Janet Arnold (1932-1998) was a dress historian, artist, fashion designer and teacher who pioneered research into the cut and construction of clothes from the 16th to the early 20th century. Her studies revealed invaluable information on the clothing of the past, and her publications on the sartorial details and patterns of historical dress continue to have a profound impact on many disciplines and institutions, academic and creative. Her patterns and drawings remain a primary source for designers of costume for the stage, film and television, and her research proves indispensable to art historians interpreting portraiture and genre painting, as well as to conservators for the physical analysis and identification of surviving dress. For over a decade, Janet Arnold collaborated with the conservation department of Palazzo Pitti’s Galleria del Costume in Florence, contributing her expertise on historical dress. There she actively participated in the lengthy and difficult process of documenting and conserving the 16th century burial clothes from the Medici tombs, writing several publications and giving many lectures about the project. Her books are essential tools for the study of dress and have been used throughout the world.
