The sheer power of transparent clothing

Lately fashion has left little to the imagination. The sheer-dress trend, while varying in levels of (im)modesty, is inescapable, as barely concealed nipples, belly buttons, and thongs have graced every red carpet from the Grammys to the Oscars. While ‘90s revivals—including Hunter Schafer’s recent callback to Prada’s spring 1997 ready-to-wear collection and Lily-Rose Depp’s homage to Kate Moss in i-D—have dominated the trend’s resurgence, translucent garments have been making jaws drop and eyes bulge for centuries.

The mysterious 18th-century Portrait of a Young Woman in White by an unknown artist has enjoyed a renewed cultural interest as the cover of My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh. But the artwork, in which the subject’s breasts are visible through a sheer layer of fabric, is emblematic of the attire favoured by French courtesans around the turn of the 19th century. The style, which writer Louis-Sébastien Mercier dubbed “à la sauvage,” “did not leave the beholder to divine, but perceive every secret charm,” Mercier wrote.

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Sheer garments continued to scandalise after the French Revolution. In 1913 diaphanous so-called X-ray skirts and dresses caused such outrage that the mayor of Portland, Oregon, ordered wearers be arrested, while The Oregon Daily Journal reported, “X-Ray Skirts Break Up Home of Millionaire.” Regarding her fashion-related divorce, Bertha Hanscom, 30, said, “My husband is an old fossil…I’m built for the X-ray skirt, and I’m going to wear ‘em. He doesn’t like them, but I don’t care. Wait till I get my divorce, and I’ll make his eyes pop.” (Her scandalised husband, James, 60, told the paper, “Bertha wore not only diaphanous skirts but slit ones.”)

Silent film starlet Clara Bow secured her sex-symbol status with 1925’s My Lady of Whims thanks to a scandalously see-through dress. When Bow’s character, Prudence Severn, is invited to a costume ball with the theme “the less worn, the easiest mended,” she takes the message literally, wowing in a barely-there gown. The dress—which made it to the big screen before the entertainment industry adopted a set of self-censorship guidelines called the Hays Code—was so revealing that it would still shock by today’s standards.

In 1962, Marilyn Monroe’s famous “Happy birthday, Mr. President” dress catapulted sheerness back into the spotlight, and stars like Jane Birkin and Cher kept the controversial look alive in the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s. But the ‘90s ushered in a true renaissance. Sheerness, which paired well with the grunge ethos, was beloved by designers, with Alaïa, John Galliano, Jean Paul Gaultier, Prada, and Atelier Versace sending various takes on the trend down the runway. Although it became more normalised by the ‘90s, the bold look turns heads in any decade.

Related: How to beat the summer heat, according to street stylers? Go sheer

There is incredible power in choosing to reveal one’s body. In 1998, Rose McGowan wore a beaded, chain-mail-esque dress over only a leopard-print thong to the VMAs; decades later she shared that it was her first red carpet since she was allegedly raped by Harvey Weinstein in 1997. “That was my first public appearance after being sexually assaulted,” she told Dr. Oz in 2018. “I was like, Is this what you want? That was a political statement.” The conversation around a revealing dress can change culture as well. Jennifer Lopez’s iconic green Versace gown at the 2000 Grammys—sheer with a plunging neckline—drove so many internet searches that it spurred the invention of Google Images.

Pseudo-nudity had its moment in the sun in 2008, thanks to the likes of Christian Dior and Chloé. But the shock value of diaphaneity peaked in 2014 when Rihanna accepted the CFDA fashion icon of the year award in a completely transparent Adam Selman number, covered only by a nude thong and fur pashmina. With her trademark blend of confidence and cheek, Rihanna became the perfect ambassador for the trend, flouncing criticism and encouraging empowerment. Others soon followed suit: Beyoncé rubber-stamped the naked dress at the 2015 Met Gala in a bejeweled Givenchy ensemble while Kendall Jenner and Bella Hadid tackled their own interpretations for the 2017 Met Gala.

Sheerness came back in full force in 2022 and shows no sign of slowing down. Chanel, Nensi Dojaka, Prada, Ferragamo, Dion Lee, Rodarte, Emilia Wickstead, Heron Preston, Rick Owens, LaQuan Smith, and Y/Project are among labels that have played with transparency in recent collections.

The daring choice isn’t popular just on the runway: Ciara, Janelle Monáe, Emily Ratajkowski, Ashley Graham, Julia Garner, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Emma Chamberlain, and Hailee Steinfeld all opted for sheer gowns at the Vanity Fair Oscar party alone. Even men are getting in on the trend, with Austin Butler and Shawn Mendes each stepping out in various states of undress. Some, including Kendall and Kylie Jenner and Hailey Bieber, have turned the look on its head, opting to try tights as pants.

While increasingly popular, the look is still subject to much sensationalism and even vitriol. When Florence Pugh attended the 2022 Valentino Haute Couture show in a transparent hot pink gown, she was subject to much pearl clutching. But true to the fearless spirit of the sheer dress, Pugh fought back. “It has always been my mission in this industry to say ‘fuck it and fuck that’ whenever anyone expects my body to morph into an opinion of what’s hot or sexually attractive,” she wrote.

For the first time, we seem to be pushing more boundaries with sheerness. Labels have long sent models’ exposed breasts down the runway, but nowadays celebrities and regular people alike are more inclined to bare it all. Perhaps it’s an act of cultural pushback against the government’s puritanical restrictions on women’s bodies. Maybe it’s a sign that we shouldn’t be so concerned with our own nakedness. No matter how you wear it, sheer is sexy, subversive, and powerful. If you feel like kicking up a little intrigue, Vogue has rounded up some of the best moments in transparent fashion to help inspire you.