The recent Fashion Exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London; The Golden Age of Couture, essentially celebrated the period of Christian Dior’s great career 1947 – 1957 (Dior died in 1957, however the business continues). It investigated fashion in Paris and London and focused on the work of several of the period’s important designers including Dior, Balenciaga, Hartnell, Balmain, Hardy Amies, Jacques Fath etc. The period was launched with Dior’s New Look Collection in 1947. The New Look or Corolle Line (pic 1) was a great moment in fashion history in that it helped to end war time austerity and re-launch fashion onto the world’s stage. Its impact and influence are still in evidence, in fashion today. Haute couture fashion is at the luxury end of the industry. A couture collection is a range of fashion garments produced by a designer. The clothes are not mass produced, ready to wear in standard industry sizes and instead the collection is shown to a range of private clients who then place orders for items which are made up and fitted to the client’s exact measurements (pic 2). The couture collection is always made from the most expensive and luxurious fabrics, trims and embroideries, is often extravagant and in its design attempts to push forward the boundaries of fashion. Today it is often the flagship from which to sell the designers perfumes and accessories. The couture industry up until the mid 1960’s was the main stay of the fashion industry, from which the mass market looked to copy and interpret as well as present the latest in fashion trends. This changed with Ready to Wear, introduced by Yves Saint Laurent in the 1960,s.
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)