Reveal or conceal?

From the unseen ankle to the tell-all thong

Hypersexualization… circa 1920

In a riveting parallel between two permissive periods, the exhibition prompts us to compare the Roaring Twenties (1920-1929) with the years surrounding the Sexual Revolution (1960 1969). An initial groundbreaking move during the inter-war era saw women showing off their legs and feet—except at balls, receptions and, of course, in church. In the 1930s, the Québec Catholic League came up with its own swimsuit. Needless to say, the garment covers a great deal, but, surprisingly, it hugs the body in a way that is quite cute and sexy!

Here today, gone tomorrow…

The bikini appeared in 1946 and, 18 years later, the monokini hit the beaches. But Rudi Gernreich’s design didn’t take off, as consumers continued to prefer the two piece. The textile revolution, heralded by the development of plastic derived elastane, or “spandex”, was reminiscent of the revolution brought on by knit fabric in the 20s: both materials cling to the body.

And who wears the pants in your house?

This question, which reflects a modern sensibility, would have seemed hare-brained just a few decades ago. Not because the missus was rarely the dynamic half of the couple—far from it—but rather because women did not wear pants to any widespread degree before the 1970s! Of course, ladies’ pantaloons existed long before, since 1850 in fact, when Amelia Bloomer created “loose bloomers”! But she would be ridiculed, and, a century later, when women’s shorts first appeared, Chatelaine magazine proclaimed as late as 1943 that “Women were not meant to wear pants.”