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Mystery of Denim's Origins Solved by Art

An anonymous Italian artist is being dubbed the 'Master of Denim' for his portrayal of the peasant class in the now-famous fabric.

Workaday staple and fashion favorite, blue jeans have conquered the planet. But were they born in the textile mills of New Hampshire, on France's southern coast or the looms of north Italy?

Art historians believe they have found a piece of the centuries-old puzzle in the work of a newly discovered 17th-century north Italian artist, dubbed the "Master of the Blue Jeans," whose paintings went on show in Paris this week.

Running through his works like a leitmotif is an indigo blue fabric threaded with white, with rips revealing its structure, in the skirts of a peasant woman or the jacket of a beggar boy....

Read entire article at Discovery News