Elisabeth Lecourt: Tailoring Maps

Elisabeth Lecourt is a French artist who started her studies at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Pau, but then moved to London to study at Central Saint Martin’s and to obtain her MA at the Royal College of Art. Her works have gained worldwide fame and are sold and exhibited in galleries all around the world.

The origins of the artist’s work

Elisabeth Lecourt states that it was her art teacher when she was fourteen years old who first saw the potential that was in her. Thanks to him she started her artistic journey. The decision to move to England to pursue a career was dictated by the fact that the French art scene was almost exclusively dominated by men.

Les Robes V Elisabeth Lecourt — Les Robes V

Les Robes I Elisabeth Lecourt — La Roulette coquelicot

The idea for her most famous series (Les Robes Geographiques) was born from sketches made in 2002. Lecourt wanted to make clothes that would tell the life and personality of figures like Anne Frank. A turning point for her artistic path was when the artist was very impressed by the story of a man who was about to go to prison and who had a six-year-old daughter. For the daughter she decided to make a dress with a map of London in which the prison was placed on the heart.

"L'igloo, Balthazar et Maman Baleine"
Map of Alaska Line rep. 1934 Elisabeth Lecourt — Igloo Balthazzar et maman Baleine

Le Petit Pois Magique"
Paris Monument map Elisabeth Lecourt — Le Petit Pois Magique

Les Robes Geographiques

Elisabeth Lecourt became famous for her series in which she made small paper dresses with copies of antique maps. The maps used are the most varied and want to evoke worlds of adventure and dreams, in which observers can immerse themselves. The clothes made by the artist are almost exclusively feminine, indicating how important the female figure is for the conception of the artist.

Ma robe Cachetée Elisabeth Lecourt — Ma robe Cachetée

Les Robes III Elisabeth Lecourt — Les Robes III

About her series Les Robes Geographiques she says that she wants to make “a portrait of people through their clothes, like a blue-print of their soul”
Elisabeth Lecourt

The models of the dresses are many and vary from vintage dresses to shirts, chimoni and even shoes. Often the artist works with clients to create bespoke works, which contain meaningful maps for buyers. Lecourt states about a commission: “a couple with three children – the first was born in Tokyo, the second in New York and the third in London. I made a kimono from a map of Tokyo with a belt crafted from a map of New York and pockets using a map of London.”