FORTUNY Mariano (Designer)

The Delphos was constructed from four to five widths of silk that were sewn into a tubular shape and secured at the shoulder, as Lillian Gish demonstrates. The cord around her neckline added finish to the gown and also served to adjust the fit. Fortuny started to design his Delphos around 1907 when a nostalgia for Classical Greece was beginning to be felt in fashion, art and theatre. However, what made Fortuny's Delphos unique was its pleating, a secret process he patented in 1909. Named after the Ancient Greek sanctuary of Delphi, Fortuny's garment derived from the chiton, a tunic worn by Classical Greek charioteers that focused on the natural shape of the body. Since the Delphos emphasized the female form in movement, it was popular among actresses and dancers such as Isadora Duncan. Trained as an artist, Fortuny advocated a timeless form of dress and continued to create the Delphos right up to his death. 

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