Olivier Theyskens has harboured an obsession with the world of Parisian couture ever since his youth, when his instinct for fashion became evident at a very young age:

You know, it’s like when you see a child, and before they are 6, you can tell if they would make a good footballer. I loved clothes — I could lose myself in a hem for hours.

In 2002 for NºD, Olivier explored this love through his own photography, shooting his assistant Agnes wearing six gowns from couturiers working in the early 1950s. With pieces loaned from significant European collections, including that of the Musée du Mode et Textile in Paris, Olivier recreated the clean, minimal studio setting of the time.

Agnes stands in subtle ballet poses, accentuating the feminine curve of her neck and delicate shoulders with the mostly strapless gowns. Olivier’s images capture the opulent burgundy, gold and powder blues of the gowns with a faded aesthetic, in perfect harmony with the image-making at the time. Choosing to crop Agnes’ face from the images also shows a trademark of that age – before models became so crucial to the industry – when faces were often obscured in favour of focus on the garments themselves.

The story was accompanied by an essay by Pamela Golbin, who has been the curator of the Musée du Mode et Textile in Paris since 1993. Read Pamela’s words on the couture age below:

*                                *                                 *

Lights, camera, action!
by Pamela Golbin

In the wake of the Second World War, Christian Dior broke forever with the military style of the previous years and produced an upheaval – based on luxury – thus restoring Parisian haute couture to the rank of First Lady.

His ‘New Look’ established a new fashion aesthetic Sculptured and girdled, the female body became the primary concern and played the key role. The silhouette embodied an elegance that was at once fragile and sophisticated. The bosom was emphasised, the waist was curved, the hips were accentuated, and the legs obvious and shapely. Suits for daywear, afternoon ensembles, short cocktail dresses and long evening gowns: the wardrobe of elegant women followed strict codes based on rigid rules. Each period of the day required the appropriate ‘toilette’. For daywear, severe, structured and strict suits. For the evening, Cinderella dresses rigorously designed to depict unforgettable opulence: dozens of metres of fabric completely covered with embroidered pearls and sparkling studs.

Like authentic jewels and radiant stones, the Cinderella dresses illuminated the women in a choreography worthy of Marius Petipa, perpetuating each demoiselle’s dream in search of her Prince Charming. Magic and spectacular, the ball gowns shone under the camera flashes, in ever more sumptuous and prestigious settings, such as fabulous private mansion and mythical castles.

The models were intrusive: ‘Mexique’, ‘Coup de theatre’ and even ‘Péruvienne’, firmly redefined women within a prodigious volume in a resolutely European structure that was diametrically opposed to the flat, two dimensional patterns of the East. Like a millefeuille patisserie, with its layers upon layers of tulle, satin, gauze and taffeta, the fabric was delicately placed on a crinoline whalebone structure, the incredible circumference of which could measure up to two square metres. The subtle flow of the fabric enchanted the onlooker with its abundance, while the rustling of the frills announced the imminent arrival of the lucky Beloved.

The script is certainly provided by Christian Dior, but also by dozens of other designers with names just as magical: Cristobal Balenciaga, pierre Balmain, Jean Desses, Jacques Griffe and Marcel Rochas…
Each one contributes his own vision and personal style with the aim of inventing, re-defining and perpetuating the chapter of Parisian couture’s Golden Age.
Photographers such as Irving Penn, Richard Avedon, Willy Maywald and Henry Clarke immortalised the poses, gestures and attitudes of star models such as Bettina, Lucky and Praline. But why do these nymph-like costumes continue to exert such fascination, such a marvellous attraction? Perhaps because fairy-tales express universal values: faithful to their enchanting model, the haute couture designers follow the rules of the game by reinventing and eternal archetype… that of femininity!

*                                *                                 *

Above: Ballgown in two parts ‘Coup de theatre’ by Christian Dior, 1951.

Above: Ballgown by Jean Dessès, circa 1952.

Above: Ballgown by Pierre Balmain, circa 1952.

Above: Short evening dress by Marcel Rochas, circa 1950.

Above: Ballgown by Jacques Griffe, 1953.

Above: Cocktail dress by Christian Dior, Autumn Winter 1949-1950.

Above: Cocktail dress by Jacques Fath, circa 1950.