Paul Poiret Fashion Legend: How I love thee!

Romuald Leblond 's database. Paul Poiret illustrated by Georges Lepape "Antinea", 1920. 

Poiret was a French fashion designer working from about 1896-1944 his death.  Mr. Paul Poiret, oh let me count the ways...something about his work really speaks to my aesthetic. If you love the Edwardian into the 1920s and everything Art Deco, you will undoubtedly love Poiret too.

Romuald Leblond 's database. Paul Poiret, evening dress with Egyptian-style motifs, 1923 Lipnizki / Roger Viollet. 

Luisa Casati weaing Paul Poiret 1910's. From Romuald Leblond 's database.

He was the ultimate in Haute Couture, with a flair that was uniquely his own.  There are quite a few pieces that illustrate his genius and personify fashion history, as well as his role in shaping it.  The Met Museum houses quite a great selection-  in that regard. In fact one of my favorite outfits created in 1911 by Poiret, just shy of insanity and landing in perfection can be seen below.  Of course, the result of innate his theatrical flair.  Read more about its history here: Harem outfit.

I admire the calculated statement that his garments made. After working under Jacques Doucet and the House of Worth he opened his own store.  He made his mark with a mantle for the famous actress Rejane. His kimono coat modeled by his wife and photographed by Edward Steichen also cemented his notoriety and is believed to be one of the first fashion photographs. He was a master marketer, whose designs at the time shocked and provoked. Working at the turn of the century his work broke once traditional fashion molds. He has been called Avant Garde for a reason and was very influenced by other cultures.  Can you imagine this garment in 1910!

"Paul Poiret: Fancy dress costume (1983.8a,b)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1983.8a,b (September 2008)

Paul Poiret, Faune" dress worn by his wife, Denise Poiret 1919. Photograph by Delphi. Courtesy of Les Arts Décoratifs, Fonds

"Paul Poiret: Coat (2005.207)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/2005.207 (September 2008)

He created Harem style pants in the Edwardian era very similar to those seen revisted on Downton Abbey.  His styles are thought to have contributed to liberating women from Victorian styles such as the corset.  Koda and Bolton of the Met Museum of Art  discuss:

"In freeing women from corsets and dissolving the fortified grandeur of the obdurate, hyperbolic silhouette, Poiret effected a concomitant revolution in dressmaking, one that shifted the emphasis away from the skills of tailoring to those based on the skills of draping. It was a radical departure from the couture traditions of the nineteenth century, which, like menswear (to which they were indebted), relied on pattern pieces, or more specifically the precision of pattern making, for their efficacy. Looking to both antique and regional dress types, most notably to the Greek chiton, the Japanese kimono, and the North African and Middle Eastern caftan, Poiret advocated fashions cut along straight lines and constructed of rectangles. Such an emphasis on flatness and planarity required a complete reversal of the optical effects of fashion. The cylindrical wardrobe replaced the statuesque, turning, three-dimensional representation into two-dimensional abstraction. It was a strategy that dethroned the primacy and destabilized the paradigm of Western fashion" (met museum article).

I am in awe of the Turquoise on silk and the Avant garde bubble style belts you see sewn into a few such designs.  Of course this is not for the faint of heart, but amazing non the less.

His coats really illustrate how he changed the conventional silhouette.  This soft rich velvet could be worn today or tomorrow. Again, you see the large culturally influenced detail, that I am such a fan of.... This coat was worn by his wife and "constructed of one fifteen-foot length of silk velvet that has been twisted into shape without resorting to cutting" (see the met article). Oh what a lucky woman! Can you image all of the clothing at her fingertips.... The dress called Faune above is unaccounted for and is believed to have been lost to time.   Denise Poiret, his muse yet they did divorce, kept most of her outfits which the Met museum acquired and now houses.  

My most recent contact with one Mr. Paul Poiret was at an auction held by Charles Whitaker. The most beautiful silk red Poiret jacket came up but went beyond my budget. While I did acquire a few pieces, alas this was not one of them. However; the auction house did place up great images see them below. The tag is a great one! The jacket has wonderful draping and interest. 

PAUL POIRET LABELED SILK "ROMAN JACKET", c. 1910. In "as found" condition, burgundy satin short cape with ruffled over-capelet, the open front having tucked crossing points at waist with single self button & loop closure, the button marked "La Robuste Paris", lined in pale pink silk. Two silver link chains at neckline probably later additions. Label "Paul Poiret a Paris", tape en verso "78664 MacAlfan Pyle Paletot Romaine". L-26 1/2. (Some stains, lining torn, label upside down) fair. $2,520. Description by Charles Whitaker Auction House.

Paul Poiret jacket and labels. Charles Whitaker Auction House images, rights reserved.

1929 Scanned magazine ad for the collection, found in The Smart Set Magazine, sold by Arcanium Antiques.

Paul Poiret remains one of the most prolific and collected (when available) designers of all time. Although his work can be hard and pricey to come by- relief can be found in the Whiting & Davis designs done by Poiret.   The above ad represents one of those bags. Some of these mesh enamel bags from 1929 were his!  He produced a large mesh bag collection designed for the company. The "poiret pouch" comes up here and there so keep your eyes open for a little piece of Poiret history.