Word: balenciaga
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...everybody calls him, fits perfectly into the Balmain aesthetic. He is not an innovator -- his few enemies call him a copyist -- but he executes gorgeous costumes with a peerless eye for fabric, detail and nuance. He understands the exotic world of couture from his youthful years working for Balenciaga and Lanvin. His private life has provided him with a window into the life-styles of luxury. His first wife, who died several years ago, was Francoise de Langlade, editor in chief of the French Vogue. He is now married to Annette Reed, a daughter of the late metals industrialist Charles...
...first black international star. From the Roaring Twenties came a Baker persona at once erotic and comic: prancing topless on a Paris music-hall stage, with eyes crossed as if to spoof her naked sensuality. Later came the vision of La Baker, a glamorous chanteuse gowned by Dior or Balenciaga and seemingly the essence of Gallic sophistication...
Just as the mention of Coco Chanel conjures up the essence of French style, so does the name Cristobal Balenciaga evoke Hispanic style. The legendary Spanish designer, who died in 1972, reigned over high fashion from the 1930s to the 1960s with his sleek chemises and pillbox hats. Among his students were Adolfo, Oscar de la Renta, Givenchy, Ungaro and Courreges. Herrera calls Balenciaga the "greatest designer of all time," while De la Renta traces his use of ethnic accents to the master's influence: "Balenciaga made the most beautiful folkloric clothes ever made...
...cloak was by Balenciaga; the dagger could come from anyone -- a bullfighter, a bellboy, a ballroom dancing partner. During World War II, Aline, Countess of Romanones lived a life of glamour and danger that Ingrid Bergman only played at in Notorious. Born Aline Griffith in Pearl River, N.Y., the former Manhattan model joined the Office of Strategic Services and was posted to Madrid in 1944, where she decoded messages at the American Oil Mission. The OSS called her Tiger. Her orders: to flush out Gestapo Chief Heinrich Himmler's special agent in the Spanish capital. The dark, lissome beauty moved...
...over Karl Lagerfeld, a cheeky, fluent idea man, and finds nearly invisible depth in the creations of Hardy Amies, a reliable but stodgy British tailor. The book is hobbled by rather arbitrary categories she imposes to organize her designers: artists (Fortuny, Mary McFadden), purists (Chanel, Vionnet), architects (Balenciaga, Charles James), realists (Norman Norell and Miyake, of all people). Also, although it may be patrician not to talk about money, the vast fortunes made by the likes of Saint Laurent and Lauren go unrecorded, making the tone sound occasionally naive...