Changemakers have constantly remade the clothes we wear, starting from the beginning of France, where it established itself as the expert with the Robe a la Française to the shocking girl garments of the 1920s and Mary Quant’s brave mini skirt. In the early 1970s, Diane von Furstenberg unintentionally changed the idea of a gown completely when she created the wrap gown.
This was the attitude echoed in the preview of the future video, Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge. The film, which debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival, begins with a picture from David Letterman’s delayed- evening show where he introduces Diane as “The lady who reinvented the dress.”
Mirroring political aspirations, children’s clothing before the 70s was restrictive and rigid. However, things like corsets and petticoats were quickly out of style by the end of the 1960s, and comfortable clothing quickly replaced it. Select the pack gown. It was perfectly attractive, cozy to use and became symbolic of female independence.
Inspired by the pack tops worn by ballerinas, Diane designed a gown with a similar top and a small slice and a sinuous, lively skirt. The first iterations featured vivid patterns and designs made of jersey fabric.
The wrap dress was chic, and it was also incredibly affordable, making it a hit in the fashion industry.
The wrap dress has remained a popular dress silhouette despite the ebbs and flows of trends over the decades since its inception. Everyone from Catherine Middleton to Madonna participates in it, regardless of age, income, or status.
“It was a basic uniform for work and a signature of independence and liberation”, Nicolas Lor wrote in Diane von Furstenberg: Woman Before Fashion. This self-assured, free state of mind would never leave her; it has persisted in both her personality and career to this day.
Vanessa Friedman, a New York Times fashion critic, quotes “Diane’s dress exists in the middle of the history of women’s rights and women in the workforce and women finding their own voice.”
The documentary, which will hit screens in the US on June 25, also touches on Diane’s vibrant personal life. It follows her first union to Prince Egon von Furstenberg and her assimilating as a survivor of the Holocaust into an aristocratic German family.
“When I went to the Furstenberg castle, I thought ‘Maybe they will poison me.'” she recalls in the documentary.
She also discusses the craziness of her jet-setting lifestyle, her second marriage to business magnate Barry Diller, and her family.
“At 77, what I’m the proudest of is the family”, she said. “They’re definitely my best samples, and I’m very proud of that.”