Title
Black cotton cheongsam
Year/Period
1950s-1970s
Region
Singapore
Dimension
Object size: 113 x 45 cm
Accession No.
2004-00699
Collection of
Credit Line
Gift of Irene Hoe
This is a simple black sleeveless cheongsam with a netted design. It has a nipped-in waist, which was popular in the 1950s and 1960s. As the trend moved towards focusing on the overall shape of the cheongsam rather than details, piping and fastenings were sometimes omitted. This cheongsam belonged to Mdm. Wu Chuen Chuen, who enjoyed wearing it to work, often with a corset underneath to achieve the desired hourglass figure. A leading businesswoman of her time, Mdm. Wu ran the former Stamford Café at Bras Basah Road for 30 years before it closed in the 1970s.
