Mary Quant: fashion icon

Mary Quant's designs were celebrated for being bold, bright and fresh. The British fashion icon, creator of the mini skirt, died in April at 93 and now a Quant exhibition has opened its doors to the public in Glasgow, Scotland.

Heather Tilbury Phillips is the former co-director of Mary Quant Ltd.

Heather Tilbury Phillips: "I think this exhibition is the most wonderful tribute to Mary's farsightedness, her enthusiasm, her creativity and her wish that people achieve their, their essence in life."

Quant's creations are representative of the 1960s, often referred to as the 'Swinging 60s'. It was a period when much of the world was emerging from the darkness of the second world war. The concept of the 'teenager' also emerged: young people abandoned the requirement to behave and dress as their parents had done. Tilbury Phillips feels this had a powerful impact on Quant's style.

Heather Tilbury Phillips: "I think she introduced such a revolutionary attitude to clothes, that garments that the young could run, jump, leap onto a bus, go dancing."

It wasn't simply the shortness of her dresses and skirts, or the design and colours that made them unique. As the curator at Glasgow Museums Rebecca Quinton points out, Quant also made use of contemporary fabrics such as nylon and PVC.

Rebecca Quinton: But there's also modern materials. We're used to them now. But this is at the beginning of nylon, lycra, PVC coming in, and she made use of all these new technologies and materials to do new things - stretch fabrics, waterproof fabrics."

Following its world tour, Glasgow is the final stop for this exhibition of revolutionary fashion ideas, which will remain open until 22nd October 2023.

Quinton's optimistic that the innovative displays will inspire the next generation of up-and-coming designers.

Rebecca Quinton: "So it's a wonderful opportunity for everybody to either come and reminisce or be inspired to be the next generation of designers, whether they're interested in fashion or product design, to come and see one of the most revolutionary fashion designers of the 20th century."

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