Exploring how the name of Liberty became synonymous with Aestheticism and the English Art Nouveau Movement, and its role in shaping contemporary late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century Artistic Dress. Liberty’s dress department opened in 1884, headed by Edward William Godwin, an architect with a multi-faceted career and an important figure in the Aesthetic Movement. From the mid-nineteenth-century, women fought against restrictive clothing such as tight-laced corsets and heavy petticoats which were harmful to their health and chose instead to dress in looser fitting dresses, coloured with natural dyes and ornamented with embroidery and needlework. Liberty was at the forefront of Aestheticism with their recognisable soft drapeable silks, transparent textiles and fabrics imported from parts of Asia and the Middle East and their customers were an eclectic mix of women who wanted to dress artistically and stand out from the crowd. Liberty was the chosen resort of the artistic
