Mode Et Sport : D'un Podium À L'autre

Exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, 20 September 2023 - 7 April 2024

While sportswear is a given in clothing today, in reality the dialogue between fashion and sport is not as recent as one might think.

In the XIXᵉ century, with the development of sport per se, the clothing associated with it took on different forms: the need for comfort led to the birth of the first jerseys, but certain sports such as tennis or golf were the occasion for demonstrations of elegance, even if it meant impeding movement.

In the twentieth century, the major fashion houses developed a "sport" style, which was not designed for physical performance but was intended to be relaxed and to allow freedom of movement. From the 1950s to the present day, the quest for comfort in fashion grew, culminating in the adoption of trainers and jogging suits on the streets and in the catwalks.

This exhibition catalogue tells the story of the porous relationship between sportswear and fashion, from the perspective of both fashion history and social history. A wide range of subjects are covered, from technical innovations to sporting elegance in the colonies, with a focus on emblematic garments such as the divided skirt, the swimming costume and the down jacket.