During the past few weeks, I’ve been working on another writing project. I have to write a series of entries on American fashion in the 1940s. Needless to say, I’ve been having a blast. One thing I love about collaborating with others is that it exposes me to new things – new ways of thinking, different images, and endless possibilities. This week marks my first deadline for the project. And while I should just focus on completing my last article, I just couldn’t help but write this short post!
As I dug through primary sources (magazines and images of garments from the time period), I came across this evening dress by Cristobal Balenciaga. The train of the dress, when held out, has a circular shape.
Evening dress by Cristobal Balenciaga, c. 1967. Image courtesy of Metmuseum.org
Balenciaga (1895-1972) was a famed Spanish designer during his heyday, and he caught my attention in graduate school. I was mainly interested in him because of I was interested in exploring patriotism through fashion (an idea that merits another post). Yet his precision and mathematical construction of clothing won me over far more than ideas of heritage through dress.
My first though when seeing the black dress above was “Pierre Cardin”. Now, hear me out . . .
Balenciaga was influenced by religious garments. While part of this fascination was due to Spain being a Catholic country, Balenciaga was also focused on reducing garments to their purest, most essential state. This means reducing surface embellishments. With this goal, construction becomes extremely important. Many of Balenciaga’s designs are geometric, but still have a fluidity of movement. This makes the wearer look like a moving sculpture – one that changes shape with every gesture. Look at his famed wedding dress from 1967 for example:
Wedding dress by Cristobal Balenciaga, 1967. Image courtesy of Coletterie.
Wedding dress by Cristobal Balenciaga, 1967. Image courtesy of http://www.tendances-de-mode.com
Wedding dress by Cristobal Balenciaga, 1967. Image courtesy of Art Lobster.
Wedding dress by Cristobal Balenciaga, 1967. Image courtesy of Little Augury
If you keep looking, you’ll notice the geometry in Balenciaga’s designs. After I looked at an endless stream of images, I kept noticing circular elements to his designs:
Oyster coat by Cristobal Balenciaga, early 1960s. Image courtesy of Soethby’s
Hat by Cristobal Balenciaga, c. 1955. Image courtesy of Metmuseum.org
So why did I think Pierre Cardin? In my mind, Cardin is the master of introducing geometric forms into fashion. While he did so a bit later than Balenciaga, Cardin heavily used circular elements in his designs.
Cardin was interested in creating “space age” designs. The use of hardware accessories and durable, industrial materials were characteristics of Cardin’s clothing. He created designs for both men and women, each looking like an androgynous uniform ready for the space age. Cardin himself spoke about his designs as futuristic:
The clothes that I prefer are those I invent for a life that doesn’t exist yet- the world of tomorrow.
Time is a cycle, anyway. What better way to represent it in fashion that with the use of a circle? Take a look:
Dress by Pierre Cardin, c.1969. Image courtesy of Mirelle
Cape by Pierre Cardin. Image courtesy of Christie’s.
Dress by Pierre Cardin, c. 1969. Image courtesy of Vogue.it
Either way, the similarities are clear to me. If the above images aren’t enough to convince you, look at this ensemble by Cardin from 1970. It’s eerily similar to Balenciaga’s wedding dress from 1967:
Dress and cape by Pierre Cardin, 1970. Image courtesy of Vogue.it
Wedding dress by Cristobal Balenciaga, 1967. Image courtesy of Little Augury
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