Young ladies' fashion, Sketch 21. Croquis XXI, c1922.

by David

Gazette du Bon Ton antique print. French fashion stencil by David.

Original hand-coloured pochoir published in Paris circa 1922 for Gazette du Bon Ton (Journal of Good Style), the exclusive publication in which specialist fashion illustrators introduced the latest superior fashion styles of prominent French designers. Gazette du Bon Ton was published by Lucien Vogel in Paris between 1912 and 1925. Each illustration for each magazine was created and coloured by hand. Condé Nast distributed the Gazette as well as Vogue magazine. (Photography was used for Vogue from 1932.)

Pochoir, the French word for stencil, has been used worldwide since this method of illustrating fashion was perfected by the French fashion artists. Pochoir is a labour-intensive method of illustration where a separate stencil is cut for each different layer of colour which was applied by hand with a variety of tools to produce the detail of fabrics and nuance of colour tone. Ever since they first appeared, these fashion illustrations have been framed for enjoyment on the wall.

Size of page 24 x 19cm or 9.5 x 7.5 inches.