1928
49.3
×95.3
cm
Maria Likarz-Strauss’s work in textiles, particularly, reflected modernist ideals, using the influences of Cubism to produce fabrics with intense visual contrasts. Pieces like her dress fabric Romulus, created in 1928, a screen printed silk fabric and one of her most celebrated designs, exemplify this, where bold geometric shapes, strong, clean and structured lines and vivid colors acting as both ornamentation and a reflection of modern life’s energy created a new visual language in fashion. Similar to the techniques Cubist artists used to flatten space and play with abstraction, Likarz-Strauss applied these ideas to textile design, breaking away from traditional motifs and patterns. It is rare to find the original fabric or swatch card and design sketches side by side. (ms)
