18th century AD

In the eighteenth century, France was the world's fashion leader. Paris was not only its political capital but also the center of fashion. Rose Bertin, known as the "ministre de la mode," was the main provider of dresses to Marie Antoinette, and, in the Netherlands, to Princess Wilhelmina of Prussia, the wife of the Dutch stadholder William V, prince of Orange and Nassau. The difference between Wilhelmina's clothes and those of her French counterpart was primarily the fabric. Because of the Dutch East India Company's activities in Asia, Wilhelmina had access to Japanese silk damask and chintz. And the Japanese shogun sent kimonos as gifts to the Dutch rulers, including a type of dress called a "Japonse rok" (literally Japanese gown) that was adapted by the Dutch for informal situations.

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An exhibition highlighting these French and Dutch fashions is on view at the Gemeente-museum in The Hague until December 4. It is entitled En Vogue!: 18th--century fashions from France and the Netherlands, and the catalogue, in Dutch has been edited by the curator of the exhibition, Madelief Hohe, and Pascale Gorguet-Ballesteros. It is published by Waanders and may be ordered from the museum by telephoning 31-70-338-1264.

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