Q&A with Elizabeth L. Block

  

 

 

Elizabeth L. Block is the author of the new book Gilded Age Fashion. Her other books include Beyond Vanity. She is an art historian and is senior editor at the Metropolitan Museum of New York.

 

Q: What inspired you to write Gilded Age Fashion?

A: I wanted to write a beautifully illustrated and accessible gift book for readers who love the Gilded Age, fashion history, and period dramas.

Q: How did you choose the items to highlight in the book, and do you have any particular favorites?

 

A: I made a point of choosing gowns and accessories that are true standouts, whether they are gowns by the House of Worth in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York or by lesser known designers in historical societies around the country.

 

Q: How did you research the book, and did you learn anything that especially surprised you?

 

A: I took the opportunity to reach out to colleagues at the Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland History Center, and learn more about their holdings of 19th-century women's fashion. I was pleased to be able to reproduce five gowns from their collection in the book.

 

Q: What accounts for the current fascination with this period--The Gilded Age TV series and now your book? Do you see any parallels with today’s world?

A: I think the era of massive wealth for only a tiny percentage of the US population in the late 19th century is resonating now because we are experiencing a similar, pronounced divide between the over-the-top lives of the few billionaires and the daily experiences of the majority of the population of regular, working citizens.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I am deep into researching women's underclothing and will venture into writing about 20th-century styles. I really love the fashion trends of the 1950s and ‘60s.

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: It is so rewarding to hear questions and comments from readers. I enjoy learning which women's fashion history topics are top of mind, so please stay in touch through my Gilded Age Fashion newsletter and/or my Instagram page.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. Here's a previous Q&A with Elizabeth L. Block.