Loïe Fuller.

Loïe Fuller.

“On a visit to Notre Dame, Fuller became enthralled by the kaleidoscopic light that shone through the cathedral’s stained glass windows. She lost herself in a bedazzled reverie, catching the colors upon a white handkerchief that she waved through the air…and was promptly taken for crazy and escorted out of the building. For Fuller, color possessed a natural harmony that could be honed into new art form, in the same way that sound had been transformed sound into music.”

Reconstructing (one of) Fuller’s dress(es), thinking of the Serpentine Dance, 1896. The first prototype uses roughly 8 meters of fabric (in this case silk). Body fabric is sustained by one upper elastic, sleeves are rectangular with no heming. Next step: enlarge sleeve volume. Prepare to stitch.