Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel
1883 - 1971
Westinghouse
sun lamp for indoor sunshine, 1949
A-TOKEN-OF-PROSPERITY
The end of the 19th century marked the beginning of a period in which numerous
inventions, and discoveries caused a significant change in medical insights. A
change of view on hygiene and the self-healing capabilities of nature resulted in an
ever-increasing popularity of treatments by natural remedies while the introduction of
electricity offered the opportunities to assist nature were necessary. Well known are
the papers and sanatoria of Friedrich Eduard Bilz, according who a combination of
treatments with sun-, water- and fresh air formed a remedy against a diversity of
diseases. But also in medical science an aimed
exposure to natural sunshine (helio therapy) was
accepted as an effective method of treatment for
diseases like bone- and lung tuberculosis and
rachitis or rickets. The treatments were carried out
in sanatoria on the beach or in the mountains and
step by step the sun-tanned face lost his image of
poverty. When finally the
leading fashion designer
Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel in
1926 returned from a holiday
with an obvious tanned
skin, the turnaround was
complete and men and
women of all classes of
society indulged themselves
with sun bathing. In the
years before WWII the
interest in natural sunlight
reached a temporary climax in the form of sun bathing,
open-air schools, UV transparent windows and indoor UV
lighting. In the second half of the 20th century the trend was
towards frequent and long lasting sun bathing, completed with
an intensive artificial ultraviolet treatment during the winter
period. When it became clear however that an excessive
exposure to ultraviolet radiation also contained a serious risk
for developing skin cancer, the hype ceased somewhat.
