The Isle of Man Arts Society will launch its new lecture season on Tuesday, September 16 with a talk titled ‘Fashionable Folds: The Fan as the Ultimate Fashion Accessory.’

The monthly lecture series features topics across the arts, aiming to engage the public with historical and contemporary themes.

The upcoming September talk will be delivered by Scott Schiavone, a fashion historian and curator specialising in 19th and 20th century French, British, and American womenswear, as well as luxury fashion accessories and marginalised fashion histories.

The upcoming lecture will focus on the evolution and cultural significance of the folding fan in Europe, tracing its development from the 16th to the 20th century.

First introduced from Asia, folding fans gained popularity in Europe in the late 1500s and became associated with nobility and aristocracy.

The lecture will outline how fans transitioned from practical tools into artistic and symbolic objects, reflecting broader trends in fashion and culture.

The talk will highlight the craftsmanship behind these accessories, which were often constructed using materials such as ivory, mother-of-pearl, tortoiseshell, and fine fabrics.

Fans were typically hand-painted, carved, or embroidered, with designs reflecting the dominant artistic movements of their time.

For example, 17th-century fans often featured mythological motifs and gold detailing, while 18th-century models embraced Rococo imagery like floral scenes and pastoral landscapes.

During the 19th century, fan designs became more elaborate and diverse, incorporating lace, feathers, and hidden messages in line with Victorian fashion sensibilities.

In the early 20th century, the rise of Art Nouveau and modernist styles led to the creation of fans with flowing lines and simplified forms.

In addition to discussing the artistic elements, the lecture will examine the fan’s relationship with changing fashion trends.

As women’s clothing styles evolved - ranging from the voluminous silhouettes of the Renaissance to the structured corsets of the Victorian era and the streamlined forms of early 20th-century attire - so too did fan designs.

According to Schiavone, fans often served as both accessories and visual extensions of an outfit, selected to complement the materials and shapes of contemporary garments.

The talk will also address how the folding fan functioned in social contexts. Beyond being a fashion item, the fan is considered to have played roles in courtship rituals, social signaling and status display, particularly within European elite circles.

Through historical analysis and visual examples, the lecture will explore how the folding fan became a reflection of artistic, technological, and cultural shifts over several centuries.

The event will take place at the Manx Museum Lecture Theatre from 11.30am to 12.30pm. Attendance is free for members, and guests are welcome for a £10 fee.

The Isle of Man Arts Society encourages both members and non-members to attend the lecture, which is part of a broader effort to promote engagement with the visual and decorative arts in the island.

For more information about the Society’s upcoming events or to inquire about membership, interested individuals can contact the Isle of Man Arts Society directly by emailing [email protected]