Oh my God in dress heaven. The Balenciaga exhibition at Victoria and Abert Museum is just divine. I'm struck by how modern most of the dresses feel and then you realise many of them were created in the 50s and 60s. How brave of Balenciaga to play around with shapes and fabrics like this.
Pink emboridery influenced by Valencian dresses.
You get starstruck seeing these iconic dresses in real life. The "envelope dress" is a sheer deconstruction of body shapes.
The "tulip dress" from 1965 is on of my favourites. On the x-ray image you can see how Balenciaga rarely let the side seams show. The dresses were instead created from two big pieces of fabric, joined together on the back and front.
Studying the fashion drawings is as fun as seeing the final piece. It's so impressive hos everything starts with a simple sketch and some fabric samples.
A toile from a skirt suit and some kimono style draping.
Silk evening dress inspired by Greek vases. A baby doll cocktail dress and a "sack" line dress that was dramatically different from the hourglass shaped dresses of the 50s.
Voluminous evening cape from1963. I love this!
The red dress, also inspired by Japanese kimonos and a black gown with influences from his Catholic faith.
A toile and sketches next to the final piece.
Measurements of the Asian model Balenciaga often used.
More photos to come...