{"id":39392,"date":"2025-01-21T08:04:03","date_gmt":"2025-01-21T08:04:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/american-history\/the-iconic-style-of-benjamin-green-field\/"},"modified":"2025-01-21T08:04:03","modified_gmt":"2025-01-21T08:04:03","slug":"the-iconic-style-of-benjamin-green-field","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=39392","title":{"rendered":"The Iconic Style of Benjamin Green-Field"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Bes-Ben was best known for fantastical hats, but what did the man who created them wear? In this blog post, CHM costume collection intern Penelope Ham writes about Benjamin Benedict Green-Field\u2019s personal style.<\/em><\/p>\n

While milliner Benjamin Green-Field (1898\u20131988), cofounder of the Bes-Ben hat shop, is renowned for his unconventional hats, his equally iconic personal wardrobe is not as well-known. In addition to the nickname of \u201cThe Mad Hatter of Chicago,\u201d Green-Field was also described as flamboyant, extravagant, and a \u201cconnoisseur of art and design.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Benjamin Green-Field flanked by Barbara Lowe (Mrs. A. Loring Rowe, left) and Hanchen Stern (Mrs. Gardner H. Stern, right) at the opening reception of the exhibition <\/em>The Whimsical World of Bes-Ben Hats at the Chicago Historical Society, April 14, 1976. CHM, ICHi-069732<\/em><\/p>\n

He loved to travel and made more than 59 trips around the world in his lifetime. He was fascinated with life overseas and wrote in great detail about what he saw during his travels. Green-Field\u2019s deep interest in clothing and textiles was greatly influenced by his travels, and his wardrobe consisted largely of custom suits made from fabrics he would buy abroad.<\/p>\n

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Suit, c. 1975. Silk. Gents Tailor Alberts, India. Gift of Mr. Benjamin B. Green-Field. 1978.163a-c. Top: CHM, ICHi-170032. Bottom: CHM, ICHi-170037 <\/em><\/p>\n

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The purpose and conventional use of the fabric was of little importance to him, and some, such as the jacket below, were made of upholstery fabrics. One newspaper in Capri knew him as \u201cthe man of twenty shirts,\u201d and he was followed by the press everywhere he went due to his extravagant outfits and his love for being photographed.<\/p>\n

In addition to elaborate patterns, his suits also provide a number of other eye-catching, intricate details. The jacket and pants contain many pockets, on both the inside and outside of the garments, as well as extra pleating in the back, almost evocative of a skirt.<\/p>\n

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Man\u2019s suit of multicolored tapestry fabric. 1989.562.1.82a-c.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Pictured above is one of Green-Field\u2019s iconic suit jackets. In addition to many pockets, this jacket is also collarless and would have been paired with an equally showy shirt or tie.<\/p>\n

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Here is a back view of the same jacket. On the sides, some of the skirt-like pleating can be seen.<\/p>\n

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The jacket\u2019s interior has an equally lavish lining, another hallmark of Green-Field\u2019s suits. In some cases, he opted for a simpler fabric on the outside. The lining would not be seen by the public and therefore was just for him to enjoy.<\/p>\n

Although the Bes-Ben shop closed its doors for good in 1978 following the decline of hats in fashion, Green-Field\u2019s legacy lives on today through his vibrant clothes, unique designs, and spectacular sense of style. You can learn more about Benjamin Benedict Green-Field and see a selection of Bes-Ben hats in our exhibition Chicago: Crossroads of America<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Additional Resources<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bes-Ben was best known for fantastical hats, but what did the man who created them wear? In this blog post, CHM costume collection intern Penelope Ham writes about Benjamin Benedict Green-Field\u2019s personal style. While milliner Benjamin Green-Field (1898\u20131988), cofounder of the Bes-Ben hat shop, is renowned for his unconventional hats, his equally iconic personal wardrobe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":39393,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12032],"tags":[5645,25116,6505,1539],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-39392","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-american-history","tag-benjamin","tag-greenfield","tag-iconic","tag-style"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Iconic Style of Benjamin Green-Field - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=39392\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Iconic Style of Benjamin Green-Field - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Bes-Ben was best known for fantastical hats, but what did the man who created them wear? 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