Born 1919 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, American fashion designer Anne Fogarty was noted for her understated, ladylike designs that were accessible to American women on a limited income. She started out as a model in New York in 1939, working for Harvey Berin on Seventh Avenue, before studying fashion design. She eventually secured a full-time design job in 1948, and became well-known for full-skirted designs with fitted bodices, inspired by Dior’s New Look.
Fashion designs by Anne Fogarty in the 1950s
Fogarty’s clothes were easy to wear, practical, and made with casual fabrics, following the American sportswear tradition. She ran her own label from 1962 to 1974, and worked as a freelance designer until her death.
In 1959, Fogarty published a style manual, Wife Dressing: The Fine Art of Being a Well-Dressed Wife, which emphasized femininity, neatness, and always being suitably dressed as desirable qualities. Wife Dressing was rediscovered in the early 21st century, and has become a key resource for designers and fashion historians looking to explore the 1950s ideology of ultra-feminine dressing.
Fogarty died of a heart attack in 1980, in her apartment in the high-rise building at 200 East 64th Street in Manhattan. These vintage photos captured portraits of classic beauties wearing fashion designs by Anne Fogarty in the 1950s.
Model in full-skirted dress with black piping by Anne Fogarty, Harper’s Bazaar, November 1950
Janet Randy in short full-skirted red rayon taffeta dress made for dancing, the fichu ends in jet beads, by Anne Fogarty, photo by Richard Rutledge, Vogue, September 15, 1951
Nan Rees in brown and beige tweed coat-dress with detachable marmot collar, worn over two crinoline petticoats, by Anne Fogarty, photo by Richard Rutledge, Vogue, August 15, 1951
Model in striped dress with full skirt by Anne Fogarty, Vogue, August 15, 1952
Sandy Brown in fitted crimson velveteen dress, bodice continues down past the waist to a full skirt, by Anne Fogarty, photo by Gleb Derujinsky, Junior Bazaar, July 1952
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