Marie-Sophie de la Carriere

An immersion into audacious fashion designer Paul Poiret's creative universe, bringing together works from his entire career. Paul Poiret (1879-1944) is widely credited with bringing fashion into the modern age. In the vibrant cultural context of the first decades of the 20th century, the man that Elsa Schiaparelli called 'the Leonardo of fashion' reshaped the world of style, creating beautiful clothes that freed women from restrictive corsets and allowed them to experience a new kind of liberation. A deep dive into Poiret's creative realm, this book explores the renowned couturier's artistry and audacity in fields that extended beyond fashion, into perfume and interior design, gastronomy and glittering events. It draws on the vast collections of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, encompassing garments, textiles, sketches, photographs, objects and more, exploring the influences that marked Poiret's life and work. This captivating volume brings the work of this multi-talented renaissance man to life for a new audience.

Published to accompany the major exhibition at the Musee des Arts Decoratifs, Paris, this book is destined to become a must-have work of reference for all fashion lovers. The couturiere Elsa Schiaparelli (1890-1973) was a key figure in Paris fashion between the two World Wars. Following in the footsteps of her mentor Paul Poiret, she designed her first knitwear collection in January 1927. Decorated with trompe-l'oeil motifs in black and white, her sweaters were an immediate success in both France and the USA. In 1935, the Maison Schiaparelli opened in the Place Vendome in Paris, selling collections designed for sports, city, and evening wear. Like her arch-rival Gabrielle Chanel, Schiaparelli also worked closely with artists, including Man Ray, Jean Cocteau, and Salvador Dali, with whom she created a lobster dress. Taking a cue from Surrealism, her creations were hugely imaginative and made use of innovative new materials. The 'Schiap' style continued to develop through the 1930s. Her most famous collections had themes including the circus (summer 1938) and astrology (winter 1938-39).In 1937, Schiaparelli launched the fragrance Shocking, named after shocking pink, which had become her signature colour. Alongside vintage photographs, sketches and contemporary features from Harper's Bazaar and Vogue, this volume presents specially photographed masterpieces from the collection of the Musee des Arts Decoratifs in Paris. All 120 garments and accessories from the Schiaparelli archive are illustrated, along with a selection of her drawings dating from 1933 to 1953.