Balenciaga

By Marie-Andrée Jouve and JOUVE MARIE-ANDRE

Book Overview

Christian Dior called Cristobal Balenciaga "the master of us all." The priest-like Balenciaga, whose private life remained a total mystery until the day he died, created day dresses of deceiving simplicity and evening gowns of staggering extravagance, and for them he was paid the highest prices in the couture world. His faithful clients were the great fashion plates of the postwar years: the Duchess of Windsor, Gloria Guinness, Pauline de Rothschild, and Mona Bismarck, among others.

Cristobal Balenciaga was born in 1895 in Getaria, in Spain's Basque country, and at the early age of twenty-four he created his own couture house in San Sebastian. He opened in Barcelona in 1933, in Madrid in 1935, and in 1948 on the Avenue Georges V in Paris, where he could serve a more international clientele. Cristobal Balenciaga retired in 1968 and died in reclusion in his native Spain in 1972.

The informative text and legendary photography in this volume beautifully document this master's immeasurably influential life and work.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 284323624X
• ISBN13: 9782843236242
• Release Date: October 2004
• Publisher: Assouline
• Length: 79 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.4" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

Concise story of Cristobal Balenciaga

This is a great book for those interested in knowing the career of Balenciaga.Marie Andrée Jouvre had already written a larger edition on the topic, a book callled "Balenciaga", published in 1988. She shows she really understands what she is talking about.What I liked most about this book is that it gives a general overview of the work of this master, including some high quality pictures of his most famous dresses.And for those who really prefer pictures, this is the book for you. The written part is really small, yet effective.