Creating the Dream Dress: Vera Wang, Design, and Femininity

Fashion as a major area of design is often trivialized because of its association with women and their socially constructed desires. Dressmaking, in particular, is regarded as an obvious vehicle for the feminine instinct to decorate and to enhance their appearances. Nevertheless, fashion design has been appropriated by male designers - Christian Dior, Hubert de Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, Karl Lagerfeld, and Alexander McQueen are regularly praised for their creative virtuosity. Fashion as a design process is believed to transcend gender-specific skills of dexterity, patience, and embellishment associated with dressmaking. It emphasizes creative innovation and assertive entrepreneurial skills that are part of the male domain.

Wedding dress is the ultimate symbol of femininity and feminine ideals. American designer, Vera Wang (1949-) established her career and built a successful business through her design of wedding gowns that modernizes bridal wear and femininity. Her design elevates wedding dresses to high fashion, desired by the wealthy, the celebrity, and the ordinary brides. Her work enhances the status of designers with Asian heritage and her role as a female designer and entrepreneur. This talk examines how Wang explores women’s parameters of femininity and uses her feminine personality to shape women’s identities and her practice in a profession dominated by the so-called male genius. Her business empire expands far beyond bridal wear, including ready-to-wear, home décor, foot and eyewear, jewellery and fragrance. Her appearances in the company’s advertising campaign, coupled with high profile images and interviews in the press made her a household name. Wang’s outspoken personality is recognized as part of her brand’s identity that reinterprets femininity and the modern woman.