9/5/2023 0 Comments Zebra printPinup star Bettie Page made it sultry, posing in printed bikinis with live cheetahs. The movies were enormously popular, and by the 1940s, everyone was ready to walk on the wild side.Īt this point, the range of what an animal print could express about its wearer also started to change. Two of the earliest trendsetters were Johnny Weissmuller and Maureen O’Sullivan, who wore tons of animal print as Tarzan and Jane in 1932’s Tarzan the Ape Man-and its five sequels. Once again, leopard was at the forefront of the animal print craze, alongside other big cat patterns like tiger, cheetah, and jaguar. (They have since switched to faux fur for conservation reasons.)įurs and skins remained the province of the wealthy until the 20th century, when mass production made it easy to print zebra stripes and giraffe spots on. The Zulu people revered the cats, and later, the Shembe religion incorporated the pelts into their ceremonies. Leopard fur was also popular in southern Africa, where the animals actually lived. Because they were expensive and hard to acquire, fur rugs rapidly became a sought-after status symbol among aristocrats. Over in Paris, Napoleon also kicked off a craze for animal skins and prints after he visited North Africa in the 1800s and returned with fur rugs. In Venceslao Verlin’s 1768 painting An Interior with Elegant Company, for example, a dapper gent pairs his leopard-print breeches with a matching waistcoat. The emperor Honorius even issued a decree that banned his court from wearing fur, presumably to keep it scarce (and thus valuable).Īs global exploration and trade ramped up in the 1500s, so too did the appetite for exotic animal skins imported to Europe from Asia and Africa.īy the 18th century, young English aristocrats traveling to the continent for their Grand Tour would return with real furs, or printed clothing made in France and Italy. Over in Rome, regular humans wore fur, too, but only if they were wealthy and powerful. And, in Phrygia, the goddess Cybele was usually depicted near the animals. In ancient Greece, the god Dionysus was often pictured wearing a leopard skin. Outside of pharaohs and gods, the only other ancient Egyptians who could wear fur were high priests, and even then only during ceremonial events. Images via Shutterstock’s Animal Prints Collection. Seshat, the Egyptian goddess of wisdom and writing, was often depicted in leopard skin as well, symbolizing her power over the then-common danger of predatorial big cats. The pharaohs Tutankhamun and Ay were known to wear leopard skins (heads, paws, and all) to convey their superiority as leaders. The goal, however, remained the same-channel some of the animal’s fierce power by donning its pelt. ![]() When we talk about the early days of animal prints, we’re really just talking about actual furs and skins. Image via Shutterstock’s Animal Prints Collection. With that in mind, let’s embark on a design safari, of sorts. That particular desire can be traced all the way back to ancient Egypt, on through the Roman Empire, 17th-century England, old Hollywood, and every place and time in-between. While animals themselves often use their spots or stripes as a form of camouflage, humans draping themselves in tiger print, say, are usually looking to stand out from the crowd. No matter the season, the year, or the price point, it’s almost always been possible to stock your wardrobe-and home-with the likes of leopard, cheetah, zebra, and more. Here, a look back at the evolution of this striking motif.įew patterns are more timeless than animal prints. Animal prints have been around, in some shape or form, for centuries. Leopard spots, tiger stripes, snake skin.
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