Mary Quant: fashion icon

British designer Mary Quant, creator of the mini skirt, died in April at 93. Now, an exhibition in Glasgow, Scotland has opened. It tells the public more about this star of the fashion world.

Heather Tilbury Phillips was a director at 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."

For many people, Quant was the fashion leader of the 1960s. The world had left the second world war behind. It was looking towards the future. The idea of the 'teenager' appeared. Young people felt they could be themselves. They didn't have to dress like their parents any more.

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."

Quant's designs weren't just about short skirts and dresses. And they were more than just shapes and colours. Quant also created clothes with modern materials. Rebecca Quinton, who works at Glasgow Museums, explains.

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."

The exhibition's been on a world tour. It will now stay in Glasgow, its final stop, until October 2023. Quinton wants it to give hope and ideas to young fashion 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." Weniger anzeigen