Evening dress and coat worn by Dovima
Maurice Rentner · 1954
Maurice Rentner
- American ready-to-wear
- Tailored suits
Maurice Rentner developed an important American ready-to-wear business in the first half of the twentieth century. Born in Poland, he built his career in New York and established his own company in 1923.
Five looks to know
Collection selection
Evening dress and coat worn by Dovima
Photographed for Vogue, 1 October 1954; season not specified
The white evening dress is paired with an apricot satin coat. Princess seams shape the long coat, while its three-quarter sleeves keep the silhouette open around the arms.
Horst P. Horst, Vogue, 1 October 1954; Condé Nast Archive. Model: Dovima.
Collection selection
Black cocktail dress
1953; season not separately documented
A narrow belt gathers the waist of a long-sleeved dress with a spare, elongated silhouette.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; Gift of Mrs. J. Trainor Murphy, 1956
Collection selection
Rose satin evening dress
1940
A high-necked satin evening dress follows a slim line, with jeweled buttons tracing an asymmetric opening. The Texas Fashion Collection records a combined Neiman-Marcus and Maurice Rentner label.
Texas Fashion Collection, UNT College of Visual Arts and Design / UNT Digital Library
Collection selection
Black wool jacket
1950
Rounded collar and hem details soften this fitted wool jacket. The museum styles it with trousers that are not part of the cataloged Rentner work.
Texas Fashion Collection, UNT College of Visual Arts and Design / UNT Digital Library
Collection selection
Walls of Troy — Eta Hentz for Ren-Eta
Spring/Summer 1944 — Ren-Eta Gowns, Inc.
Designed by Eta Hentz for Ren-Eta, the company she established in partnership with Maurice Rentner. Its geometric border follows the pale wool dress; the museum preview crops the hem.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art; Brooklyn Museum Costume Collection, gift of the Brooklyn Museum, 2009; gift of Madame Eta Hentz, 1946Collections & archive pieces
1 collections represented · 1 piecePhotographed for Vogue, 1 October 1954; season not specified
1 piece
About Maurice Rentner
His reputation rested on well-made suits and dresses that translated fashion into clothing produced for sale beyond the couture salon. He also participated in the industry’s organization through the Fashion Originators Guild of America. Later garments bearing the Rentner company name can be by other designers, especially Bill Blass, so works dated before Rentner’s death in 1958 need careful distinction.