Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion (review)

The year 2017 marks the centenary of the opening of renowned Spanish "dressmaker, tailor, fashion designer, and couturier" Cristóbal Balenciaga's inaugural dressmaking business in San Sebastián in northern Spain and the eightieth anniversary of the opening of what was to become the most expensive and exclusive couture establishment in Paris: The House of Balenciagaat 10 Avenue George V. ¹The Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London is celebrating these anniversaries with the first-ever UK retrospective exhibition of Balenciaga's work (curated by Cassie Davies-Strodder), together with the publication of a revised and expanded illustrated hardcover book by Lesley Ellis Miller. ²The small-scale exhibition, sponsored by American Express, is on display in the circular temporary exhibition space that forms the central area and the upper level of the V&A's recently renovated room 40 (The Fashion Gallery). The exhibits displayed on the ground-floor space focus on the latter part of Balenciaga's career, with womenswear garments drawn predominantly from the 1950s and 1960s that were acquired in the 1970s for the V&A's collection by Balenciaga's friend Cecil Beaton. The upper level maximizes the exhibition's appeal to a broad audience by bringing the exhibition up to the moment and exploring Balenciaga's enduring influence on contemporary international fashion design.

Balenciaga is famed for his "resolutely modern approach to couture" by creating theatrical garments with an architectural quality. ³His iconic designs from the 1950s and 1960s offered new dramatic silhouettes that relinquished the focus on the bust, waist, and hips (as seen in Christian Dior's New Look) in favor of innovative cutting that skimmed the body. ⁴Balloon-cuffed sleeves, the sack dress (1957), La Tulipe dress (1965), the one-piece cape (1967), and the elaborate trapezoid winged "envelope" cocktail dress (1967) have become some of Balenciaga's most iconic garments. Through his sculptural emphasis on line, form, and movement, Balenciaga created shapes around the body that were "so voluminous they obscured the body's outlines entirely." ⁵Although attention is shifted away from the body's shape through a focus on form and volume, this is not to say that his garments are not feminine or erotic. With simple lines, bold sleeves, and collars cut to stand away from the neck, Balenciaga displaces desire onto the shoulders, nape, and pelvis, creating a look that Josep Font of Delpozo argues appears "almost Oriental" to Western audiences. ⁶Rather than starting with a sketch and then seeking out appropriate materials, Balenciaga began his design process by working with lace, silk gazar, and chiffon fabrics from Swiss, Italian, and UK manufacturers (such as Brivet, Abraham, and Ascher Textiles) and then designing and producing garments around the specific qualities of the fabrics. ⁷Through his manipulation of contrasting fabrics informing the end result, Balenciaga elevated the idea of simplicity within luxury. ⁸Although Balenciaga "reigned supreme at the zenith of haute couture," he "preferred to focus the purity of his vision on the bespoke" for his exclusive, wealthy clients rather than influencing current trends by developing a ready-to-wear line for the masses. ⁹Versions of his more conservative designs could, however, be bought in Spain in one of his Eisa stores, at half the price of his exclusive Parisian couture garments. ¹⁰

The V&A's exhibition opens by clearly demonstrating the evolution of Balenciaga's distinct couturial style through displaying examples from the 1940s that contrast with an adjacent case displaying a striking green silk gazar balloon dress and cape from 1961 that showcases the sculptural qualities of Balenciaga's work. In Balenciaga's garments from the 1940s, his debt to Spanish culture is evident through references to flamenco style, the short jackets worn by bullfighters (chaquetillas), embroidered manila shawls, and the mantillas with their black lace contrasting against pale fabric underneath. ¹¹The garments are further contextualized with examples of a cover from Harper's Bazaarphotographed by Richard Avedon (December 1949) and a bullfighting poster. This...