Balenciaga, Paris (Book)

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Balenciaga Paris (Book) by Pamela Golbin and Fabien Baron, Lydie Echasseriaud (Translator), Hélène David-Weill (Preface) – very good condition inside but traces on cover. Paperback, 216 pages. 2006. Dimensions: 37 x 29 x 2.6 cm. Publisher Thames & Hudson. French language.

A good couturier must be: an architect for plans, a sculptor for form, a painter for color, a musician for harmony and a philosopher for measure.” Such was the profession of faith of the man in whom Dior himself recognized “the master of us all”: Cristobal Balenciaga.

Severe, even ascetic, Balenciaga was, like Chanel, Dior or Schiaparelli, one of the icons of the golden age of haute couture. His concern for the construction of the garment, the perfection of the cut, the choice of materials, textures and colors, including an intense black, his vision of fashion as a purity, made his approach unique and ended up becoming his true brand image.

After presenting his last collection in February 1968, he chose to close his salons and return to live in Spain, where he was born. Thirty years later, Nicolas Ghesquière took over the artistic direction of the house, giving this adventure that one might have thought had ended a new tour. Unanimously hailed for the freshness of his vision, a sobriety and rigor that are in no way inferior to those of his predecessor, he is considered one of the most important designers of the moment.

It is to this unique fashion adventure, spanning, with its two highlights, almost a century, that this book, accompanying an exhibition organized by the Musée de la Mode et du Textile, wishes to pay tribute.

Through a fascinating collection of photographs, sketches, illustrations and quotes, it is a precise chronology, a meticulous inventory of this double journey that Pamela Golbin, curator at the Musée de la Mode et du Textile, and Nicolas Ghesquière himself offer the reader. Layout by Fabien Baron, artistic director of Vogue, involving the greatest photographers, including Irving Penn, this book not only offers a fascinating chronicle of one of the greatest Parisian fashion houses, but is in itself a graphic creation destined to make history.

This book is the catalogue of the exhibition held from July 6, 2006 to January 28, 2007 at the Musée de la Mode et du Textile in Paris.

Feel free to check out the additional photos at the top left, thank you!

If you prefer to pay in EUR, you must click on the orange “French” option under the main photo above, which will redirect you to the text in French and the payment in €.