camembear

Two-Piece Dress

c. 1892-1898

embroidered moiré silk

United States

Lawn and Lace High-Neck Gown

c. 1905

Sewing Box

19th century

Wooden box, brass-colored fittings; mother-of-pearl tools

France

Chantilly Lace Cape

1860s

day dress, c.1865 by unknown designer

this dress is made of silk taffeta and the colour absolutely screams analine dyes but it's pretty

Kind of obsessed with this woman's freakishly modern jacket from 1904.

The complete lack of shoulder definition gives it the silhouette of an MA-1 bomber jacket, but bombers weren't even a thing yet. The Wright brothers barely achieved powered flight in 1903. The ribbing on the shoulder and the angular cutouts with the hexagonal mesh are so futuristic and cyberpunk, but even art deco wouldn't be a thing for another 15 years. The color is like a dusty NASA flight suit. All together it's giving lone spacefarer crash landing their tiny rustbucket ship on Mars.

Silk Evening Dress

c. 1850-1855

Riding Habit (1939)

Frankenstein at Selfridges, 2025

After the introduction to Mary Shelley and Romantics, the first thing you see in the exhibition is the green dress with several samples, bolts and exploratory fabric R&D. There is also a reference piece of malachite on a drafting table with a concept of Victor’s dressing gown.

The same fabric quality was produced and used in multiple colours for the butterfly gown and the refusal gown.

The clearest example at the exhibition was Elizabeth’s introduction grown worn with the archival Tiffany’s scarab jewellery.

Layers and layers of organza printed with what appears to be ice/glacier or water imagery. An omen of both Victor’s past and Victor’s future.