail aprons" that converted simpler dresses into formal attire.

During wartime, Mainbocher designed uniforms for both military and civilian groups, merging practicality with style. In 1942, he created uniforms for the women-only division of the American Navy, known as WAVES. He also revamped uniforms for the American Red Cross and standardized the Girl Scouts attire in green by 1948. In 1950, he designed an exclusive evening dress uniform for Colonel Katherine Amelia Towle, Director of Women Marines (USMCR), which is now exhibited at the Newport Artillery Company armory.

In New York society, Mainbocher dressed notable figures such as debutantes Brenda Frazier and Doris Duke, alongside socialites like Gloria Vanderbilt and Babe Paley. By 1947, eight out of ten women listed by the New York Dress Institute among the Best-Dressed were his patrons.

Mainbocher also contributed costume designs for prominent Broadway shows including Blithe Spirit (1941), One Touch of Venus (1943), The Sound of Music (1959), and Applause (1970), outfitting stars such as Mary Martin, Tallulah Bankhead, and Lauren Bacall.

In 1961, his business relocated to the K.L.M. Building on Fifth Avenue, continuing operations until its closure in 1971 when Mainbocher retired at age 81. He spent his remaining years between Paris and Munich before passing away in 1976.

Legacy

In 2002, Mainbocher was honored with a bronze plaque on the Fashion Walk of Fame located in New York City's Garment District.

His work left a significant mark on prominent designers including Christian Lacroix, who praised the elegance and allure embodied in his creations.

Mainbocher’s pieces have been showcased in a variety of exhibitions. Notably, in 2010, the Museum of the City of New York introduced a virtual exhibit titled Worth & Mainbocher, which presented his contributions to fashion for the first time.

The inaugural comprehensive retrospective, called Making Mainbocher, was hosted by the Chicago History Museum from October 2016 through August 2017. This event was partially funded by Luvanis, the current proprietor of the Mainbocher label.

See also

• Haute couture
• Charles James

Further reading

• Morris, Bethany D., Mainbocher: Veiled Innovation, Master's thesis, Fashion Institute of Technology, 2003.
• Resnikoff, Shoshana, Sailors in Skirts: Mainbocher and the Making of the Navy WAVES, Master's thesis, University of Delaware, 2012.
• Samek, Susan M., "Uniformly Feminine: The 'Working Chic' of Mainbocher," Dress 20:1 (1993): pp. 33–44.
• Sinklard, Petra (dir.), Making Mainbocher: The First American Couturier, catalogue d'exposition, Chicago History Museum, 2016.
• Steele, Valerie, The Corset: A Cultural History, New Haven, Yale University Press, 2003.
• Wimberley, Virginia S., Maureen M. Grasso, and Fawn S. Mahajan, "Mainbocher – A Couturier's Contribution to Material Culture," Material History Review 37 (1993): pp. 5–19.

External links

• Official Mainbocher website
• Mainbocher papers, 1880s-1977 (bulk, 1932-1974) from the Irene Lewisohn Costume Reference Library, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
• Mainbocher garments in the Chicago History Museum costume collection