Did you think jeans were invented for cowboys at the end of the 19th century? A painting painted by an anonymous person several hundred years ago proves that this is not the case.
Now present in every wardrobe, jeans have enabled many major brands such as Levi’s, Diesel and Lee to make a fortune. Raw, black, faded, colorful… This fabric is, in the minds of fashionistas, associated with the era of the Gold Rush in the United States, which began in the 19th century.th century. But a body of paintings, which will be exhibited by the Canesso art gallery in Milan and Paris until June 28, 2024, reveals that the origin of this iconic painting is much older than we think. One of the works, painted by the anonymous artist known as the “Master of Jeans,” is titled Beggar woman with two children. It represents a woman dressed in a denim apron, worn, bleached and frayed at the hem. Recovered by the art dealer Maurizio Canesso, this piece would be dated to the end of the 17th century.th century. The most popular fabric in the world has therefore existed for more than 300 years.
The history of jeans
The canvas, today commonly called jeans, would actually have been created in the 16thth century, in Italy. The city of Genoa then used this cotton fabric, similar to corduroy, to clothe its sailors and create boat sails. Exported to France, it was reproduced without success. But the weavers developed another textile, a mixture of wool and silk renowned for its resistance, which became known as denim (literally the contraction of “from Nîmes”, in reference to the Occitan city).
The invention of jeans (pants, this time) is attributed to the collaboration between Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis, a tailor in Nevada. According to legend, the latter bought denim tarpaulins from Levi Strauss from which he cut work pants reinforced with copper rivets. In 1872, he proposed to Levi Strauss to share in the marketing of his invention. The patent was filed on May 20, 1873. Today adored by everyone, these pants still raise an ecological question. The manufacture of a baggy, a slim or a bootcut requires up to 10,000 liters of water…