“THE AMERICAN FAMILY”: This work by William H. Walker is featured in “Fashion, Feminism, and Fear: Clothing and Power in the 19th Century,” on view through April 2026 at the Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library at Princeton University.
A new exhibition has opened at Seeley G. Mudd Manuscript Library entitled “Fashion, Feminism, and Fear: Clothing and Power in the 19th Century.” Curated by April C. Armstrong *15 and Emma Paradies, Library Collections Specialists in Special Collections at Mudd Library, the exhibition features late 19th and early 20th century cartoons satirizing women’s fashion at a time when the “New Woman” began to wear pants, tailored jackets, and sportswear, and enter traditionally masculine spheres.
The majority of the cartoons showcased in this exhibit are from 1895-1896 and by William H. Walker (1871-1938). Walker contributed frequently to formative American magazines like Life from 1894 to 1922, quickly becoming its leading editorial cartoonist. His fashion-focused political cartoons for Life captured the deep-seated anxieties of the era, implying that women were unfit for the new freedoms they sought. Walker created dozens of illustrations commenting on the “women in pants” phenomenon. These unflattering depictions obscured the perspectives of women’s rights activists by divorcing what they wore from its political context, suggesting they warranted only mockery.
The exhibition’s themes are still relevant today as society continues to tackle the significance of gender and pressures to conform to externally defined expectations for one’s appearance, which are highlighted in the exhibition with examples of modern-day advertising.
A public opening with the curators is scheduled for Tuesday, September 16 from 12 to 2 p.m. While the objects in the main exhibition are in traditional cases, the opening event will also feature items that guests can touch and get a closer look at.
An interdisciplinary symposium (library.princeton.edu/fashion-feminism-fear-symposium) focused on related themes will be held on October 17.
Mudd Manuscript Library is located at 65 Olden Street. The exhibition is open to the public during Mudd’s regular opening hours. Check princetonlibrary.org for current hours, as they change during the year.