Vogue Italia editorial featuring a long dress by Missoni, 1969. Courtesy of Missoni. All rights reserved

The object is an editorial page from the July/August 1969 issue of Vogue Italia; the long dress in printed lurex designed by Missoni – here presented worn by top model Twiggy and photographed by Justin de Villeneuve – is part of Missoni fall/winter 1969-1970 collection. 

The ensemble is composed by long dress in gold and topaz lurex, printed with motifs inspired by Klimt paintings and reproducing Art Deco style; the dress, designed by Missoni, is here worn by Twiggy, who was one of the ‘top’ models of the time; the dress is combined with jewels designed by Domingo De La Cueva.

In 1967 Ottavio Missoni was invited to present his new collection at Palazzo Pitti in Florence. Before the fashion show started, his wife Rosita noticed that the models worn underwear in a colour that was in contrast with the dresses, so she asked them to take it off. Under the strong lights of the catwalk, the dresses became transparent and the models appeared nude, immediately catching the attention of the press. This unexpected event made Missoni miss the invitation to Palazzo Pitti for the next year, but increased so much the popularity of the brand that in 1969 the collection was presented in Milan and Paris. In the same year, the brand was featured both on Vogue Italia and Woman’s Wear Daily, which dedicated an entire report to its collection inspired by Art Decò.

The object is part of the Missoni Archive. Discover more on the Europeana Fashion portal.