Dior + Balenciaga: The Kings of Couture and Their Legacies

Fashion and Textile History Gallery

#DiorBalenciaga

“Dior and Balenciaga were not only the most important and influential couturiers of
their time, they have also remained very relevant today,” says Patricia Mears, deputy
director and curator of the exhibition.

Dior + Balenciaga: The Kings of Couture and Their Legacies featured fashions by the two most important couturiers of the mid-20th century, Christian
Dior (1905–1957) and Cristóbal Balenciaga (1895–1972). Featuring approximately 65
garments and ensembles drawn solely from The Museum at FIT’s permanent collection,
it was the first exhibition to juxtapose the work of these legendary designers, side
by side.

VIEW OBJECT AND INSTALLATION IMAGES IN THE ONLINE COLLECTIONS

Left: Christian Dior, olive wool bouclé coat, 1952, gift of Sally Cary Iselin, 93.61.1.
/ Right: Cristóbal Balenciaga, purple mohair coat, circa 1950, gift of Doris Duke,
71.265.20

Left: Christian Dior, brown silk taffeta cocktail dress, autumn 1955, gift of Leslie
Cortesi, 69.153.3 / Right: Cristóbal Balenciaga, blue silk taffeta cocktail dress,
1954, gift of Mrs. Rodman A. Heeren, 70.57.54

Unlike recent large-scale retrospective monographic exhibitions of the two designers,
Dior + Balenciaga: The Kings of Couture and Their Legacies was an intimate, curatorial exploration and reevaluation of their work. The focus
was on their innovative construction methods and the exquisite workmanship of their
respective ateliers. 

Although their backgrounds and methodologies were markedly different, Dior and Balenciaga
concurrently produced fashions that captured the era’s hunger for luxury and elegance
and led the restoration of France’s profitable fashion industry after the devastation
of two world wars and a crippling economic depression. Together, they contributed
to France’s economic and cultural recovery, both launching their eponymous collections
at age 42. 

Left: Cristóbal Balenciaga, black wool twill coat dress, circa 1948, museum purchase,
P91.78.2 / Right: Christian Dior, two-piece black wool day dress,Autumn/ winter 1948,
gift of Mrs. Michael Blankfort, PL74.1.2ab

Left: Cristóbal Balenciaga, gray wool flannel suit, c. 1950, gift of Mrs. Michael
Blankfort, PL74.1.32ab / Right: Christian Dior, blue wool suit, 1952, gift in memory
of Miriam Abrams2017.8.7ab

“Dior and Balenciaga were not only the most important and influential couturiers of
their time, they have also remained very relevant today,” said Patricia Mears, deputy
director of MFIT, and curator of the exhibition. “So much so that contemporary fashion
designers regularly look to them for inspiration. It is also the reason why curators
and historians around the world continue to organize many large-scale exhibitions
and produce lavish books celebrating their creations.” 

Dior’s work was noted for its focus on the sensuous female form. He was not a dressmaker
but, rather, an illustrator who worked closely with the skilled artisans of his ateliers
to bring his designs to fruition. A self-described reactionary, Dior strove to banish
the deprivation of the war years; he modernized the corseted shape of the Belle Epoque,
a glorious period for which he remained nostalgic throughout his life. Charming and
eloquent, he was described by Cecil Beaton as a “bland country curate made of pink
marzipan.” Yet, Dior was also a savvy businessman whose company accounted for more
than half of France’s couture exports during the 1950s. 

Christian Dior, ivory silk satin evening dress with silk and metallic embroidery,
possibly by Rébé, Spring/ summer 1954, “Muguet” Line, gift of Despina Messinesi, 75.86.5

Christian Dior, ottoman silk, 1952, gift of Julia Raymond, 77.144.1. 

Christian Dior, silk and synthetic tulle evening dress; assorted sequins, paillettes,
beads and ribbons, embroidery by Rébé, Autumn 1957, gift of Harriet Weiner, 73.35.9

Balenciaga was hailed by fashion journalists and fellow creators as the greatest dressmaker
in the world. Dior referred to him as “the master of us all.” Despite his mastery
of couture, Balenciaga hailed from a humble Basque fishing village, began practicing
his craft as a youth, and opened his business when he was a young man in his native
Spain. Then, during the Spanish Civil War, he bravely expanded by moving to Paris
in his 40s, where he became an internationally renowned couturier.

Cristóbal Balenciaga, sleeveless “sack” dress, tan slubbed silk, Autumn 1957, gift
of Beth Levine, 77.27.2

Cristóbal Balenciaga, cocktail dress, blue silk and lace  by Marescot, 1957, gift
from the Estate of Tina Chow, 91.255.1

Cristóbal Balenciaga, evening gown, green and yellow printed silk taffeta by Abraham,
1961, Eisa label, Spain, gift of Margay Lindsey, 83.159.1

Dior exquisitely crafted dresses built upon corsets and crinolines and Balenciaga
brilliantly constructed voluminous coats and dresses. Viewers may have been surprised
to see remarkable similarities in some of the pairings, making immediate attributions
less obvious. The couturiers’ shared vocabulary were seen in the juxtaposition of
three pairings of garments in the introductory gallery: black dresses with asymmetrical
buttons, boxy day suits, and voluminous evening dresses. Without looking at the labels,
visitors may have found it difficult to guess which designer created each garment—Balenciaga
or Dior?

The exhibition also presented numerous ways in which the two couturiers constructed
garments differently from one another. For example, two beige silk evening dresses
positioned at the gallery entrance were similar in color, fabrication, and silhouette.
Balenciaga was a master couturier who crafted the volume and fullness of the skirt
through the deft handling of fabric. Dior, by contrast, had to rely on built-in corsetry
and layered underskirts to achieve volume. The weight of each dress also denoted their
differences: the Balenciaga gown is only 2.2 pounds while the Dior garment weighs
over 9 pounds.

Accompanying several key objects from MFIT’s permanent collection—including an embroidered
evening dress by Dior and a “sack dress” by Balenciaga, both from 1957—were educational
components such as muslin reproductions, videos, and digital patterns that illustrated
the complexities of haute couture construction. These components were created by Tetsuo
“Ted” Tamanaha, an assistant professor of Fashion Design in the School of Art and
Design at FIT and also a theatrical costumer, couturier, tailor, and patternmaker. 

These videos show the making of muslin copies of Dior and Balenciaga dresses and then
creating 3D simulations of the dresses to see them in movement. The videos, patterns,
muslin copies, and 3d simulations were all created by by FIT Professor Tetsuo “Ted”
Tamanaha.

Maria Grazia Chiuri for Christian Dior, white cotton T-shirt, blue synthetic tulle
skirt, metallic thread and bead embroidery, spring 2017, museum purchase, 2019.56.1

Cristóbal Balenciaga, red polyester and down-filled puffer coat, hood, scarf, autumn/winter
2016, museum purchase, 2016.113.1

To illustrate the continued impact of Dior and Balenciaga, approximately one-third
of the exhibition included designs by other couturiers and some of the subsequent
creative directors of the fashion houses they founded. The legacies of these venerated
masters carry on, thanks to the artful blending of iconographic elements of the founders
with contemporary trends. 

The Dior aesthetic was carried on and expanded by Yves Saint Laurent (1957–1960),
Marc Bohan (1960–1989), John Galliano (1996–2011), and, most recently, Maria Grazia
Chiuri (2016–present). 

Hubert de Givenchy did not work for Balenciaga. However, he and two of the label’s
creative directors, Nicolas Ghesquière (1997–2012), and Demna Gvesalia (2015–present),
are among those who absorbed and renewed ideas pioneered by Balenciaga.