As part of Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion exhibit at V& A museum, London, famed for his exquisite craftsmanship and innovative designs, Spanish couturier Cristóbal Balenciaga was known as ‘The Master’ of haute couture. An inspiration to those who follow in his footsteps, his work continues to shape fashion today.
Cristóbal Balenciaga at work, 1968, Paris, France. Photograph by Henri Cartier-Bresson. © Henri Cartier-Bresson/Magnum Photos
As Christian Dior once said, Haute couture is like an orchestra whose conductor is Balenciaga. We other couturiers are the musicians and we follow the direction he gives.
Born in 1895 in Getaria, a small fishing village in the Basque region of northern Spain, Cristóbal Balenciaga was introduced to fashion by his mother, who was a seamstress. Her clients included the most fashionable and glamorous women in the village. Aged just twelve, he began an apprenticeship at a tailor’s in the neighbouring fashionable resort of San Sebastian, where in 1917 he established his first fashion house, named Eisa – a shortening of his mother’s maiden name.
Flamenco-style evening dress, Cristóbal Balenciaga, Paris, 1961. Photograph by Cecil Beaton, 1971 © Cecil Beaton Studio Archive at Sotheby’s
Balenciaga opened fashion houses in Barcelona and Madrid before moving to Paris in 1937. The house on Avenue Georges V quickly became the city’s most expensive and exclusive couturier. His early training set him apart from other couturiers of the time. He knew his craft inside out and was adept at every stage of the making process, from pattern drafting to cutting, assembling and finishing a garment. For him, the design process started with the fabric rather than with a sketch, “it’s the fabric that decides” he stated, proving that he knew how to exploit materials to the very best effect.
Bolero jacket, Balenciaga for EISA, 1947, Spain. © Museo Cristóbal Balenciaga. Lace cape, Cristóbal Balenciaga, about 1960, Paris. Museum no. T.141-1982. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
‘Balenciaga alone is a couturier in the truest sense of the word. Only he can cut material, assembling a creation and sewing it by hand, the others are simply fashion designers’ – Coco Chanel
