From rigid corsets to barely-there briefs, a new exhibition at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum explores three centuries of underwear in Europe, focusing on Britain’s relationship with its most intimate garments.
“Fashion and underwear are inextricably linked,” said Susanna Cordner, research assistant on the “Underwear” exhibition.
“It’s like the chicken and the egg, one influences the other and it’s cyclical,” she added.
The story begins in the 18th century with a look at the heavy undergarments of the time, made from natural fibres that allowed high-temperature washing and helped hygiene.
These were clamped in place by corsets that supported the bust and sculpted the silhouette, forming a solid base for dresses to be worn over.
One of the exhibition’s centrepieces - a hand-made corset fashioned by an Englishwoman of modest means - shows that such complex items were not confined to high-society, but had to be worn by all women for fear of upsetting moral sensibilities.