Fashion Book Friday: Cristóbal Balenciaga. The Making of a Master (1895-1936) by Miren Arzalluz

 This is my archive of fashion related books. Most of them are in English, but many are not. Some are new, but many are real finds. Depends on the topic, really...

     After last week`s book about Madeleine Vionnet, today is the turn of one of her friends and (initially) protegés, Cristóbal Balenciaga. Born 1895 in a small fishing village on the Basque coast in Spain, his life is an incredible mix of a rather humble origin, unique talent, hard work, and an incredible knack for establishing connections that helped him advance. Although this book focuses primarily on his life and carreer before the opening of his Paris house in 1936, it also contains examples and discusses his work after this date.
Después de contarles la semana pasada sobre Madeleine Vionnet, hoy es el turno de uno de sus amigos y (inicialmente) protegidos, Cristóbal Balenciaga. Nacido en 1895 en un pequeño pueblo de pescadores en la costa vasca en España, su vida es una mezcla increíble de origen humilde, talento único, trabajo duro y una habilidad increíble para establecer conexiones que lo ayudaron a avanzar. Aunque este libro se enfoca principalmente en su vida y carrera antes de la apertura de su casa en París en 1936, también contiene ejemplos de y discute su trabajo después de esta fecha.
    Now, what do I mean by "humble origin" and "connections" ? His parents were a fisherman and a seamstress, his father died when Cristóbal was 12, leaving his mother as the main breadwinner (Cristóbal himself entered an apprenticeship when he was twelve, beginning to earn some money himself). But, and it is a big but, the Basque coast was a very special place a hundred years ago. 
    ¿A qué me refiero con "origen humilde" y "conexiones"? Hijo de padre pescador  y madre costurera, su padre murió cuando Cristóbal tenía 12 años, dejando a su madre como cabeza de hogar (el mismo Cristóbal ingresó a un aprendizaje cuando tenía doce años, comenzando a ganar algo de dinero). Pero, y es un gran pero, la costa vasca era un lugar muy especial hace cien años.

  Favourite summer holidays destination for the Spanish (and French) royalty during the second half of the 19th and early 20th century, it was quite glamorous and cosmopolitan  ( the woman on the felt wears pants for ladies in San Sebastián in 1911, the same year they caused quite a stir in Paris), and the Balenciagas were among those who provided the necessary infrastructure. His father took members of the aristocracy on his boat for coast trips, his mother sewed the Royal Family`s summer wardrobe, so, when a teenaged Cristóbal began his professional career, there were people willing to help and opportunities difficult to imagine elsewhere. The first few chapters of the book describe this exuberant atmosphere of an upper class resort, the elegant and fashion-conscious clients of young Cristóbal and his mother, his early jobs, in the resort branch of the . On frequent trips to Paris for his employer, he met Madeleine Vionnet - and Chanel when she came to San Sebastián to set up a branch of her maison. He remained good friends with both - quite a feat, as they didn`t like each other.
Destino favorito de vacaciones de verano para la realeza española (y francesa) durante la segunda mitad XIX y principios del siglo XX, era   glamoroso y cosmopolita (la mujer en la foto lleva pantalones para damas en San Sebastián en 1911, el mismo año en que causaron un gran revuelo en París), y los Balenciaga estuvieron entre los que proporcionaron la infraestructura necesaria. Su padre llevaba a miembros de la aristocracia en su bote en viajes de palcer por la costa, su madre cosía el guardarropa de verano de la familia real, así que cuando  un Cristóbal adolescente comenzó su carrera profesional, había gente dispuesta a ayudar y oportunidades difíciles de imaginar en otra parte. Los primeros capítulos del libro describen esta atmósfera exuberante de un lugar de veraneo de clase alta, las clientes elegantes y siempre atentas a la moda, sus primeros trabajos en la sucursal local de los Grand Magasins du Louvre. Viajaba frecuentemente a París para su empleador, donde conoció a Madeleine Vionnet, y a Chanel cuando ella vino a San Sebastián para establecer una sucursal de su maison. Se convertió en buen amigo de ambos, una verdadera hazaña, ya que las dos no se querían entre sí.

     So, when he finally took the big step of founding his own couture house in 1918, many of the customers who knew him from his previous jobs or even since childhood, followed him and helped him to establish himself as a leading young couturier, both in San Sebastián and Madrid. The elegant dress on the right is from 1927, and the author makes quite a deep and detailed analysis of this, little known phase of his life.
Entonces, cuando finalmente dio el gran paso de fundar su propia casa de costura en 1918, muchos de los clientes que lo conocieron de sus empleos anteriores o incluso desde la infancia, lo siguieron y lo ayudaron a establecerse como un joven couturier exitoso, tanto en San Sebastián como en Madrid. El elegante vestido a la derecha es de 1927, y la autora hace un análisis bastante profundo y detallado de esta fase poco conocida de su vida.
   The proclamation of the Spanish Republic in 1931 (which meant exile for many members of the Spanish court) dealt a blow to his business, and he began considering moving to Paris, a step he took in 1936, after the outbreak of the Civil War (although he did reopen the Madrid salon once the war was over).    
La proclamación de la República española en 1931 (que significó el exilio para muchos miembros de la corte española) resultó ser un golpe duro para su negocio, y comenzó a considerar mudarse a París, un paso que tomó en 1936, después del estallido de la Guerra Civil ( aunque reabrió el salón de Madrid una vez terminada la guerra).

 The last chapters are dedicated to the study of different influences on his work, such as Spanish art or traditional clothing (such as in the dress on the left), Japanese art, 18th century fashion, the almost abstract, always impeccably beautiful lines of his clothes in later years, as in the dress on the left.
 Los últimos capítulos están dedicados al estudio de diferentes influencias en su trabajo, tales como el arte  o la vestimenta tradicional españoles (como el vestido a la izquierda), el arte japonés, la moda del siglo XVIII, o las líneas casi abstractas, siempre impecablemente hermosas de su vestidos en años posteriores, como en el vestido de la izquierda.

Balenciaga was one of the technically most accomplished and most innovative designers of the 20th century. Hopefully, the current popularity of the brand draws renewed attention to his own work. He more than deserves it. 
Balenciaga era uno de los diseñadores técnicamente más desarrollados e innovadores del siglo XX. Esperemos que la popularidad actual de su marca atrae una atención renovada a su propio trabajo. Lo tiene más que merecido.

                                 Latin American Gothic

    
      Apart from obsessing over fashion books, I also occasionally teach, write and even publish about non fashion-related topics. This is the newest major publication I took part in.
     Además de obsesionarme con libros de moda, también enseño, escribo e incluso ocasionalmente publico sobre temas no relacionados con la moda. Esta es la publicación más nueva en la que participé.
        Gothic is not exactly a mode associated with Latin American culture, but with a general interest in the Gothic everywhere -books, tv series, there seems to be more interest in local variations of this genre. And this is where this book comes in. Curated and edited by Sandra Casanova-Vizcaíno and Inés Ordiz, it covers almost two centuries and more than a continent - from Mexico and the Caribbean to the southern tip of South America. Literature and film, classics and brand new things...
      El gótico no es exactamente un género asociado con la cultura latinoamericana, pero ahora, con un interés general en el gótico en todas partes, libros, series de televisión, también parece haber más interés en las variantes locales de este género. Y aquí es donde entra este libro. Compilado y editado por Sandra Casanova-Vizcaíno e Inés Ordiz, abarca casi dos siglos y más que el continente, desde México y el Caribe hasta el extremo sur de Sudamérica. Literatura y cine, clásicos y cosas nuevas...
     

 
















         If you´re interested in either horror literature and film, or Latin American culture seen from a different angle, and are willing to be subjected to (some) scholarly writing, this compilation has new and interesting things for you (It did for me!)  
      Si estás interesado en la literatura y el cine de terror, o en la cultura latinoamericana  vista desde otro ángulo, y estás dispuesto a ser sometido a (algo de) un tono académico, esta compilación tiene cosas nuevas e interesantes para ti (¡Para mí fue así! )

It can be found here.

Fashion Book Friday: Madeleine Vionnet by Betty Kirke

This is my archive of fashion related books. Most of them are in English, but many are not. Some are new, but many are real finds. Depends on the topic, really...

         Madeleine Vionnet is herself in many ways like that incredibly hard to photograph silhouette on the cover (this was my best effort, sorry): if you ever wore one of those slinky,  comfy but stylish bias-cut dresses or skirts, or clothes with an unusual cut, such as atacac.com  make, you wear things that own their existence to Vionnet`s pioneering work in cut and design. But her name will probably be unknown to most people, which also makes Betty Kirke´s book such a treasure trove.

The first part of the book tells Vionnet`s biography and her meteoric rise to a fashios superstar - at age 12, she was forced to leave school and start earning money as a tailor´s apprentice, at age 19, she was already head of Kate Reilly`s workshop in London and worked for the then very famous house Callot Soeurs (descendants of the 17th-century printmaker Jacques Callot ). She later claimed, it was thanks to them that she learned to make Rolls-Royces instead of Fords - a jab at her competitor Coco Chanel, whose little black dress was compared to a Ford T-model. Vionnet had her own fashion house in 1912, and during the Twenties was one of the first to offer ready-made clothing under an American license (this business survived until the Wall Street Crash of 1929).
    I have to admit though that what most struck me when I first read about her was her focus on sewists`s working condition. She said that one of her earlier experiences was when she and her boss made two absolutely identical blouses (for twins), but she was paid only a fraction, because she was just a lowly apprentice. Throughout her working life, she made sure her employees worked in good conditions - the picture below shows her - well lit and ventilated - sewing room. 

  She was also the first to offer perks that went far beyond what the law demanded, such as free lunches, on-site doctors and child care, maternity leave and paid vacations.  In an industry that to this day is known in first place for abysmal pay and horrible working conditions, this is so unusual I think we all need reminding that yes, it is possible to treat workers humanely while remaining economically competitive.
    Vionnet closed her salons at the outbreak of WWII and did not reopen afterwards, as she was already over 70 at that point - although it is very possible that her slinky and flowing style would have struggled in the heavily structured fashiones of the 50s. She lived to be almost 99.
          

    And here we come to the most important bit about her work (and Kirk`s book) - her absolutely incredible, try-to-wrap-your-head-around-that designs. She never worked with sketches, instead she had a small doll on which she draped her designs directly, which lead to a very different perspective on the body and how to dress it - on the right is the front- and back view of a dress from the thirties. In fact, her designs almost never follow the conventional scheme of "front, back, sleeves, collar etc". So should you try to replicate your very own Madeleine Vionnet designer knock off, you´re probably in for a very steep learning curve.

    Because the unique thing about this book is that Betty Kirk offers, apart from an interview with Vionnet, probably one of her last,  and excellent fotos of original garments, diagrams of a series garment from the late teens to the late thirties. They give an astonishing insight into her construction techniques and - in my case - completely turned around the ideas about what is doable and what isn´s in couture . Not to mention understanding how the often unpopular task of cutting the fabric is the starting point for pure magic.

 So, in theory, you could try to replicate those garments - mostly dresses, but also pyjamas, accessories and even coats. but the diagrams are without any sort of scale, which requieres a lot more more effort, calculations and measure-taking on your side. Personally, I only had the courage to replicate the lovely moebius scarf (picture left), and getting even this little bit to scale was quite a bit of head-scratcher. But, yes, it is every bit as elegant and stunning as you would suppose it to be. It drapes into an elegant flower-like knot by a simple movement of the arms, unlike any other scarf or cowl I have seen.







This is a book for a fashion aficionado with an interest for both aesthetic and the technical side of the craft, although a lot of skill and couture confidence will be needed if you actually want to reproduce any of the garments.

Fashion Book Friday: Moda. Toda la historia (Fashion.The Whole Story)

     This is my archive of fashion related books. Most of them are in English, but many are not. Some are new, but many are real finds. Depends on the topic, really...

I`ve been collecting books about fashion since I was a teenager, so I don`t usually buy general interest books anymore, but I had to have this! (This is the Spanish edition, bought locally, but the book is, of course, also available in English)
     It covers the history of fashion chronologically, beginning with the Greeks and Romans, and ending about the year 2010, with particular attention to the 20th and 21st centuries (about 250 pages, everything before that fits on some 200 pages). So, yes, even in paperback, it´s a bit of a heavyweight.

Indivdual chapters are mostly short, as is natural with such an ambitious project, but they also pretty concise and informative, with well chosen illustrations. The huge variety of topics makes up for their shortness: the authors cover menswear, underwear, accessories... The best thing for me personally was, however, the geographical focus: books called "history of fashion" usually mean western fashion, but not here: throughout, non european regions and their fashions are treated on equal footing with western costumes, a handy time bar below the text helps to combine the history of clothes with general history.  Asian, African, American cultures and their own perspectives on beauty and fashion are so included and explained.

A particularly interesting feature are the "focus" pages, where a single garment (or picture of a garment) is analysed in its historical and aesthetic context.  Close-ups draw attentions to unique or important details, such as the hairstyle or the eyebrows in the example below, which illustrate the ideal of beauty during the Tang dynasty, as well as the use of very fine silk, at that time pretty much a Chinese monopoly.

  Short capsules about designers or important "leaders of fashion" (such as Yang Guifei above, who personified the ideal of Tang female beauty) plus a short glossary at the back turn this book into almost something like a fashion dictionary. It definitely has what it takes to become a reference book.
       So, if you are looking for an introduction into the topic of fashion history, or something to leaf through for the lovely pictures, this is hard to beat. If you need sources for reenactment, a book or a play, this is not detailed enough on its own (although it can give you more than a couple of ideas).