THE CENTRE FRONT- by A4: BALENCIAGA

Cristobal Balenciaga

Balenciaga is a Fashion house which was founded by Cristobal Balenciaga in 1914. Cristobal was born 21st January 1895 in Spain (Basque country). His mother was a seamstress and as a child he was often with her while she worked. By 12 he was an apprentice tailor and as a teenager gained athe honour of having the Marchioness de Casa Torres , who was the foremost Noblewoman of his town become his customer and Patron. She sent him to Madrid to train in Tailoring which saw Balenciaga eventually become one of the few Couturiers in the Fashion industry who actually used their own hands to cut and sew the designs, this symbolized the height of his craft.

As a Fashion designer Cristobal experienced success, and opened a boutique in San Sebastian in 1919. The boutique expanded with stores in Barcelona and Madrid. The Spanish Aristocracy and Royal family were fans of his designs.

The Spanish Civil war meant that many of his stores were shut down which forced him to move to Paris.

Balenciaga opened his Paris couture house on Avenue George V in August 1937.

Balenciaga “Infanta” evening dress, 1939.

Balenciaga dress photographed in 1950 by Irving Penn

It was after the war when Cristobal's innovative inventiveness became apparent. He transformed the Silhouette by broadening the shoulders and removing the waist. His attention to detail and fine craftmenship saw him considered as a master of Haute Couture.

Balenciaga flamenco-inspired evening dress, 1951.

Balenciaga is credited with creating the bubble skirt, where voluminous puffs billow to create the skirt or dress.

Balenciaga Polka dot evening dress with balloon puff skirt.

Cristobal Balenciaga enjoyed continous success, the excellence of his collections were admired by both customers and his peers in the industry, he was dubbed The Spanish Dior. He retired in 1968 and closed his fashion houses.

Balenciaga evening ensemble, 1967.Courtesy of Balenciaga Archives, Paris.

During his retirement he taught fashion design classes, inspiring other designers such as Oscar de la Renta, André Courrèges, Emanuel Ungaro, Mila Schön and Hubert de Givenchy.

Balenciaga died aged 77 on March 23, 1972 in Jávea, Spain.

BALENCIAGA UNDER THE DIRECTION OF NICOLAS GHESQUIERE

The house of Balenciaga went quiet from the 1970's after the death of Cristobal Balenciaga in 1972. The company was still present but not to the same level that it was previously. Nicolas Ghesquiere took the helm in 1997 at 26 years old, becoming the youngest Creative Director for an Haute Couture Company. Nicolas Ghesquiere was born in 1971 in Comines, Nord France. At the age of 12 he announced to his family that he was to become a fashion designer. He would often sketch dresses in his school books and make clothes from his mothers curtains. During school holidays he would do internships with tailors and dressmakers. at 14 he gained an internship with the french designer Agnes B, for which he was paid in clothing. His internships proved too much for him along with his school work so he decided to stop and continue with schooling.

From 1990 to 1992 Nicolas worked as an assistant to Jean Paul Gaultier, he then went on to design knitwear and other lines for various companies.

Although his assignments at various companies were not particularly glamourous the contacts he aquired proved useful when trying to find work for prestigious labels, this lead to him finding a job at Baleciaga where he did the companys licencing, this meant boring mass production for the asian market , including the production of funeral clothing. But Nicolas's hard work and commitment paid off when he was picked by the Gucci Group which had aquired Balenciaga, to become its head designer and Creative Director.

He completely turned the house around, giving it a new lease of life, reinventing it. His devotion to the house and unyielding respect for Cristobal means that the Balenciaga style from the past is reinvented for modern times keeping the elegance, and detail present in all of the collections he produces.

ELEGANT INNOVATION

Under the direction of Nicolas Ghesquiere Balanciaga produces beautiful and innovative collections season after season. The collections reference the past style of Balenciaga without being too nostalgic.

Balenciaga by Nicolas Ghesquiere, detailed ruffle collar with crystal and pearl clasp spring summer 2006

Balenciaga by Nicolas Ghesquiere, Architecture inspired white dress Spring Summer 2006

Balenciaga by Nicolas Ghesquiere, Ornamental belt and shirt outfit Spring Summer 2006

Although Balenciaga is no longer an Haute Couture House, Nicolas keeps the intricate details and fine cuts in the collections and mixes them with modern elements such as skinny pants and tshirts.

Like Cristobal Balenciaga Nicolas is innovative and looks to the future for inspiration. The Spring Summer Collection for 2007 saw gold leggings made up of gold pieces which made the models legs look robotic. Waistcoats and shirts in hard looking leather were laid over ruffled tops, creating a weird but pleasing juxtaposition.