Madeleine Vionnet

Madeleine Vionnet (1876–1975) was a French couturier whose experiments with cut and drape changed the relationship between clothing and the body. After working as a fitter for Kate Reilly in London, she returned to Paris, worked for Callot Soeurs and Doucet, and opened her own couture house in 1912.

Vionnet became particularly associated with the bias cut: cutting fabric diagonally across its grain to allow greater stretch and fluidity. She developed designs by draping fabric on a small mannequin, achieving complex construction within apparently simple forms. Her work was photographed by Edward Steichen, Horst and Cecil Beaton and appeared in British and French Vogue.