Costume sketch for Miss Piggy
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: Copy of an ink and colored pencil costume sketch for Muppet character Miss Piggy, with fabric sample attached. The sketch by Polly Smith shows Piggy standing in a silver gown, wearing purple elbow-length gloves with hands at her hips, and silver shoes. A piece of reflective, sparkling silver fabric is attached at the top left corner of the front with a staple. Annotations in pencil around the sketch note that this design is "1st choice" and "it catches the light in a fabulous way!" alongside other notes about material and design. While it is unclear what production these sketches were produced for, these silver gown designs were likely ideas for what became the dress worn by the Miss Piggy in the museum's collection. The sketches may have been intended for Miss Piggy's costume for the puppet which toured in the Vision of Jim Henson traveling exhibit between 1992 and 2001. Polly Smith worked as a costume designer for the Jim Henson Company from 1978 until 2002, designing costumes for Muppet film and television productions as well as other Muppet appearances.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Miss Piggy is among the most popular Muppets and also the most influential. She quickly rose to national prominence after appearing as a background character on the Muppet Show in 1976. Named in homage to the singer Peggy Lee, Miss Piggy is a confident, bold, and independent woman who has worked as a model, actress, singer, and entrepreneur. In her appearances on The Muppet Show and in the Muppet films and other Muppet television series and productions she is shown to both revel in her femininity and also upend preconceived notions based on her gender, occupation, and even her species. Miss Piggy is a rare pig celebrated for her glamorous style and beauty, but also known to aggressively defend herself and her beau Kermit with her martial arts skills. She is a self-described "ardent feminist and champion of women’s rights," and in 2015 was awarded the Sackler Center First Award from the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art at the Brooklyn Museum.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
topic: label: Subject
content: Puppetry
label: Subject
content: Fashion
setName: label: See more items in
content: Culture and the Arts: Entertainment
label: See more items in
content: Popular Entertainment
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2021.0099.05
label: catalog number
content: 2021.0099.05
label: accession number
content: 2021.0099
objectType: label: Object Name
content: sketch
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 11 in x 8 1/2 in; 27.94 cm x 21.59 cm
label: Measurements
content: overall: 11 in x 8 1/2 in; 27.94 cm x 21.59 cm