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Pierre Alexandre Claudius Balmain (French pronunciation: [pjɛʁ balmɛ̃], b. Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, Savoie, 18 May 1914 – Paris, France, 29 June 1982) was a French fashion designer. Known for sophistication and elegance, he once said that "dressmaking is the architecture of movement."
Beginning:
Pierre Balmain was born in Aix-les-Bains, Savoie, France on May 18, 1914. Balmain's father, who died when the future designer was seven years old, was the owner of a wholesale drapery business. His mother and her sisters operated a fashion boutique.
He later attended Grenoble University and after moving to Paris, he studied architecture and design at the Ecole des Beaux Arts, but did not complete his studies. He spent his time there designing dresses. While attending the Ecole des Beaux Arts, Balmain went to Molyneux, who promised to give him a trial. Balmain then left his architectural studies to work part time for Molyneux in 1934. It was Captain Molyneux, who encouraged Balmain to pursue a fashion career, and remained employed with Molyneux until 1939. Balmain's career began when he sold three of his designs to Robert Piguet.
World War II stepped in and Balmain served in the army for two years, after which he returned to Paris and accepted a position with Christian Dior, which lasted more than four years. He then joined Lucien Lelong and in 1945, he opened his own couture house Maison Balmain at 44 rue Francois I er in Paris. The house showcased long bell-shaped skirts with small waists - a line which later became popular as Dior's New Look. Balmain was credited by many as the original innovator of "The New Look" and his designs were noted for their shapely silhouettes as well as their elegance and wearability.
His collections were an immediate success and Pierre Balmain was "a king of French fashion" and outfitted stars including Ava Gardner, Katherine Hepburn, Vivien Leigh, Marlene Dietrich, Brigitte Bardot and titled clientele including the Nicaraguan first lady Hope Portocarrero, Eva Peron, and the Empress of Japan. His most famous client was Queen Sirikit of Thailand.
In 1951 he opened branches in the United States selling ready-to-wear clothes. During the 1950s, Balmain popularized the stole for day as well as evening wear and created a vogue for sheath dresses beneath jackets. His talent as a designer lay in his ability to make simple, tailored suits as well as grand evening gowns, all with the same aesthetic of slender and elegant lines. Balmain also designed the iconic uniform of the Singapore Airlines Singapore Girl, loosely based on the traditional Indonesian kebaya.
With the advice of his perfumer friend Germain Cellier, Balmain entered into the perfume industry in 1946 with the introduction of Elysées 64-83, which bore his company's Phone Number. His fragrances were created to express his romantic vision of women and elegance. Balmain also created other perfumes, including Vent Vert (1947), his first successful scent and one of the best-selling perfumes of the late 1940s and early 1950s, Jolie Madame (1953), Ivoire (1979), and Eau d'Amazonie (2006).
Balmain was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Costume Design and won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design for Happy New Year (1980). Additional Broadway theatre credits include costumes for Sophia Loren in The Millionairess (1960) and Josephine Baker for her eponymous 1964 revue. He also was a costume designer for 16 films, including the Brigitte Bardot vehicle And God Created Woman, and designed on-screen wardrobes for the actresses Vivien Leigh and Mae West. He made a lot of dresses for Dalida.
Balmain's 1964 autobiography was titled My Years and Seasons.
His companion was the Danish designer Erik Mortensen, who worked as a designer at Balmain from 1948 until 1991. Also the later very successful Danish fashion designer Margit Brandt worked as a young designer with Pierre Balmain in the early 1960s.
Before he died in 1982, Balmain was decorated many times, he was made a Chevalier Legion d'Honneur in 1962, received the Medaille Vermeil of the City of Paris in 1965 and in 1978, he became an officer of the Legion d'Honneur.
The perfume business bought by Revlon in 1960 and acquired the right to manufacture and distribute perfumes and cosmetics produced and retailed by Pierre Balmain. The list included Jolie Madame, Vent Vert and Monsieur Balmain.
In 1982 the company was sold on and since 1991 has been owned by Erich Fayer. Oscar de la Renta led the house between 1993 and 2002. Under Pierre Balmain, Mortensen, and de la Renta, the house was known for its classic, luxurious designs. However the company filed for bankruptcy protection in 2004, currently attempting a comeback under Creative Director Christophe Decarnin.
Around 2008 and 2009, the clothing line became extremely popular both among fashion magazines, runways and celebrities. His 2010 collection, shown during Paris fashion week, was said to be "totally retro" and "[brought] back the glitz and glitter of the 1970s disco era."
Until 2011, the house was led by designer Christophe Decarnin, whose vision for the house is more modern and edgier. In April 2011, the fashion house announced that Decarnin was succeeded by Olivier Rousteing (pronounced: [ɔ.li.vje ʁus.tɛɲ]).
As of 2012, 50% of total income is from license royalties.
Balmain's vintage couture gowns remain chic, sought after and popular among the international jet-set, movie stars and socially prominent women, and have been seen on Angelina Jolie, Penélope Cruz, Alexandra Kerry, Tatiana Sorokko, Kate Moss and Kristin Davis, among others
Head designers:
His advertisements were illustrated by the artist, Rene Gruau.
Vent Vert: One of the first fresh, green notes. Vent Vert was a trendsetting fragrance in 1947 and represented the forests and ferns of France. Its unique composition is of jonquil, lily of the valley, narcissus and rose.
Jolie Madame: this was the name of Balmain's fashion collection, and the perfume was first presented in 1953, is a leathery, floral perfume, with dominant notes of jasmine, rose de mai, tuberose and the wild essences of neroli laced with subtle spice and woody notes. This fragrance came in perfume, cologne and eau de toilette.
Pierre Alexandre Claudius Balmain (French pronunciation: [pjɛʁ balmɛ̃], b. Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, Savoie, 18 May 1914 – Paris, France, 29 June 1982) was a French fashion designer. Known for sophistication and elegance, he once said that "dressmaking is the architecture of movement."
Beginning:
Pierre Balmain was born in Aix-les-Bains, Savoie, France on May 18, 1914. Balmain's father, who died when the future designer was seven years old, was the owner of a wholesale drapery business. His mother and her sisters operated a fashion boutique.
He later attended Grenoble University and after moving to Paris, he studied architecture and design at the Ecole des Beaux Arts, but did not complete his studies. He spent his time there designing dresses. While attending the Ecole des Beaux Arts, Balmain went to Molyneux, who promised to give him a trial. Balmain then left his architectural studies to work part time for Molyneux in 1934. It was Captain Molyneux, who encouraged Balmain to pursue a fashion career, and remained employed with Molyneux until 1939. Balmain's career began when he sold three of his designs to Robert Piguet.
World War II stepped in and Balmain served in the army for two years, after which he returned to Paris and accepted a position with Christian Dior, which lasted more than four years. He then joined Lucien Lelong and in 1945, he opened his own couture house Maison Balmain at 44 rue Francois I er in Paris. The house showcased long bell-shaped skirts with small waists - a line which later became popular as Dior's New Look. Balmain was credited by many as the original innovator of "The New Look" and his designs were noted for their shapely silhouettes as well as their elegance and wearability.
His collections were an immediate success and Pierre Balmain was "a king of French fashion" and outfitted stars including Ava Gardner, Katherine Hepburn, Vivien Leigh, Marlene Dietrich, Brigitte Bardot and titled clientele including the Nicaraguan first lady Hope Portocarrero, Eva Peron, and the Empress of Japan. His most famous client was Queen Sirikit of Thailand.
In 1951 he opened branches in the United States selling ready-to-wear clothes. During the 1950s, Balmain popularized the stole for day as well as evening wear and created a vogue for sheath dresses beneath jackets. His talent as a designer lay in his ability to make simple, tailored suits as well as grand evening gowns, all with the same aesthetic of slender and elegant lines. Balmain also designed the iconic uniform of the Singapore Airlines Singapore Girl, loosely based on the traditional Indonesian kebaya.
With the advice of his perfumer friend Germain Cellier, Balmain entered into the perfume industry in 1946 with the introduction of Elysées 64-83, which bore his company's Phone Number. His fragrances were created to express his romantic vision of women and elegance. Balmain also created other perfumes, including Vent Vert (1947), his first successful scent and one of the best-selling perfumes of the late 1940s and early 1950s, Jolie Madame (1953), Ivoire (1979), and Eau d'Amazonie (2006).
Balmain was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Costume Design and won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design for Happy New Year (1980). Additional Broadway theatre credits include costumes for Sophia Loren in The Millionairess (1960) and Josephine Baker for her eponymous 1964 revue. He also was a costume designer for 16 films, including the Brigitte Bardot vehicle And God Created Woman, and designed on-screen wardrobes for the actresses Vivien Leigh and Mae West. He made a lot of dresses for Dalida.
Balmain's 1964 autobiography was titled My Years and Seasons.
His companion was the Danish designer Erik Mortensen, who worked as a designer at Balmain from 1948 until 1991. Also the later very successful Danish fashion designer Margit Brandt worked as a young designer with Pierre Balmain in the early 1960s.
Before he died in 1982, Balmain was decorated many times, he was made a Chevalier Legion d'Honneur in 1962, received the Medaille Vermeil of the City of Paris in 1965 and in 1978, he became an officer of the Legion d'Honneur.
The perfume business bought by Revlon in 1960 and acquired the right to manufacture and distribute perfumes and cosmetics produced and retailed by Pierre Balmain. The list included Jolie Madame, Vent Vert and Monsieur Balmain.
In 1982 the company was sold on and since 1991 has been owned by Erich Fayer. Oscar de la Renta led the house between 1993 and 2002. Under Pierre Balmain, Mortensen, and de la Renta, the house was known for its classic, luxurious designs. However the company filed for bankruptcy protection in 2004, currently attempting a comeback under Creative Director Christophe Decarnin.
Around 2008 and 2009, the clothing line became extremely popular both among fashion magazines, runways and celebrities. His 2010 collection, shown during Paris fashion week, was said to be "totally retro" and "[brought] back the glitz and glitter of the 1970s disco era."
Until 2011, the house was led by designer Christophe Decarnin, whose vision for the house is more modern and edgier. In April 2011, the fashion house announced that Decarnin was succeeded by Olivier Rousteing (pronounced: [ɔ.li.vje ʁus.tɛɲ]).
As of 2012, 50% of total income is from license royalties.
Balmain's vintage couture gowns remain chic, sought after and popular among the international jet-set, movie stars and socially prominent women, and have been seen on Angelina Jolie, Penélope Cruz, Alexandra Kerry, Tatiana Sorokko, Kate Moss and Kristin Davis, among others
Head designers:
- Pierre Balmain (1945–1982)
- Erik Mortensen (1982–1993)
- Oscar de la Renta (1993–2002)
- Christophe Decarnin (2002–2011)
- Olivier Rousteing (2011–)
His advertisements were illustrated by the artist, Rene Gruau.
The perfumes:
Vent Vert: One of the first fresh, green notes. Vent Vert was a trendsetting fragrance in 1947 and represented the forests and ferns of France. Its unique composition is of jonquil, lily of the valley, narcissus and rose.
Jolie Madame: this was the name of Balmain's fashion collection, and the perfume was first presented in 1953, is a leathery, floral perfume, with dominant notes of jasmine, rose de mai, tuberose and the wild essences of neroli laced with subtle spice and woody notes. This fragrance came in perfume, cologne and eau de toilette.
What a thrill to learn about the history of Balmain. I would love to track down Jolie Madam perfume.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this fabulous information. I came across an ornate metal piece that bears the name Balmain Jolie Madame recently. Apparently he also made fragrance candles, as that is what this piece is for. There is a glass holder which contained the candle that was put into a fab 50's gold filigree metal container with a little lid, presumably for a lady's boudoir.
ReplyDeleteThank you again!
Balmain is One of the fresh perfume, its really unique. I love it.
ReplyDelete