Balenciaga - The Spanish Master of Fashion

Next month, my daughter and I are off to Bendigo, to view the "Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion" exhibition on loan from the Victoria and Albert Museum. Having already seen the Chanel and Dior collections as well as the Krystyna Campbell-Petty Fashion Gift, we are both extremely excited to see this collection and can hardly wait.

The V&A holds the largest collection of Balenciaga garments and hats in the UK. Many pieces were sourced for the Museum by society photographer Cecil Beaton (scroll down to the end), who used his contacts to assemble a prestigious collection of 20th century couture. This exhibition examines the work and legacy of the influential Spanish couturier Cristóbal Balenciaga, with over 100 pieces crafted by him, his protégées and contemporary fashion designers working in the same innovative tradition.

Known as 'the master' of haute couture, Cristóbal Balenciaga (1895 – 1972) was a true fashion innovator and he radically altered the fashionable silhouette of women in the mid-twentieth century. With the methodical skill of an expert tailor, he created garments of fluidity and grace. Unlike many couturiers, Balenciaga was able to drape, cut and fit his own muslin patterns, known as toiles. His designs embraced women of all shapes, sizes and age. His clothes skimmed, rather than hugged a woman’s curves, which allowed comfort and full range of movement. He was respected throughout the fashion world for both his knowledge of technique, construction and his unflinching perfectionism.

Cristobal Balenciaga photographed by Boris Lipnitzki, circa 1927.

A woman has no need to be perfect or even beautiful to wear my dresses.

The dress will do all that for her.

Cristóbal Balenciaga

Balenciaga orange coat, Paris, 1954

Balenciaga alone is a couturier in the truest sense of the word.

Only he is capable of cutting material, assembling a creation and sewing it by hand,

the others are simply fashion designers.

Coco Chanel

Silk taffeta evening gown by Cristóbal Balenciaga, Paris, 1954

Haute couture is like an orchestra whose conductor is Balenciaga.

We other couturiers are the musicians and we follow the direction he gives.

Christian Dior

My favourite photo: Lisa Fonssagrives-Penn wearing a coat by Cristóbal Balenciaga, Paris 1950

The House of Balenciaga is still alive today, under yet another new creative director, (and there have been quite a few) but in my opinion, none who have followed in Cristóbal Balenciaga's footsteps have rarely done him or the House of Balenciaga justice . . . there will only ever be one 'Master'.

Cape dress by Nicolas Ghesquiere for Balenciaga, Paris Autumn-Winter 2006

Silk evening cape by Cristobal Balenciaga, Paris 1963

Comparing the two previous photos, I cannot see anything original about the design of the Ghesquiere cape, apart from the choice of fabric. Oscar de la Renta and Hubert de Givenchy have also been seen to be following 'the master' with whom they apprenticed.

-oOo-

Cecil Beaton:
Although best known as a photographer, he was also a fabulous illustrator and designer for stage and film.

Along with Edith Head (whose collection we saw in 2017), Beaton is one of my favourite costume designers. His designs for productions such as My Fair Lady were absolutely stunning, especially with the millinery featured in the Ascot scene.

Both My Fair Lady (1956) and Gigi (1958), defined the glamorous look of the era, as well as winning him three Oscars for costume and art direction.

Surprise, Surprise!

"Edith Head is considered the most significant costume designer in film history and today her name is synonymous with Hollywood costume of the twentieth century. Over her more than 50-year career in studio costume - first with Paramount Pictures and later with Universal Studios - Head worked with many of Hollywood's brightest stars on almost a thousand films."

BENDIGO ART GALLERY

-oOo-

Well after reading "no cameras" and thinking we wouldn't be allowed to take photos of the Edith Head exhibition, we found we were able to after all, as long as we didn't use a flash. So my dear daughter literally took hundred s of them (232 to be exact), however, I have selected just a few of my favourites to share.

Many of you were probably not even born when this two-piece wool suit was worn by Maureen O'Sullivan in The Big Clock (Paramount Pictures 1948), but if you're a movie buff and fan of the silver screen you may be familiar with some of the following.

This silk ball gown was worn by Natalie Wood in Inside Daisy Clover (Warner Brothers 1965).

This two-piece silk performance costume by Betty Hutton in The Perils of Pauline (Paramount Pictures 1947) is covered in Austrian crystal bugle beads . . . can you just imagine how many hours of work it would have taken to sew them all on. The back of this suit was stunning!

This silk evening gown worn by Caroll Baker in Harlow (Paramount Pictures 1965) is also covered in thousands of Austrian bugle beads. Click on the photo to see a close view.

Adding embellishment to simple costumes was one of Edith Head's devices for creating instant glamour. Many of her simply cut and modest shape costumes were vastly improved and given a much more glamourous air by the inclusion of sequins and bugle beads.

The medieval-style cotton velvet costume worn by Shirley Temple in Little Miss Marker (Paramount Pictures 1934) is beautifully embroidered. Shirley later wrote about her costumes for this film in her 1968 autobiography Child Star.

"An exceptionally talented artist, she decided to make my costumes from scratch instead of drawn off the studio rack. This would require many try-ons while she created exactly the desired impression."

 

The peacock silk costume worn by Hedy Lamarr in Samson and Delilah (produced and directed by Cecil B. DeMille and released by Paramount Pictures 1949) has the most beautiful beaded applique.

The peacock feathered cape accompanying the gown above, is without doubt one of the most recognisable elements of this costume and while the gown became part of the Paramount Pictures Archive, the cape has remained in the DeMille family. It is too fragile to travel, so unfortunately could not be reunited for this exhibition.

The hooded wool coat worn by Barbara Stanwyck in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (Paramount Pictures 1946) is shown with the black sweater and large gold chain she wore in the movie. I noticed that this style of chain was recently worn by Jayne Fonda on the Graham Norton Show, making it still very fashionable today.

I have been a long time admirer of Edith Head and her ability to design costumes for movies and although costuming may appear to be a glamorous profession, the work entailed is extremely demanding and time consuming. Especially when working on a period film, as all the costumes have to be thoroughly researched to ensure they accurately depict the garments worn at the time.

My daughter told me this exhibition had shown her a completely different aspect of film costuming which made her realise the amount of work that goes into each garment prior to the actual film's production.

Personally, I think Edith (above) deserved every one of the eight Oscars and twenty seven nominations she received during her fabulous career, and she still holds the record for the most awards won by a woman.

The final words belong to Edith Head:

"I would give this advice to every actress with whom I work, to every woman who will listen.

1. Be dressed for what you are doing.

2. Have the right accessories.

3. Don't wear your clothes too tight.

A dress should be tight enough to show you're a woman and loose enough to prove you're a lady.

I like that last. You can use that on my epitaph."

70 Years of Dior

As you have probably read earlier, my daughter and I enjoyed a day out last Friday. I hadn't been to the National Gallery of Victoria before, though I had been to the Arts Centre. It was much larger than I thought and it took us roughly three hours to view the entire "The House of Dior" exhibition.

Christian Dior ~ Founder and Creative Director until his unexpected death in 1957.

My daughter took 261 photos, much to many to share, but this post is still photo heavy. Many of the items photographed were behind glass, which unfortunately shows reflections of the lighting amongst other things. However, I'll begin with Dior's own designs . . . the Bar Suit was from his first spring/summer collection in 1947, it's difficult to see the pleating in the skirt, but they are there!

The beautiful tulle gown with the silk roses at the back, which I had so desperately hoped to see, unfortunately did not appear in this exhibition.

This little number from the spring/summer 1948 is in a fine black and white hounds-tooth check.

Dior designed an evening dress from similar fabric (to the above) for his 1953 spring/summer collection.

Evening dress designed by Dior for the spring/summer collection 1958.

Yves Saint Laurent ~ Creative Director 1957 - 1960.

Blue Bavardage coat from spring/summer 1958.

Masquerade, a short evening dress for spring/summer 1958.

Black was one of Yves Saint Laurent's favourite colours. He stated 'I love black because it affirms, designs and styles. A woman in a black dress is a pencil stroke.'

Marc Bohan ~ Creative Director 1960 - 1989

The longest serving CD (29 years) for the House of Dior and the least public profile. His designs balanced the traditions of elegance and luxury with crisp modern styling. He presented his last collection for the house, The Year of India, in 1989.

Day dress from the Heritage Collection autumn/winter 1969/70.

Slim Look, spring/summer 1961.

Gianfranco Ferre ~ Creative Director 1989-1996

From the tailored to the flamboyant, he revelled in his role as the first non French person to hold the position as CD.

Disney evening suit for the Ascot - Cecil Beaton Collection autumn/winter 1989/90.

Although I liked much of the exhibition, this was my most favourite of them all, the detail with the beading was incredible! I was so taken with the suit, I didn't look to see who designed it or what collection it was from. As it was shown with the Disney suit, I am assuming Gianfranco Ferre was the designer.

John Galliano ~ Creative Director 1996 - 2011

A bold choice and the first British designer to hold the post.

From a collection inspired by the opera Madame Butterfly and traditional Japanese costume, Galliano makes a feature of the origami-style folds in combination with delicate floral embroidery.

There was even a little of the steampunk influence in his work!

Kamata ball gown spring/summer 1997 showing an African influence.

Look 27 evening dress, autumn/winter 2010-11.

Raf Simons ~ Creative Director 2012 - 2015

The Belgian designer revisited the exceptional tailoring of Christian Dior and his adoration of flowers and eighteenth century references.

Look 21 evening dress autumn/winter 2012-13 and Look 37 evening dress autumn/winter 2013-14.

Look 54 dress spring/summer 2015. It wasn't the most inspiring collection in my opinion.

Maria Grazia Chiuri ~ Creative Director 2016 to current day.

Italian designer Maria Grazia Chiuri, commenced her tenure as the firs female head of the house in July 2016. Interested in designs that resonate with younger audiences, while remaining in the traditional couture realm of aspirational, transformative clothes.

Part of the spring/summer 2017 collection.

Constellations ball gown (black & white photo) spring/summer 2017.

Top to Toe

"The well dressed woman will possess and outfit for every occasion: by the word outfit I mean everything that goes to make up perfection, planned and thought through to the last detail from the fur coat to the shoes."

CHRISTIAN DIOR

"I think it is as important for a woman to have a beautiful perfume as it is for her to have beautiful clothes."

CHRISTIAN DIOR

As early as 1947, Christian Dior described himself as a perfumer and couturier.

Roger Vivier ~ Footwear Designer

The most important creative relationship for Dior in relation to footwear was with this French designer, who he met socially in 1949. Vivier's shoes for Dior are widely acknowledged as being as luxurious and influential as the clothing. He incorporated the same level of exquisite embroidery and opulent fabric selection as the fashion collections, and developed important and iconic heel silhouettes, such as the curving comma and towering stiletto.

Some of these shoes look like they have just appeared in a James Bond movie!

Stephen Jones ~ Milliner

Stephen Jones has had a long and accomplished career creating hats for his own label, as well as for fashion designers globally, and has worked regularly in Paris since the mid 1980's. One of his most significant relationships is with the House of Dior, where he has been designing hats for twenty years.

 

Now that's what you might call arty!

Well that's it for now, I hope you enjoyed the photos. My thanks to my daughter/photographer, "The House of Dior: Seventy Years of Haute Couture" and all the contributors to the book, which I used for reference.

PLEASE NOTE THIS PAGE AND ALL PHOTOS HEREIN ARE COPYRIGHT, SO PLEASE DON'T CLAIM THEM AS YOUR OWN.