Ten years after the great retrospective dedicated to the designer al Palais Galliera, Azzedine Alaïa (1935-2017) is once again highlighted through an exhibition that presents, for the first time, his exceptional collection of assets accumulated over time. Azzedine Alaïa was a great virtuoso stylist of cutting. His technical expertise stemmed from the deep admiration he had for the couturiers of the past and from long-standing practice with the clients he served skillfully. Alaïa was also a notable collector. He began his collection in 1968, when the Balenciaga house closed, from which he recovered precious pieces. Fascinated by the study of the haute couture creations of the Spanish master, he subsequently developed a passion for the history of his discipline. Alaïa has brought together more than 20.000 pieces that bear witness to the art of his predecessors, from the birth of haute couture at the end of the XNUMXth century to some of his contemporaries.
It is therefore the largest collector of pieces by some of the most prestigious couturiers: Worth, Jeanne Lanvin, Jean Patou, Cristóbal Balenciaga, Madame Grès, Paul Poiret, Gabrielle Chanel, Madeleine Vionnet, Elsa Schiaparelli and even Christian Dior. Contemporary creation is represented by pieces by Jean Paul Gaultier, Comme des Garçons, Alexander McQueen, Thierry Mugler and Yohji Yamamoto.
140 exceptional pieces on display
The exhibition traces the history of this precious collection that Alaïa put together in the greatest secrecy and which was never revealed during his lifetime, neither in France nor abroad. To conclude the journey, visitors are invited to go to the Matisse Room, at the Museum of Modern Art located in front of the Palais Galliera, where they are presented 3 stage costumes designed by Henri Matisse for the Ballets Russes in 1919 illustrating the dialogue between fashion and art so dear to the designer.
“For many years I have been buying and receiving dresses, coats and jackets that bear witness to the great history of fashion. This has become for me a corporate attitude to preserve them, a mark of solidarity with those who, before me, had the pleasure and need for the chisel. It is a tribute on my part to all the professions and all the ideas that these clothes manifest. » – Azzedine Ala
