Pierre Cardin Haute Couture "Butterfly" Cocktail Dress, 1993

A version of this dress featured in the entrance to the Brooklyn Museum’s 2019 exhibition Pierre Cardin: Future Fashion. The intersecting elliptical disks and glimmering silver fabric articulate Cardin’s perennial interest in the aesthetics of the Space Race and the ability of geometric forms to dynamize fashion.

Haute Couture black and silver lamé crepe knit dress with rhinestone edged structured oval pop outs.
Label: Pierre Cardin
Size Label: Unlabeled
Style/Serial No.: N/A

Approximate Measurements:
Shoulders: 13.25"
Chest: 30.75"
Waist: 29.25"
Hips: 32"
Length (high shoulder point to hem): 29.25"

Property from the Collection of Countess Anita von Galen

This lot is one of sixty-seven in this auction from Countess Anita von Galen, a German aristocrat and socialite known for her avant-garde sense of style and brilliant entertaining. Over the years, the Countess von Galen has used her visionary eye and a penchant for unique silhouettes to build an extraordinary collection of haute couture. She considered Hubert de Givenchy (Lots 1-18) and his partner, Philippe Venet, also a couturier (Lots 19-20), close friends, with Givenchy designing the baptismal gown (Lot 1) for her only son, Ferdinand Otto von Galen. Beyond her friendship with the couple, Countess von Galen was an ardent supporter of emerging, avant-garde designers including Pierre Cardin (Lots 25-48), Kansai Yamamoto (Lots 61-62), and Yohji Yamamoto (Lot 63).