1895-1972 Cristobal Balenciaga

[DosViolines]

Thanks for all the images *EllaH and j´adore dior

[Pastry]

How fantastic is this thread!

[CharlottefromCA]

I wish the picture were bigger ...


(cincinnatiartmuseum.org)

Cristóbal Balenciaga (1895-1972)
Spain (worked in Paris)
Evening Dress, 1960-62
Silk
Gift in memory of Irma Mendelson Lazarus, 1993.189a

Evening Jacket, 1959
Cotton, silk, chenille, metallic thread, sequins
Gift in memory of Irma Mendelson Lazarus, 1993.222

Without question, Cristóbal Balenciaga is the most highly regarded couturier of the twentieth century. He was a master of the tailoring and dressmaking skills necessary to achieve his artistic vision. Balenciaga's standards were so high that he reputedly spent days on a single dress, pulling it apart, recutting it, and altering it until it fit to his satisfaction.

Cincinnati socialite Irma Lazarus wore this black strapless evening dress and embroidered jacket to dramatic effect. The dress is severe and sculptured; its drama lies in its complete simplicity. Fabric gathered around the bust forms an empire waist. The A-line skirt falls from below the bust to the floor, fitting the waist closely. Constructed with two linings, one of silk taffeta and the other of horsehair, the skirt maintains its perfect triangular shape.

The jacket, a masterpiece in itself, is constructed of black cotton tulle trimmed with bands of soft blue silk chiffon. It was embroidered by the House of Lesage, still today the most highly regarded French embroidery firm, in an exquisite design of grapes, grape leaves, and floral vines in silk floss, silk chenille, sequins, and metallic threads. The jacket is the perfect accompaniment for the severely simple dress.

[Mutterlein]

What I love so much about his designs is that they are still fresh and modern. The balenciaga capsule collection that is based from ghesquire's designs embody more of the balenciaga spirit the the runway orginals because of how modern the ORIGINAL balenciaga designs were (meaning Cristobal's actual designs). The Balenciaga Edition line that is reworked versions of Cristobal's designs require little change because even they are so perfect for today.

[The_Ida]

Originally Posted by Mutterlein

What I love so much about his designs is that they are still fresh and modern. The balenciaga capsule collection that is based from ghesquire's designs embody more of the balenciaga spirit the the runway orginals because of how modern the ORIGINAL balenciaga designs were (meaning Cristobal's actual designs). The Balenciaga Edition line that is reworked versions of Cristobal's designs require little change because even they are so perfect for today.

Was Kate Moss wearing a dress from the capsule collection in W this month?

[Phylicia]

I just love the thirth dress...It is so Hollywood

[Mutterlein]

Originally Posted by The_Ida

Was Kate Moss wearing a dress from the capsule collection in W this month?

I believe so! Also there is another dress in October Paris Vogue.

[Mutterlein]

I am also getting my names mixed up. The capsule collecions IS Balenciaga Edition. I am not sure what the simplified Ghesquire line is called.

[DosViolines]

source: http://americanhistory.si.edu/collec...dnumber=372246

Dress, 3-Piece

Catalogue number: CS*278873.011

Date: 1951

Maker: Balenciaga

Designer: Cristobal Balenciaga

Description:
White strapless floral lace on black net ground; DRESS-full length evening, with separate pink cummerbund; long panels/train in back and separate taffeta petticoat; full gathered lace skirt; bodice has scalloped lace applied along top edge and skirt hem edge; boning on back side and front of bodice; lined in gray silk taffeta; full gathered skirt with gray silk organdy underskirt attached at waistline; underskirt has darts in front and gathered in back, to minimize bulk in front; left side zipper closure sewn to bodice and extends into organdy underskirt; side opening on lace skirt fastens with snaps; grosgrain ribbon waistline stay sewn along upper edge inside edge of bodice waist to stabilize dress to body; PETTICOAT-five panel gray silk taffeta; waistline darts to minimize the bulk; left side opening with snap closure; 4-inch-wide band of horsehair braid stitched 11 inches down from waistline and another band of braid along hemline; horsehair band is encased in taffeta and stitched in place; 1/2-inch bias binding around waistline; CUMMERBUND-pink silk taffeta, boned; with folds; contour-shaped front, narrowing in back; center back hook and eye closure; lined in same fabric; two long pink panels, one 55 inches (139.7 cm) long and the other 38 inches (96.5 cm) long, attached to left side end of cummerbund with a gathered loop attached to left side long edge to form a knot; panels have a 1-inch hem along lengths and 2-inch fringe at lower edge. Background:
Prior to her marriage to Count Edward Bismark, American-born Mona Bismarck was the wife of utilities millionaire Harrison Williams. In the 1930s they bought a home in Paris, where she continued to live for the rest of her life. From 1930 to the 1950s, she was a fixture in society columns and fashion magazines. In fact, in 1936 Cole Porter mentioned "Mrs. Harrison Williams" in the song lyrics for Ridin' High. She was often photographed by Cecil Beaton. In her early years in Paris, she purchased items from many different designer houses. Eventually she shopped almost exclusively at Balenciaga and, later, Givenchy. Over the years, Countess Bismark offered many of these garments to the Smithsonian.
Cristobal Balenciaga Eisaguirre was born in the small fishing village of Guetaria in the Basque region of Spain. He learned to sew from his mother, who was a dressmaker. After apprenticing with tailors in San Sebastian and Madrid, he opened his own shop in San Sebastian in 1919. Eventually he opened to two houses in Spain, naming them Eisa, after his mother. With the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1937, he fled to Paris and established his own house. There he developed a large clientele of wealthy women, including a number of Americans such as Countess Bismark. Admired for the sophistocated, timeless style and cut of his designs, he was called "The Master" by his fellow designers. Many of his designs were inspired by Spanish regional dress and influenced by paintings of the old Spanish masters. He retired in 1968 and died in 1972. Exhibited in Mona Bismarck, Balenciaga, Cecil Beaton, Paris, France, 1994.

Credit: Gift of Countess Mona Bismark

[DosViolines]

source: manchestergalleries.org

Printed velvet hat by Cristobal Balenciaga, 1952

[DosViolines]

source: http://www.phxart.org/pastexhibition...ga_Couture.asp

Balenciaga Couture Fashion Design Gallery

An haute couture garment is different from all other clothing because of its originality of design, excellent craftsmanship and fabrics. Each is made to the individual measurements of the client with small changes in the proportion or finishes to best suit her body and personality. Cristobal Balenciaga is acknowledged as the master of 20th century French haute couture. His timeless classics have had incalculable influence over other designers and the clothing that all women have worn.

Balenciaga's extraordinary skill in design, cut and tailoring, combined with his knowledge of fabrics, has set him apart from all other designers. His garments are simple in form and lack ornamentation. Volume and shape are achieved with the cut of the material. They are always in agreement with the lines of the body giving the wearer confidence, comfort and self-assurance.

The installation of Balenciaga Couture, which includes approximately 25 designs from the 1930s through the 1960s, echoes his salon during a couture showing. The
clothes, all from Phoenix Art Museum's collection, are shown on the type of dressmaker's form that would have been employed in Balenciaga's couture workrooms.

Balenciaga's ateliers in Spain and Paris produced clothing for many of the world's most distinguished women from 1937 until his retirement in 1968. For example, the exhibition includes donations of Balenciaga clothing made to the Museum by Mrs. Clare Booth Luce, Mrs. Sybil Harrington, Mrs. Burton Tremaine, Mr. Larry Aldrich among many others.
This exhibition is organized by Phoenix Art Museum and is supported by the Museum's Arizona Costume Institute and the Novis M. Schmitz Foundation.

[DosViolines]

source: metmuseum.org

Keenly historicist, Balenciaga invented a fantasy of eighteenth-century court dress, knowing that Marie-Antoinette favored overdresses with swags anchored by roses. Sustained by wide panniers also appropriated from eighteenth-century fashion, Balenciaga renewed the Rococo rose for the 1940s and 1950s.


Dress (Ball Gown), spring/summer 1948
House of Balenciaga (French, founded 1937), Couture House; Designed by Cristobal Balenciaga (French, born Spain, 1895–1972)
French
silk, crinoline, steel; L. at center back: 43 ½ in. (110.5 cm). a) L. at center back: 10 ¼ in. (26 cm).
Gift of Lisa and Jody Greene, in memory of their loving mother, Ethel S. Greene, 1958 (C.I.58.13.6a, b)

[DosViolines]

source: metmuseum.org

Evening gown, 1965
Cristobal Balenciaga (French, born Spain, 1895–1972)
Light-blue silk satin
Anonymous Gift, 1973 (1973.139)


This is a deceptively simple evening dress designed in 1962 by Spanish-born couturier Cristobal Balenciaga, considered the supreme architect of twentieth-century fashion. Remembered primarily for his virtuosity as a tailor and for his use of fabrics with a stiffer or more structured "hand," Balenciaga generally sheathed the body in a self-supporting armature of cloth. In this extraordinary example, he manipulated a luxurious silk satin on the bias. With the exception of the back scarf panel, this gown is cut-in-one, like a piece of soft origami. The fabric is seamed at a diagonal in the back but lacks any darts for fit. In its economy, Balenciaga's gown is like the single panel constructions of the peplos, but its technical sophistication is unlike that of any preceding form.

[morbidexistence]

hmm those are all beautiful. and i found more in a book of fashion that i own.
it has so many amazing pics. you won't believe it.unfortunatly all my pics are bad quality scans. yep i don't how that thing works... and some of them are so tiny...sorry.

all pics were scanned by me from the book A moda no séc XX.

[arlekindearrabal]

great! that black bubble coat looks so heavy and marvelous...