Circa 1980

France

Elegant long black silk moire wrap dress by Madame Grès Haute Couture numbered 11369 and dating from the 1980s. Minimalist cut but complex couture structure that denotes the excellence of this famous French fashion house.  Short-sleeved crew-neck dress with slit and button fastening at the back.  The skilful assembly of this dress is based on a short black taffeta underskirt that rolls up into a wallet with a slit effect and a rounded bias at the front for ease! No lining to reveal the hand-sewn finishing touches. The label indicates Grès Paris Made in France and a customs lead. The cotton Bolduc bears the catwalk number 11369 - 102 At Jania Janine, indicating the name of the model or studio assistant. An exceptional and flawless piece. Very good colour and condition.

Dimensions: Equivalent size 36-37 France. Height 152 cm, shoulders 38 cm, waist 78 cm, bust 86 cm, hips 98 cm, sleeves 27 cm.

‘For a dress to survive from one era to the next, it must be extremely pure. This is the great secret of a design's survival.’ Madame Grès

Germaine Krebs (1903-1993), known as Alix and later Madame Grès, began working in Paris's Faubourg Saint Honoré in 1934. From 1942 to 1988, she moved to 1, rue de la Paix under the name Grès. Her style was famous for its draping and pure lines. She created her first draped dresses from 1934, using the properties of an artificial silk jersey. Her compositions gave the models the appearance of Greek vestals. Asymmetrical dresses, draped in the antique style as if moulded onto the body, dresses of volume and fluidity, where faille, taffeta and jersey were magnified. But her technique is very different, since the ‘Grès fold’ is formed directly on the mannequin, during the construction of the dress, and then sewn. His creations have always been compared to works of art. Like the artist with stone, she worked the fabric with precision and meticulousness, to achieve a graphic result. By favouring simple shapes, she turned the solutions and methods of cutting into aesthetic principles.