Fashion Through the New Yorker · "The Rice Bowl Dress"

"The Rice Bowl Dress"

Title: "The Rice Bowl Dress"
Description: This dress by Carolyn Schnurer reflects the development of American sportswear during the 1950s, combining practicality with refined femininity. Designed for active modern women, the dress features a fitted bodice, a structured A-line skirt, and a geometric green-and-white textile inspired by Japanese decorative arts. Part of Schnurer’s “Flight to Japan” collection, the design incorporates subtle references to Japanese fashion and craft traditions, particularly through the kimono-inspired neckline and parasol-influenced skirt structure. While maintaining the clean silhouette characteristic of 1950s American fashion, the dress demonstrates the growing influence of international cultural inspiration in postwar design.; July 7, 1956
Date: 1952
Fashion Item: full-skirted swing dress; midi dresses
Fashion style: Christian Dior's "New Look"
designer: Carolyn Schnurer (American, born New York, 1908–1998 Palm Beach, Florida); Textile manufactured by ABC Fabrics
Materials: cotton (textile)
Location: Metropolitan Museum of Art, Costume Institute
Identifier: 2009.300.155
Donor: Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Carolyn Schnurer, 1952