Schiaparelli & the artists

In his 1936 painting, Night and Day Clothes, Salvador Dali was inspired by creations of Elsa Schiaparelli's dating from the early 1930s.

This work illustrates a garment featuring two of Schiaparelli's iconic creations from this period: zipped dresses and her work on the lines of the shoulder. The first dresses with visible zips were created by Elsa Schiaparelli in 1929. She launched her “hard chic” line with very pronounced shoulders in 1931. These innovations were all the rage, particularly with Hollywood stars like Marlene Dietrich and Joan Crawford.