PUBLIC FASHION LIBRARY

World dress records published with evidence, image rights and correction history.

FASHION ACROSS TIME

Follow change
across time.

This is not one imposed story of world fashion. It is an index into changes happening in different places at the same time.

CALL NO.
WFD · TIM 001
FORMAT
PERIOD INDEX
UPDATED
2026-08-20
Tamale Fashion Week—a contemporary point that keeps the timeline from becoming a Euro-American progress story.Photo: Masssly, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsIMAGE SOURCE CC BY-SA 4.0
01
RESEARCH ENTRY
In 1434, cloth, fur and status shaped dress in Burgundian court culture.Jan van Eyck, The Arnolfini Portrait, 1434, Public DomainIMAGE SOURCE Public Domain Mark 1.0

Body, cloth and community

An entry point through material, technique, status, belief, climate and trade—not dynasties alone.

02
RESEARCH ENTRY
In 1855, crinolines created the expansive silhouette of the Second Empire.Franz Xaver Winterhalter, 1855, Public DomainIMAGE SOURCE Public Domain Mark 1.0

Courts, industry and global trade

A multi-regional view of courts, empire, colonial rule, industrialisation and revival movements.

03
RESEARCH ENTRY
In 1947, a turn from wartime utility towards new post-war silhouettes.Nationaal Archief / Anefo, photographer unknown, CC0IMAGE SOURCE CC0 1.0

Modern life and war

Urban life, changing gender roles, mass production, cinema and world wars reshaped clothing and circulation.

04
RESEARCH ENTRY
Oregon in the 1960s, reading everyday colour and youth proportions alongside couture.Photo: John Atherton, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia CommonsIMAGE SOURCE CC BY-SA 2.0

From couture to youth cultures

Connecting post-war couture, ready-to-wear, music, photography and growing youth markets.

05
INITIAL LOOKS AVAILABLE
Chicago in 1975, treating clothes worn in the street as period evidence equal to runway images.Photo: Perry Riddle / U.S. EPA DOCUMERICA, Public DomainIMAGE SOURCE Public Domain

Subcultures and media

Street, sport, music, television and royal dress intersect within a shared visual culture.

06
INITIAL LOOKS AVAILABLE
Austin around 1992, when malls, brands and peer styling shaped everyday dress.Photo: Matthew Rutledge, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia CommonsIMAGE SOURCE CC BY 2.0

Global brands and daily dress

Following minimalism, luxury, sportswear, celebrity culture and the early internet.

07
RESEARCH ENTRY
Harajuku in 2014—even in an age of digital discovery, clothes are worn on specific streets.Photo: Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia CommonsIMAGE SOURCE CC BY-SA 2.0

Digital discovery and reassessment

Tracking social media, resale, archive revivals, sustainability and cultural belonging with sources.

London in 1989, an urban context for the period covered by the first ten look files.Photo: Ben Brooksbank, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Geograph and Wikimedia CommonsIMAGE SOURCE CC BY-SA 2.0

CURRENT COLLECTION

Starting with 1981—1997.

10 evidence-led files establish the standard before it expands to other periods. Empty pages will not be used to imitate breadth.

1980s 1990s