Movement and Pep: Peter McNeil

Between the wars the Duchess of Windsor (1896-1986) was a quintessential female sartorial modernist. It was an image built on a type of obsessive discipline and iteration of gestures and actions in 'appearing' and also in managing a household.

Photographic and drawn representations of her by Man Ray, Cecil Beaton, and Horst played a role in disseminating new silhouettes and profiles for modern women. Yet these images are frozen, and they drain the kinesic element of wearing garments for which she was notable.

The Duchess of Windsor brought her clothes, which now hang as empty relics, into a range of animated performances, which can be reconstructed through film, photography and memoirs.

Professor Dr Peter Mcneil is a Distinguished Professor of Design History at the University of Technology Sydney and lately Distinguished Professor Aalto University.