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Weronika Gaudyn

STUDY OF HAUTE COUTURE FASHION SHOWS AS PERFORMANCE ART

A Thesis

Presented to

The Graduate Faculty of The University of Akron

In Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Degree

Master of Arts

Weronika Gaudyn

December 2018

STUDY OF HAUTE COUTURE FASHION SHOWS AS PERFORMANCE ART

Weronika Gaudyn

Thesis

Approved: Accepted:

______Advisor School Director Mr. James Slowiak Mr. Neil Sapienza

______Committee Member Dean of the College Ms. Lisa Lazar Linda Subich, Ph.D.

______Committee Member Dean of the Graduate School Sandra Stansbery-Buckland, Ph.D. Chand Midha, Ph.D.

______Date

ABSTRACT

Due to a change in purpose and structure of haute couture shows in the 1970s, the vision of couture shows as performance art was born. Through investigation of the elements of performance art, as well as its functions and characteristics, this study intends to determine how modern haute couture fashion shows relate to performance art and can operate under the definition of performance art.

iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank my committee––James Slowiak, Sandra Stansbery Buckland and Lisa Lazar for their time during the completion of this thesis. It is something that could not have been accomplished without your help.

A special thank you to my loving family and friends for their constant support of my education. Thank you for always believing in me and allowing me to chase my dreams.

TABLE OF CONTENTS Page

CHAPTER

I. INTRODUCTION ...... 1

Definitions...... 2

II. LITERATURE REVIEW ...... 5

History of Haute Couture ...... 9

Purpose and Structure of Modern Haute Couture Fashion Shows ...... 17

The Purpose of the Modern Couture Show...... 17

The Structure of the Modern Couture Show ...... 20

Performance Art ...... 24

III. CASE STUDY ...... 31

Research Plan ...... 31

Analysis of Three Modern Haute Couture Shows ...... 34

Chanel Couture 2015 Spring /Summer ...... 34

Dior Couture 2015 Spring /Summer ...... 46

Givenchy Couture 2018 Fall /Winter ...... 56

IV. CONCLUSION...... 66

Recommendations for Further Research ...... 70

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 72

APPENDICES ...... 78

APPENDIX A. TABLE 1 ...... 81

APPENDIX B. TABLE 2 ...... 79

vi CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Modern fashion shows, particularly haute couture fashion shows, have evolved into spectacular entertainment. Cultural critics have called these exhibitions of each season’s latest fashion offerings “the greatest show on earth” (Duggan 243) or “an enchanted spectacle” (Evans 271). Until the First World War, fashion shows functioned as a type of formal gathering of the fashion industry, further developed by first designers such as Charles Frederick Worth, Lady Lucile Duff-Gordon, Paul Poiret, Jeanne Paquin,

Coco Chanel, and Lucien Lelong (Raciniewska 96). With changes in purpose and structure of haute couture shows in the second half of the twentieth century, the vision of couture shows as performance art was born.

This study intends to determine whether or not the modern haute couture fashion show can be understood and analyzed as performance art. Through researching elements of performance art, including its functions and characteristics, the study will investigate which aspects of modern haute couture shows relate specifically to performance art. The history of haute couture, the purposes and structure of modern haute couture shows, and case studies of three French couture fashion shows will be explored. This study is restricted to French couture case studies only and to a specific time frame, couture shows that took place after the year 2000. All three couture shows selected are reviewed in the 1 context of the seven functions of performance Richard Schechner defined in Performance

Studies, as well as in the context of the performance art characteristics Amanda Coogan,

Sophie Byrne and Lisa Moran discussed in “What is Performance Art?” (38; 4-9) The three examples of the modern haute couture show explored are Chanel Spring/Summer

2015, Christian Dior Spring/Summer 2015, and Givenchy Fall/Winter 2018-2019. These couture shows were selected based on the popularity, economic success, and prestige of their couture houses in the fashion industry.

The primary research question being analyzed is: Are modern haute couture shows performance art? Although there are several scholarly articles available that acknowledge the connection of fashion shows to performance art, none of these sources examines whether or not modern haute couture shows can be considered performance art.

This question provides a framework that places the research and accompanying case studies in the context of current research in the field of “fashion as art.”

This study attempts to address the ways in which the worlds of high fashion and art are connected. Through the case studies, the research intends to uncover the correlation between these two worlds and explore them in further detail.

Definitions

As there are many definitions associated with specific terms used in this study, the definitions below provide the reader with a basic understanding of the researcher’s point of view. The following definitions have been used for the purpose of this thesis.

Atelier: a workshop or studio, especially one used by an artist or designer (Oxford

Dictionaries).

Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne (Syndicate Chamber of Parisian

Couture): originally known as La Chambre Syndicale de la Confection et de la

Couture pour Dames et Fillettes, founded in 1868 by Charles Frederick

Worth, its name was changed in 1910 to French Ministry of National

Education the trade association developed to coordinate and enforce co-

operation among the couture houses in Paris (Sterlacci et al. 106). It arranged

horizontal co-operation for the exclusive couture firms. It coordinated the fashion

show timetables and dealt with piracy of styles and foreign relations. The

association also ran promotional activities to raise the reputation of the haute

couture ‘brand’ in exports (Majima 73). In 1973, it merged with Chambre

Syndicale du Prêt-à-Porter des Couturiers et des Createurs de Mode, and

Chambre Syndicale de la Mode Masculine, under the name Chambre Syndicale

du Prêt-à-Porter des Couturiers et des Créateurs de Mode (Sterlacci et al. 106).

Couturier: A fashion designer who manufactures and sells clothes that have been

tailored to a client's specific requirements and measurements (Oxford

Dictionaries).

Finale: the last impression of the fashion show (Everett and Swanson 163).

Grand Couturier: comes from French, and it means “the great couturier.” Grand

couturiers are members of the French Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture.

Haute Couture: comes from French, it can be translated into “high sewing” or “high

stitching” (Waddel 1). Only the designs produced by accredited Paris haute

couture houses that meet standards set out by the Chambre Syndicale de la

Couture Parisienne (Palmer 4).

Mannequin: a woman who wore garments for clients in France at the beginning of the twentieth century (Everett and Swanson 10).

PAIS (L'Association de protection des industries artistiques saisonnières): the

anticopyist group formed in 1930 that succeeded in conducting counterfeiting

raids and brought about laws that pertained to the illegal copying of designs from

the haute couture houses (Sterlacci et al. 396).

Performance Art: “any form of ‘live art’ in a public setting closely related to the fine-

art modes of the time” (Goldberg and Barlow “Performance Art”). It is a form

of arts practice that involves a person or persons undertaking an action or actions

within a particular timeframe in a particular space or location for an audience

(Byrne and Moran 4).

Prêt-à-porter: is the ready-to-wear fashion industry in Paris (Everett and Swanson 36).

Ready-to-Wear: mass-produced apparel also called ready-made or off the rack. In its

broadest sense this clothing includes any garment that is not custom-made for

the wearer (Brown 1).

Supermodel: A successful fashion model who has reached the status of a celebrity

(Oxford Dictionaries).

CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW

A large number of sources exist that focus on the history of haute couture and biographies of renowned haute couture designers. Many sources are dedicated to the distinctive designers of the couture industry and emphasize their achievements without putting haute couture in the perspective of the present study. Many books, journals, magazines, and videos searched under the term “haute couture” showcase the actual statement haute couture garments. When doing an online search for “haute couture fashion shows,” the results contain thousands of news reports and periodicals highlighting individual works of designers, but there are relatively few studies that describe the history of haute couture fashion shows. Finally, in searching for “the haute couture fashion shows as performance art,” there are even fewer available scholarly sources. What was striking about these few results is the fact that the sources are all relatively recent. The concept of the couture fashion show as performance art has rarely been explored. Before 1980, haute couture shows served simply as a marketing tool for the couture house, with the purpose of advertising their new merchandise to gain more profit. After 1980, couture shows became spectacular media events constantly challenging the highest levels of the designer’s imagination (Majima 81).

Today designers use outstanding locations for the shows, choose provocative themes, and spend millions of dollars to produce these spectacular shows.

The following literature helps in the deeper understanding of what research has been already developed in terms of the relationship of haute couture and performance art.

The French author and art critique Arsène Alexandre distinguishes analogies between theatre and couture houses as early as the 1900s, in Nancy J. Troy’s “The

Theatre of Fashion: Staging Haute Couture in Early 20th Century France” (5). Alexandre compares the rhythm of the fashion seasons with the rhythm of the theatre (Troy 5). He also points out that those individual theatres, just like couture houses have their own repertoire and own signature style, and discusses the roles of models and their acting required to effect sale of the garment (Troy 5). This source provides visible connections between the world of art and couture fashion shows.

Ginger Gregg Duggan, Curator of Contemporary Art at the Museum of Art in Fort

Lauderdale, demonstrates in “The Greatest Show on Earth: A Look at Contemporary

Fashion Shows and Their Relationship to Performance Art” the symbiotic relationship between the modern world of fashion and art. He wrote: “The late 1990s mark a significant point in this development of a heightened art/fashion phenomenon that is more far-reaching in its effect, as it results in fashion show productions that communicate through the medium of performance art” (Duggan 244). Duggan speaks about inspiration being drawn from the political activism and performance art of the 1960s and 1970s, theatre and popular culture, which resulted in a new kind of performance art (244). He portrays the development of fashion/performance under five categories: spectacle, substance, science, structure, and statement (244). Although he uses several applicable

6 descriptions of performance art from “Performance: Live Art Since 1960” by RoseLee

Goldberg, he claims that there is no true definition of performance art (Duggan 268). This source elaborates on examples of the fashion shows as performance. However, Duggan focuses on contemporary fashion shows, and not the modern haute couture shows, which this case study examines. Duggan distinguishes four main components of the spectacle show that can be manipulated by the designer to great effect: the type of model, location, theme, and finale (246).

The article, “The Fashion Show as an Art Form” by Lise Skov, Else Skjold, Brian

Moeran, Frederik Larsen and Fabian F. Csaba, sets forth the premise that fashion itself is an art form. This particular approach is based on sociologist Howard Becker’s work on

“Art Worlds” and his definition of art works “as the result of collective activity, based on a shared understanding of artistic conventions” (4). The authors present their findings on how fashion shows can be seen as an art form through three different approaches. The initial approach consists of an exhaustive description of the elements of the fashion show and how it developed its own social and aesthetic conventions over time (Skov et al. 3).

The authors then introduce Howard Becker’s standpoint that networks of cooperating people produce art works (Skov et al. 4). They compare fashion shows to film, theatre and classical music in the sense that fashion, like these other arts forms, is based on a fairly complex form of social organization, which involves different groups of workers laboring towards the same goal in order to accomplish the creative vision of the designer or fashion show producer (Skov et al. 4). The third approach of the authors of this article focuses on the use of Howard Becker’s work and analyzes how the fashion show is set apart from the wider society. The authors argue that the fashion show consists of two

7 performances encased in each other. One of these performances is a planned and scripted parade presenting the new collection. The other performance is acted out by the audience as they determine the success of the show (Skov et al. 4-5). Although the authors discuss the historical background of fashion shows, they do not strictly focus on the haute couture fashion show. The authors also analyze the fashion show in detail. However, they do not specify that it is an haute couture fashion show analysis nor do they use specific examples of modern haute couture, which this study will incorporate.

Caroline Evans, in “The Enchanted Spectacle,” describes the historical background of the first hundred years of the haute couture fashion shows. Evans mentions the connection of couture fashion to art as early as the 1890s in the “fashion play” of the London stage, which served as an inspiration for wealthy women who based the design of their gowns on the ones in the play (Evans 274). She also states: “Then, as now, fashion shows were social events, generating the same excitement as the opening of a new play, often having to be repeated three times a day to accommodate the crowds”

(Evans 274). Evans emphasizes the fact that the shows had a lot in common with the modern couture shows in the late 19th century. She also provides a variety of valuable historical background information for this study, which has helped to establish the striking differences between past and present fashion shows.

Rhonda P. Hill brings up a valid point in “Blurred Boundaries: Fashion as an Art |

Exhibiting Culture Through Fashion” stating: “Art fundamentally creates culture…fashion’s power lies in its ability to transform identity and culture.” She underlines the blurring boundaries between fashion design and art through modern fashion exhibitions at art museums and galleries, which she describes as a global

8 phenomenon with record-breaking attendance (Hill “Blurred Boundaries: Fashion as an

Art / Exhibiting Culture Through Fashion”). Another valuable point that Hill explains is that the artist’s goal in creating a work of art is to make a statement and fabricate an image or an object that will become timeless. Ultimately, fashion designers and performing artists share the same goals. Additionally, Hill points out that it is the immense accessibility of fashion that diminishes its artistic value (Hill “Blurred

Boundaries: Fashion as an Art fashion/ Exhibiting culture through Fashion”).

Through their collective work, the authors of the above mentioned studies provided for this researcher a greater understanding of how fashion and art intersect and, at times, affect one another. None of these sources, however, analyzed the modern haute couture shows in the context of the functions of performance nor in the context of characteristics of performance art. Also, no source analyzed haute couture shows after

2000. Furthermore, none of these sources attempted to explain the connection of the modern haute couture shows to performance art.

The haute couture fashion shows of the Chanel Spring/Summer 2015, the

Christian Dior Spring/Summer 2015, and the Givenchy Fall/Winter 2018-2019 chosen for this study have not been covered in the research literature. Videos and text from haute couture websites and fashion magazine reviews of the shows were used to support the analysis of the fashion shows from the viewing of the shows themselves.

History of haute couture

Couture has been present in the fashion industry for more than a century. “It represents the fusion of fashion, the modern entity that combines novelty and synergy

9 with personal and social needs and costume, the arts of dressmaking, tailoring, and crafts constituent to apparel and accessories,” writes Harold Koda and Richard Martin, members of the Costume Institute at Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in their essay (“Haute Couture”).

Although the roots of French luxury fashion dominance go back to the late seventeenth century, the actual birth of couture is dated at 1858. During that particular year, Englishman Charles Frederic Worth, who is called today “the father of haute couture,” opened his own dressmaking establishment in Paris with a business partner,

Otto Bobergh (Krick “Charles Frederick Worth (1825–1895) and The House of Worth”;

De Marly 18). Diana de Marly, in The History of Haute Couture, writes: “Charles

Frederic Worth was not only to break into that female trade by becoming a dressmaker but to change its nature and status completely by becoming the first of the great fashion dictators” (14). Worth’s international success was possible thanks to technological developments, such as the growth of railway, steamship, and telegraph, but also due to remarkable changes in the French political structure (De Marly 18, 23). Diana de Marly summarizes this success in a remarkable way: “It was Worth who turned dressmaking into big business: he found Paris with a craft and left it with industry” (23).

Solange Montagné Villette and Irene Hardill explain how Worth broke the prevailing system of dressmakers filling individual orders for styles that the customers themselves chose (465). By taking the initiative of creating the designs, showing them to the public four times a year on live models at the House of Worth, and letting the clients choose from the given options, he revolutionized the role of all couturiers (Villette 465).

Worth was even able to persuade Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon III, to wear what

10 he dictated (Rosa 80). After Worth’s death in 1895, his sons, Gaston-Lucien and Jean-

Philippe, took over his business and succeeded in maintaining his high standards (Krick

“Charles Frederick Worth (1825–1895) and The House of Worth”). Alexandra Palmer, in

Couture & Commerce: The Transatlantic Fashion Trade in the 1950s, explain the substantial role Charles Worth also played in founding a governing body to organize and regulate Paris couturiers’ production and merchandising, the Chambre Syndicale de la

Couture Parisienne in 1868 (13). It was a significant date for the couture industry; the

Chambre Syndicale provided arrangements for intellectual property and high standards in the schooling of seamstresses and designers (Waddell 5).

According to “How Ready-to-Wear Became Prêt-à-Porter: External Threat, Core-

Periphery Network Structure, and Radical Innovation in French Fashion, 1945-1973,

Haute couture was dedicated to the creation of tailor-made clothing through the use of expensive materials and excellent craftsmanship. It was an appellation protected by law and strictly regulated by the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne. In the myth of haute couture, couturiers worked like artists, using their inspiration and imagination to create unique and exclusive pieces of art. With the assistance of highly specialized and skilled artisans, haute couture clothes were made upon the specific measurements of each client, and often required hundreds of hours of hand-stitching and two or three fittings (“essayages”) in the studios (“ateliers”). Twice a year, couturiers presented their collections in extravagant decors to “the lucky few,” wealthy clients, celebrities, or magazine editors (8-9).

Shinobu Majima in “From Haute Couture to High Street: The Role of Shows and

Fairs in Twentieth-Century Fashion” writes that there were only twenty members of the

Chambre Syndicale in 1900. The number increased to seventy-two couture houses in

1925, but didn’t reach its peak until 1946 when there were 106 members of the Chambre

Syndicale, including names such as Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, and Maison Margiela

(Majima 74).

Paris has always been the dominant center for fashion, where designers from around the world arrive to learn the business (Waddel 5). It has long been a center for the biggest names in the couture industry, and it remains so until the current day. De Marly writes that Parisian haute couture had been dominated by French and English houses before World War I; however, in the post-war period, international houses, including

American, Italian, Spanish, and Swiss, entered the world of couture (143).

The most recognizable female couturier who revolutionized women’s fashion was

Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel. Chanel started to be widely recognized in the 1920’s and changed the styles of women’s fashion by shortening the dresses, removing corsets, and cutting her own hair (Mayer 101-103). She was known for her most famous creation, the

“little black dress,” with its angular lines entirely different from traditional forms that camouflaged female body shapes. Chanel also popularized the signature perfume, the beige pointed shoe with contrasting black front, as well as the black chained bag (Mayer

101). “The very use of black was a revolution in the tradition of haute couture where only brighter colors were usually admitted” reports Antonio Rosa in “The Evolution and

Democratization of Modern Fashion: From Frederick Worth to Karl Lagerfeld's Fast

Fashion” (82).

By the mid-1920s, haute couture grew to become the second largest export sector in France (Majima 72). Additionally, couture houses positioned themselves as brands associated with luxury and were always seen as one of the ways to access personal distinction and admiration from others (Rosa 81). In order to protect the haute couture designs from copies and pirated versions, PAIS (L'association de protection des industries artistiques saisonnières) was started by Madeleine Vionnet in 1921. PAIS

12 devised regulations for the sale of designs and reproductions. “Designs were photographed on a mannequin, front, back, and side, and registered as evidence by PAIS”

(Palmer “What Is Haute Couture?”).

The German Occupation of Paris was a destructive force that caused a crisis in the industry. The president of the Chambre Syndicale, couturier Lucien Lelong, was informed that the French haute couture industry was to be moved by the Nazis to Berlin or Vienna. He successfully negotiated to keep it operating in Paris (De Marly 195).

After the Liberation of Paris, the haute couture industry needed to recapture the North American buyers and manufacturers in order to reinstate France's historical position as the center of fashion design and also in order to rebuild a fragile economy and industry. (Palmer 17-18).

After 1945, transatlantic licensing agreements were incorporated and used as a tool to revitalize haute couture status (Palmer 18). American buyers, typically large department stores, would make a limited selection of the styles to buy for reproduction under their own label (Skov et al. 14). One of the issues confronting the Chambre

Syndicale during the post-war period was to figure out how to regulate exclusivity over production when the couture houses were trying to expand their boutique line, as well as how to sell the rights to make couture copies to foreign buyers. The outcome of this chaotic period was the closure of several established houses during the 1950s, which caused the loss of thousands of skilled couturiers and generated a serious concern about the future of French haute couture (Palmer 18). Majima reports that the number of haute couture houses was reduced to sixty in 1952 (74).

In order to maintain the haute couture image of exclusive design and technical superiority, the Chambre Syndicale introduced more rigorous rules in 1945. A couture house had to apply for membership in a class and its status was reviewed annually by a

13 jury made up of members of the textile industry and the administrative side of the

Chambre Syndicale (Palmer 15,18). The division of membership into classes provided a clearer understanding of the rules the candidates had to observe in order to be accepted.

New specifications of the Chambre Syndicale were established:

1. designs must be made-to-order for private clients with one or more fittings;

2. each atelier must have at least 20 staff members; and

3. each season, the couture house must present a collection of at least 35 runs to

the Paris press, including both daytime and evening wear.

The rules intended to control further the quality and prestige of the haute couture industry

(“The History of Haute Couture” Harper's BAZAAR).

The late 1950s marked the rise of the ready-to-wear market, which had a significant impact on the history of haute couture. Parisian designers who dominated haute couture were initially hesitant to embrace the ready-to-wear segment, which became the main segment of the fashion industry during the post-war period. A majority of the Parisian designers considered ready-to-wear to be too commercial and a threat to the high standards of haute couture. For some time, French couturiers were not even allowed to practice ready-to-wear according to the guidelines of the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne (Wenting 1032). Wenting describes that; as a consequence,

French couturiers entered the ready-to-wear market much later than designers in other

European cities (1032). Palmer’s research reports that the luxury clothing and accessory trade had been worth approximately 2,000 million French francs before the war, and the attainment again of that amount was considered vital to re-establish the industry (19).

In 1947, Christian Dior revolutionized the industry by introducing the “New

Look” to the world. Diana de Marly writes that Dior’s “New Look” was a return to the emphasis of the feminine shape, which had been hidden in the garments worn after the war when women performed the same jobs as men. “Angles were banished and the emphasis was upon an exaggeration of a woman’s natural shape” according to De Marly

(201). Eventually, Paris managed to bring back its former market position and authority as a leader of couture. Couture openings were once again used as a promotional device, with important guests and the press attending them dressed in evening gowns and gloves

(Majima 74).

In the 1960s, there was another shift in the industry making way for the entry of a new wave of fashion designers. These new designers designed for a younger clientele and produced garments directly to the ready-to-wear market as a sign of rebellion against the

Chambre Syndicale. Color and fabric trend forecasting became an extremely important part of the industry. While the influence from Parisian couture declined, the fiber and fabric manufacturers took the lead in “trend orchestration,” which lead them to launch trend-setting event in the international fashion production calendar in Paris in 1963, called The International Commission for Fashion and Textile Colors (Intercolor) (Majima

76). Trade shows and trend forecasts allowed the designers of the 1970s and the early

1980s to be more in tune with what the mass market wanted.

Fashion shows evolved into one of the most important tools to present garments in the mid-twentieth century. In the 1960s, designers started to experiment with different forms of transmission and ways to publicize and market their garments. New presentation methods and new ideals of models appeared (Raciniewska 102). With an increase in the

15 use of photography, film, and video, the models not only had to look good and present themselves well, but they also had to look good on camera, participate in mass culture, and demonstrate their interesting style and personality (Raciniewska 103).

By 1970, the number of haute couture houses dropped to 19. Although ready-to- wear (pret-a-porter) designers grew rapidly in influence after the decline of the haute couture businesses, they had difficulty expanding further without financial support

(Majima 81).

Those aspiring firms who played upon design innovation were marginalized, while money was put into the established couture houses for their brand management and expensive advertising. Brand names were exploited in order to sell their standardized and mass-produced perfumes and other accessory goods, as couture became commercial in new ways (Majima 81).

The ready-to-wear collections of the brands traditionally perceived as luxury brands started to address themselves to a vast range of consumers, initially in Western countries and, afterwards, in emerging economies (Rosa 87). These ready-to-wear collections became the main source of revenue for these luxury brands. The brands then began marketing all kinds of accessories (Rosa 87). Maggie Pexton Murray in “Changing Styles in Fashion: Who, What, Why,” presents an interesting perspective on the meaning of haute couture and the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture association. French couture has been financially supported for decades by the government, due to couture having such a vital role in the success of the French economy (Murray 154) This governmental support explains why haute couture was able to survive for so many years in the fashion industry and maintain its leading role up till the current day.

In 1973, the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne joined with the Prêt-à-

Porter Federation and became La fédération française de la couture, du prêt-à-porter des

16 couturiers et des créateurs de mode (English: French Federation of Fashion and of Ready- to-Wear Couturiers and Fashion Designers). In the early 2000s, the new organization had approximately 500 members and promoted French fashion at home and abroad (Murray

154; “Haute Couture”). In 1986, twenty-four designers in Paris belonged to Chambre

Syndicale de la Couture, which a decade later decreased to the eighteen haute couture houses that are members today (Murray 155).

Purpose and Structure of the Modern Couture Fashion Show

The Purpose of the Modern Couture Fashion Show

Until the 1950s, the main purpose of the couture fashion show was to serve as a marketing tool to sell merchandise to the clients in particular and also as a revitalizing force for the local social season (Palmer 25). The 1960s and 1970s were the periods when models first began to perform on stage, which assigned the couture fashion show the role of serving as a performance platform (Raciniewska 102). Beginning in the 1970s, haute couture shows started also to serve as a huge marketing device for the brands’ products beyond individual clients and also solidified each brand’s position as a fashion authority and leader in the fashion industry (Skov et al. 10). In the 1980s, couture shows underwent revolutionary changes that resulted in increased public visibility and magnitude. Shinobu

Majima’s article “From Haute Couture to High Street: The Role of Shows and Fairs in

Twentieth-Century Fashion,” provides support for the perspective that the 1980s ended traditional haute couture. However, it was during this particular period in the fashion

17 industry that the craft of the couturiers began to be considered a form of art and couture fashion shows developed more distinctly the attributes of performance.

Shinobu Majima in “From Haute Couture to High Street: The Role of Shows and

Fairs in Twentieth-Century Fashion” focuses on the shifts of the haute couture over the last half-century and explains:

Throughout this transformation, the purpose of the fashion show fundamentally changed in the 1980s and consequently changed the character of many couture and designer collections. Until the 1970s, the fashion show was a simple showcase, motivated by the practicality of selling clothes or design patterns. In the 1980s, fashion shows became a media spectacular dedicated to the imagery of a particular brand name. High-impact designers started their careers in the field of fine art, employing ‘shock and spectacle’ techniques from the modern art field. Estimates by the Chambre Syndicale suggested that 150,000 pages of coverage in the international press and 150 television slots were dedicated to designer fashion circus every year. The cost of presentation at couture and designer shows also soared. This was part of the advertising cost that was needed in order to manage brand image and to bring greater profits through sales of perfume and other licensed products in the global market (81).

António Rosa in “The Evolution And Democratization Of Modern Fashion: From

Frederick Worth To Karl Lagerfeld's Fast Fashion,” writes that “…in the 1980s the traditional haute couture fashion shows were more and more reduced to actual manifestations of artistic creation, without having a real impact on direct sales,” which explains why the 1980s marked the end to the traditional haute couture (87). Skov et al. emphasize that in the 1990s more shows became works in progress or adopted elements of performance (20).

Nowadays, the purpose of the haute couture fashion show is strongly correlated to its structure. In the first two decades of the twentieth century, haute couture fashion shows were called “mannequin parades” and only buyers, private clients, and manufacturers were invited to attend (Evans 273). The purpose of the parade was to sell

18 merchandise to the buyers and private clients. At this time, there were no extra elements like music or a certain type of walk or the smiles of the mannequins. In time, these more entertaining options became popular components of the fashion show. As the structural elements of the haute couture show broadened over time, so did its purpose. The use of extravagantly designed runways, unconventional locations, dramatic movement of the models, controversial garments (that often featured nudity), and parade slogans were incorporated in order to create publicity, shock the audience, entertain, and untimately increase the net income of the brand. The main objective of the modern couture fashion show today is not only to market the haute couture brand, but also to create performances featuring the outstanding couture designers (Duggan 250). The actual profit from selling the haute couture garments for the brand is minimal in comparison to the income generated from the sales of ready-to-wear and other more affordable luxury products. A couture fashion show nowadays generates publicity for the ready-to-wear collections as well as the other products the high fashion brands offer, like accessories, makeup, fragrance, skincare or even a line of wines. Duggan explains that association of the shows with celebrity pop culture makes the boundaries between fashion, art, theatre and performance disappear and creates fashion shows that are “cross-media spectacles” (250).

Modern haute couture shows are the source of fashion leadership and innovation.

Their current role is not only to surprise the audience by the innovative pieces presented every season in the haute couture shows, but to introduce and provide inspiration for the aforementioned ready-to-wear designers who will transform the ideas into the more affordable pieces that eventually become available in stores worldwide (Everett and

Swanson 33). Although it may seem like the haute couture fashion is a separate entity

19 available only for the elite, it strongly affects ready-to-wear fashion and even the world of fast fashion. Everett and Swanson in the Guide to Producing a Fashion Show, explain that the additional functions of the fashion shows are to reveal the most current information on trends in apparel, silhouettes, fabrics, and colors through an entertaining format (4).

In 2017, Parisian Fashion Week welcomed various ready-to-wear designers elected by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode as “guest members” for couture week (Cavanagh “How Couture Fashion Week Is Changing”). The shift from haute couture being a sacred institution, reserved for elite couture houses protected by

Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, opened up opportunities for the rising ready-to- wear designers. This change deeply affected the prestige of the haute couture and shows the shift that haute couture has undergone.

The Structure of the Modern Couture Fashion Show

The structure of modern fashion shows differs considerably from those in the past.

The cost of the haute couture shows has increased, as has the number of participants, including audience members, models, and all additional members of the couture houses‘ staff (Majima 81; Raciniewska 100-106). The duration of the shows has shortened over time. Currently, a fashion show ranges from fifteen to twenty minutes (Skov et al. 10).

Since the 1950s, Paris showcased its couture at the end of January for the immediate spring/summer season and in July for the fall/winter season (Evans 279).

Unlike modern haute couture fashion shows, the first mannequin parades were repeated

20 every day over several weeks, and lasted much longer; Lady Duff Gordon, called Lucile professionally, one of the leading British fashion designers in the late 19th and early 20th century, relates that her New York parades lasted three hours and even in the 1950s most shows lasted an hour and a quarter or more (Evans 279).

One reason that shows shortened in presentation time is due to the busy schedule of the audience members attending the show. For example, during Parisian Fashion

Week, fashion editors and celebrities are usually attending multiple fashion shows in a row (Skov et al. 10). Frequent overlaps in show times caused a dilemma for attendees, so a shorter show gave a designer a greater chance of fitting into an audience member’s schedule. Another reason for the shorter length of the shows is that the models walking in the show were often booked for several shows during the couture week. Shorter run times of the fashion show allows the models to travel easily from one venue to another, especially in cities like Paris, which is known for unusually heavy traffic during couture week.

The largest percentage of haute couture show participants is the audience. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the couture shows were mainly attended by private clients, manufacturers, representatives of the large department stores (known today as buyers), and later on, photographers and photo-reporters (Evans 305). “Couture shows were social events, generating the same excitement as the opening of a new play, often having to be repeated three times a day to accommodate the crowds” (Evans 305).

Although nowadays the shows are not repeated, the main couture houses bring in impressive crowds.

Each season a couture house sends a special invitation to members of the fashion

21 industry. The shows can only be attended with an invitation. However, due to technological developments, couture fashion shows nowadays are widely available to the public in the virtual world. On social media anyone can view the latest runway show and even watch it via a live stream in real time. Celebrities and elite invited to the haute couture shows share their own live stream to their fan base and the rest of the world through various platforms every season. By doing so, they not only increase the number of viewers for their personal advantage, but serve as a free promotional tool for the fashion house whose shows they attend. In this way, social media plays an enormous role in advertising and marketing of the haute couture runways. Those invited to the modern couture shows consist of fashion editors, photographers, celebrities, journalists, fashion bloggers, business associates, guests of designers and other key performers (such as models, stylists), including well-connected and persistent fashionistas (Skov et al. 22).

As audience attendees gradually changed over time, so did their status.

“Admission and seating arrangements are highly symbolic and political nowadays. Both the designer and the guests’ reputation is at stake,” explains Skov et.al (22). The audience’s mood, attention, and engagement during the show reflect upon the status of the designer. Top fashion editors and celebrities naturally increase the chances for success of the newest collection by simply showing up (Skov et al. 22). The fashion show also presents an amazing opportunity to show off the outfits worn by the members of the audience. Some audience members arrive dressed from head to toe in garments of the designer whose show they are attending. However, most of the audience is simply wearing the latest trends from throughout the fashion world creating an publicity circus and shining extra attention on the event (Skov et al. 23). The opinions of invited

22 celebrities have a tremendous impact on brand success. Publicity plays an enormous role in the further success and development of the couture house in the modern world. Also, because couture shows belong to such an elitist gathering in the world of high fashion, only chosen individuals have a chance to experience it in person. Social media platforms allow people with internet access around the world to feel like they are a part of the influencers who are watching the show live at no extra cost. Although sharing the shows through social media platforms veers away from the exclusive traditions developed by haute couture, digital media sources remain a significant outlet of publicity for the fashion houses and will not likely disappear from the world of high fashion anytime soon.

Another noticeable change in the structure of couture fashion shows is in the use of models, known for decades as “mannequins du monde” (Evans 273). In the middle of the twentieth-century, fashion shows presented the image of the ideal, very feminine, bodies of models. At the end of the twentieth-century, designers preferred very thin models with an androgenous type of beauty, which shifted into promoting cultural diversity and greater spontaneity in choices of models (Duggan 248). When the fashion world discovered Somalian born Iman in the 1970’s, she became one of the highest paid models in the fashion industry at that time. Quick explains, that in the 1970s “It was reported that she earned $100,000 for doing a Munich runway show, compared to the

$1,500 paid other models in at that time (qtd. in Everett and Swanson 17). The interest in a more exotic beauty for models continues. The latest couture show from Parisian

Antonio Grimaldi welcomed 17-year old Halima Aden, the Somali-American who in

2017 was the first hijab-wearing model on the European catwalks (Paton “In Paris, Saudi

Arabia's First Couture Model”). Her appearance on the runway was a huge step forward

23 in the fashion industry to begin to break racial and cultural barriers through promoting models of all nationalities, skin colors, and religions.

The status of being a model in today’s society has changed due to the professionalization of the shows and media coverage (Raciniewska 102). The 1990s initiated the concept of supermodels. A supermodel is a highly successful fashion model who has attained celebrity status (Oxford Dictionaries). The best-paid runway models today boast multimillion-dollar contracts for one year of work. According to the British edition of Vogue magazine, Kendall Jenner, a supermodel who walked in Chanel haute couture shows and also worked for Fendi and Alexander Wang, earned $22 million modeling in 2017 (Newbold “The Highest-Paid Models Of 2017”). One of the priorities today for choosing a model for couture runways is each model’s popularity. Widely recognized faces bring greater attention to the show, which, as mentioned earlier, results in greater publicity for the designer and the couture house.

Performance Art

In order to determine if haute couture shows are performance art, it is crucial to understand the characteristics of performance and the functions of performance art. There are several theories concerning the functions of performance art, which are highlighted in the literature.

Goldberg and Barlow explain that the function of performance art is to provide a presence for the artist in society (“Performance Art”). Depending on the nature of performance, this presence can be esoteric, shamanistic, instructive, provocative, or entertaining.

Richard Schechner, in Performance Studies, on the other hand, distinguishes seven standard functions of performance. Schechner’s functions are:

1. to entertain;

2. to make something that is beautiful;

3. to mark or change identity;

4. to make or foster community;

5. to heal;

6. to teach, persuade, or convince;

7. and to deal with the sacred and/or demonic (38).

Schechner claims that it is very rare that performance fulfills only one of the functions at a time or all the seven in one performance (38).

Amanda Coogan also sets out a number of characteristics of performance in

“What is Performance Art?” and explains that performance art depends, simply, on the presence (and absence) of the body (10). She presents a conventional understanding of performance art as a solo practice with the artist’s body-as-medium at its core; in other words, an embodied practice. But the practice of performance art may also incorporate additional people: performers and audience members (Coogan 10). Byrne and Moran write in “What is Performance Art?” that performance art is a form of arts practice that involves a person or persons undertaking an action or actions within a particular timeframe in a particular space or location for an audience (4). Another characteristic central to the process and execution of performance art is the live presence of the artist and the real actions of his/her body to create and present an ephemeral art experience to an audience (Byrne and Moran 4). A defining characteristic of performance art is that the

25 body is the primary medium and conceptual material on which performance art is based

(Byrne and Moran 4). Other key components of performance art distinguished by Byrne and Moran are time, space, and the relationship between performer and audience (4).

Time, or what is called duration in performance art, is a critical element. Byrne and

Moran present performance art as a time-based practice. They explain: “Generally, anything over three hours is a particular strand of practice and inevitably brings with it elements of endurance” (Byrne and Moran 4).

Following the Irish Museum of Modern Art’s model, performance art can employ any material or medium across a discipline, including music, dance, poetry, literature, film, fashion, design, and architecture (Byrne and Moran 4). Due to use of the strategies such as recitation or improvisation associated with theatre and drama, performance art rarely employs a plot or narrative (Byrne and Moran 5). It can be spontaneous, one-off, durational, improvised or rehearsed, and performed with or without scripts (Byrne and

Moran 5). Performances can range from a series of small-scale intimate gestures to public rallies, spectacles or parades presented in the solo or collaborative form (Byrne and

Moran 5). In contrast to conventional methods of theatre production, the visual artist is the performer, creator and, director of the performance. Performance art can take place anywhere: in art museums, galleries and alternative art spaces or in impromptu sites, such as cafés, bars or the street, where the site and often unknowing audience become an integral part of the work’s meaning (Byrne and Moran 4).

This study intends to determine if haute couture fashion shows can be considered a form of performance art. However, in order to make this claim, it is crucial to explore when performance art began and how it is defined. Martha Wilson, performance artist

26 and author of “Performance Art: (Some) Theory and (Selected) Practice at the End of

This Century,” writes that the use of the term performance was first used in 1910, when

Italian Futurist painters and poets threw eight hundred thousand copies of their pamphlet,

“Against Passeist Venice,” from the clock tower above Piazza San Marco onto the heads of law-abiding citizens (2). RoseLee Goldberg and Margaret Barlow, in “Performance

Art”, claim that the beginning of performance art is 20 February 1909, with the publication of the “Manifeste de fondation du Futurisme” by Filippo Tommaso

Marinetti in Paris in Le Figaro. The term was apparently also applied to Happenings,

Fluxus events, and other intermedia performances in the 1960s (Schechner 137).

However, Robyn Bretano in “Outside the Frame,” claims that the term “performance art” first appeared around 1970, in order to describe “the ephemeral, time-based, and process- oriented work of conceptual body and feminist artists that was emerging at the time”

(Schechner 137). Marvin Carlson in Performance: A Critical Introduction, talks about performance art being only created by and for a very limited artistic community in the

1970s for the first time (100). There are as many theories of when performance art started, as there are opinions; however, a majority of the sources claim that the beginning of performance art was in the 1970s.

Schechner makes the point that what has come to be called performance art has taken countless forms and there is no one definition that defines performance art (137).

Goldberg and Barlow define performance art as: “any form of ‘live art’ in a public setting closely related to the fine-art modes of the time.” However, they also write:

“Performance has been a way of appealing directly to a large public, as well as shocking

27 audiences into reassessing their own notions of art and its relation to culture.” They suggest that performance art might be:

A series of intimate gestures or large-scale visual theatre, lasting any time from a few minutes to many hours; it might be performed once or repeated, with or without a prepared script, spontaneously improvised or rehearsed over many months. It may be presented solo or with a group, with lighting, music, or visuals made either by the performance artist or in collaboration, and performed in venues ranging from the art gallery or museum to ‘alternative spaces’, such as the theatre, café, bar, or street (Goldberg and Barlow “Performance Art”).

Goldberg and Barlow write that the late 1960s and early 1970s were the golden years for performance art (“Performance Art”). The pieces that went beyond everyday activity, pushing the boundaries of the human body, were the ones that brought the most media attention (Carlson 103). The more shocking and provocative the form of performance art, the bigger the publicity.

Britta B. Wheeler in “The Social Construction of an Art Field: How Audience

Informed the Institutionalization of Performance Art,” describes the increase in the visibility of performance art in the late twentieth century. She writes: “Artists sought to shock audiences through the use of explicit language, nudity, deviant behavior, and by denying conventional definitions of art as beautiful, highly cultivated, and tasteful” (339).

By incorporating performance art into everyday life activities, artists included aspects of theatre, visual art, and history. In its very first manifestations, performance art was specifically concerned with the operations of the body (Carlson 101). The body artists of the 1970s explored almost every sort of physical activity and used it in the art context.

Some of the examples of the real-time activities were walking, sleeping, eating, drinking and even cooking, presented directly, but with a playful edge (Carlson 102). Carlson elaborates that the 1970s performance art was a time-based visual art form, where text

28 played a significant role. However, it shifted from text to movement-based work, with performance artists often in the role of choreographer (108). In a brief survey of modern performance art, Jacki Apple provides her theory of the word being a dominant factor for performance art in the 1990s (qtd. in Carlson 116). Performance artists in the role of storytellers, poets, preachers, rappers took over the modern performance art world

(Carlson 116). Additionally, some theorists have suggested that social and political concerns became the leading topics of performance in the 1990s, and the interest around these kinds of performances continue to increase (Carlson 120).

In order to understand the concept of performance art, it is important to define the role of the artist-performer in performance art. Goldberg and Barlow define the performer as: “the artist, seldom a ‘character’ like an actor in the theatre and the content rarely follows a traditional plot or narrative“ (“Performance Art”).

Britta B. Wheeler explains the role of performing artists and focuses on their relationship with the audience. Wheeler claims there is a certain relation between the artist and his/her audience based on a set of mutually agreed upon yet unspoken assumptions (336). The performing artist is expected to entertain the audience or perhaps challenge them with dramatic content (Wheeler 336). The art form itself might draw the attention of the audience, because there are always some individuals who are new to a particular art form, and they can learn what is expected of them only if the work follows common conventions (Wheeler 337). In the past, the goal of performance artists was to change the meaning of art and make it more socially relevant (Wheeler 338). From one perspective the goal was to stay innovative, politically engaged, and avant-garde, and

29 from the other perspective, in order to be a legitimate enterprise, they had to be recognized as their own art form with a set of practices (Wheeler 338).

Anthony Howell, in The Analysis of Performance Art, writes that performance artists do not see themselves as actors; “they do not necessarily take on roles different to their own. However, even if they think that they are simply “being themselves,” they are each projecting a self or a persona through posture, through body language and through their clothing” (16). Howell states that clothing is a tool that can fulfill certain functions in performance art. Sometimes it serves as building the context through the appropriate garments to a specific context of performance, and sometimes it might be heavily functional, like asbestos suits for walking through fire (17-18).

CHAPTER III

CASE STUDY

Research Plan The idea for this case study was born from the lack of available literature analyzing haute couture fashion shows through the lens of performance art. This case study contains an extensive analysis of three modern haute couture fashion shows in the context of the definition of performance art, its functions and its characteristics. The three shows are Chanel Spring/Summer 2015 (“Spring-Summer 2015 Haute Couture CHANEL Show” YouTube.com), Christian Dior Spring/Summer 2015 (“Christian Dior | Haute Couture” YouTube.com), and Givenchy Fall/Winter 2018-2019 (“Givenchy | Haute

Couture” YouTube.com). The selected shows are from haute couture houses that belong to the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture association and have existed for more than half of a century in the fashion industry. The selected fashion houses all are French and belong to the group of Grand Couturiers. These houses are popular, economically successful, and have extended longevity in the fashion industry as renowned, well-established leaders in the haute couture world. The Chanel Spring/Summer 2015 show was selected because it is visually appealing and also very unusual and innovative. Although the garden theme used in this particular show has appeared already in previous Chanel couture shows, it was never taken to to another level like in this particular show.

The Dior Spring/Summer 2015 couture show was selected also for its visual appeal and the unconventional (for the Dior couture collection) design concept and resulting scenery, colors, and unusual fabric choices. The Givenchy Fall/Winter 2018- 2019 couture show was selected because it was the first collection of the new Givenchy female creative director, Clare Waight Keller, in which she paid tribute to the great

Hubert de Givenchy, founder of the house of Givenchy in 1952. Having a woman as the creative director in the Givenchy couture house, which was dominated by men from the beginning of its existence, is quite intriguing and drew the public’s attention. An astonishing location, as well as breathtaking choices in fabrics and design aesthetics, makes this particular fashion show an excellent choice for this study. All three couture shows selected for this study were from well established houses, yet pushed the boundaries of traditional French couture.

The three case study examples will be examined in relation to the seven functions of performance that Richard Schechner defines in his book Performance Studies, in order to determine how these modern couture shows can be considered as performance art (38).

Schechner’s seven standard functions of performance are:

1. to entertain;

2. to make something that is beautiful;

3. to mark or change identity;

4. to make or foster community;

5. to heal;

6. to teach, persuade, or convince;

7. and to deal with the sacred and/or demonic (38).

Performance Studies is written by a renowned expert in the field of performance studies and performance art and contains an exhaustive explanation of each function of performance, which from this researcher’s point of view seemed to be a valuable source for this research. The three examples will also be examined in the context of the performance art characteristics Amanda Coogan discusses in her article, “What is

Performance Art?” (9) The three shows will also be examined in the conetxt of the performance art characteristics distinguished by Sophie Byrne and Lisa Moran in “What is Performance Art?” (4-8) This source was chosen for the purpose of this study, due to its broad but very detailed examples of performance art characteristics. The eleven characteristics of performance art delineated by the authors are: 1. It depends on the presence and the absence of the body (Coogan 9). 2. It is a solo practice with the artist’s body-as-medium at its core; an embodied practice, but it may also incorporate additional people including performers and audience members (Coogan 9). 3. It involves a person or persons undertaking an action or actions within a particular time frame in a particular space or location for an audience (Byrne and Moran 4). 4. It involves the live presence of the artist and the real actions of his/her body, to create and present an ephemeral art experience to an audience (Byrne and Moran 4). 5. It involves the body as a primary medium (Byrne and Moran 4). 6. It can employ any material or medium across and discipline, including music, dance, poetry, literature, film, fashion, design, and architecture (Byrne and Moran 4). 7. It rarely employs a plot or narrative (Byrne and Moran 5). 8. It can be spontaneous, one-off, durational, improvised or rehearsed and performed with or without scripts (Byrne and Moran 5).

9. It can be a series of small-scale intimate gestures to public rallies, spectacles or parades presented in the solo or collaborative form (Byrne and Moran 5). 10. The visual artist is the performer, creator, and director of the performance (Byrne and Moran 5). 11. It can be situated anywhere: in art museums, galleries and alternative art spaces or in impromptu sites, such as cafés, bars or the street, where the site and often unknowing audience become an integral part of the work’s meaning (Byrne and Moran 5). The methods of data collection for this study were primarily based on the review of the literature. In addition to the literature review data, the information was collected from the video footage of the actual couture shows, mass-produced fashion magazines, and fashion journals.

Table 1 compares the couture shows with Schechner’s functions of performance (See Appendix A). Table 2 reviews the three couture shows using Amanda Coogan’s characteristics of performance art and Sophie Byrne and Lisa Moran characteristics of performance art (See Appendix B). Data collection consisted of the author’s personal observations and analyses of the fashion shows (freely available on Youtube) and examining the elements of each in light of the two sets of functions of performance art. These observations were compared and contrasted to reviews and descriptions of the particular shows from mass-produced fashion magazines and fashion journals.

Analysis of Three Modern Haute Couture Shows

Chanel Couture Spring/Summer 2015

Chanel is a privately owned French high fashion company founded in 1909 by one of the most recognized and iconic women of the fashion industry, Gabrielle “Coco” 34

Chanel. Coco Chanel was born into poverty in 1883 and raised in a convent orphanage after the death of her mother (Mayer 99). In her designs, Chanel took inspiration from masculine attire and revolutionized the world of fashion (De Marly 147). She transformed the look of women; she shortened the dresses, revealed the ankles, freed the waist through the elimination of corsets, cut her hair and bronzed her skin (Mayer 101-

103). By freeing the female form, she single-handedly launched a new century of fashion.

A wealthy admirer, Arthur Capel, initially financed a hat design business for her that evolved into the Chanel Corporation, the world’s most profitable privately held luxury goods maker. (Mayer 101). Chanel held her first couture shows for a limited number of attendees in her private apartment at the famous 31 Rue Cambon, where the Chanel

Corporation’s Paris headquarters has been located until the current day (Fiemeyer 84).

Chanel was interested in trends of avant-garde art. The artist Picasso was one of her friends and she also designed costumes for several theatre productions (Mayer 106). In

1939, she closed her salon due to the Second World War. She reopened it after the war was over (Mayer 110). On 5 February 1954, she presented her latest couture collection to the public and, unfortunately, it was not judged well by the French and English journalists who called it “a melancholy retrospective” and “fiasco” (Mayer 110). She regained her international influence in the world of fashion with the timeless designs of the military-inspired Chanel suit, the beige shoe with its contrasting black toe, the quilted bag with the chain shoulder strap, brooches made of colorful gemstones, and her signature perfume Chanel No. 5 (Mayers 110). Coco Chanel died in 1971 in her suite in the Ritz Hotel in Paris. She left a strongly defined legacy that is recognized internationally and deeply admired by many. Chanel’s estimated annual income by Time

35 magazine in 1971 was $160 million (Mayers 110). In 1983, Karl Lagerfeld took over the house as creative director in order to continue Chanel’s legacy. The company’s revenue was $9.6 billion in 2017 (Wattles “Chanel reveals earnings for the first time in its 108- year history”).

The Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2015 Chanel fashion show designed by Karl

Lagerfeld was installed in the Grand Palais des Champs-Élysées, a large historic site, exhibition hall, and museum complex in Paris. This couture show featured an installation of the Chanel paper jungle, located in an artificial greenhouse, where seventy-four different looks were presented (Blanks “Spring 2015 Couture Chanel”). It took six months to create the three hundred high-tech flowers that were part of the scenery for this couture show. Each flower had its own engine and, when the show started, one of the male models, and Baptiste Giabiconi, applied a theatrical splash from a Coco Chanel branded watering can and the flowers simultaneously burst into mechanical bloom

(Blanks “Spring 2015 Couture Chanel”). A garden wonderland theme complemented the garments in the collection. Flowers could be spotted on almost every piece of clothing, either on the skirts or on the edges of the sleeves. Colors of white, orange, red, blue, and green dominated the garments on the runway, and these same colors were used in the scenic decorative motifs. Surprisingly, there was little use of the color black in this collection. Black has been considered the color of elegance since 1926 and was a dominant color in the collections created by Gabrielle Chanel herself over the years. In the 2015 show, however, the color white dominated the venue and the runway. The color white captures light and illuminates the face, creating a haunting beauty. Red was defined as a color of life, blood, energy, fire, and passion by Chanel and remains one of the core

36 colors of the Chanel Couture collections under Lagerfeld. In the 2015 fashion show, everything was perfectly coordinated. The circular-shaped runway resembled a theatre stage and allowed audience members to view the garments longer than they would have been able to on the usual T-shaped runway. The audience surrounded the runway similarly to an arena theatre where the audience surrounds the stage. The models walked the entire circle, enabling each member of the audience to clearly see each of the garments from all angles. The stands were divided into four main sections, providing a space at each side in order for the camera operators to record the spectacle from every angle.

Chanel’s Fall/Winter 2014 couture show, designed by Lagerfeld, showcased a pregnant bride in the finale, which resulted in an enormous amount of publicity and caused attention to be taken away from the collection itself. The finale of the 2015

Spring/Summer season show featured a short sleeve, white, wedding gown with touches of baby pink worn by the model Molly Bair. The dress was made out of hundreds of white flowers and finished with a stunning pearl headpiece reminiscent of an avant-garde version of a veil. Tim Blanks wrote that the train of the gown itself took an entire month and the work of fifteen women to be completed (“Spring 2015 Couture Chanel”). The finale, as the last impression of the show, is meant to trigger a strong reaction. As mentioned earlier, a wedding gown for a pregnant woman from the Fall 2014 Couture

Lagerfeld’s collection caused a significant reaction of the media and shocked the audience. In this show, the finale garment sparked excitement and brought the entire collection into focus.

The 2015 S/S Chanel couture show had many unconventionalities hidden in its content. For instance, instead of the traditional flower girls, four flower boys carrying enormous bouquets of tropical flowers in their arms, followed the Chanel bride in the finale. Breaking the conventions of the traditional couture show allows the audience to open its mind and expand its perceptions. One goal of performance is to send a message, either through the body, the words, or silence. Sometimes, however, the story is not easy to read. In the 2015 Chanel show, models were using their bodies to tell the story of a futuristic world that exists only in the imagination, where gender roles are not as rigid and the attributes of masculinity and femininity are not as restrictive as they are in the actual world. Although the exposure of the garments to the public is one of the main goals of the couture show, the models became actual performers in this spectacle. There were several supermodels involved in the show. Some of the big names included: Joan

Smalls, Anna Ewers, Lindsey Wixon, and one of the best-paid models of 2017, Kendal

Jenner. Their presence was meaningful, and even if they thought that they were simply

“being themselves,” each projected a different self or persona through posture, body language, and the Chanel clothing. This projection of a persona different from oneself is one way of describing what performance art artists do, according to Anthony Howell’s theory in The Analysis of Performance Art (16).

Lagerfeld has revealed that his inspiration for the 2015 collection was flowers, adding: “But these are flowers God had forgotten to create. They don’t really exist these kinds of flowers” (Frankel “The Story Behind Chanel Couture Spring 2015”). The show included camellias, a Chanel signature flower, in the form of precisely jeweled buttons of all sizes, but also roses, poppies, anemones, peonies and more. Flowers were created out

38 of various materials, from the supreme silks to modest plastics (Frankel “The Story

Behind Chanel Couture Spring 2015”).

Functions of Performance in the Chanel S/S 2015 Couture Show

Although the main function of the couture show has remained the same for over a century and has served as a marketing tool to sell merchandise to the public, it also fulfills several other functions that overlap with the functions of performance suggested by Richard Schechner in Performance Studies (38). The 2015 Spring Chanel show fulfilled five out of seven functions of performance. In this author’s opinion, the show entertained; made something that is beautiful; marked identity; taught, persuaded, convinced; and fostered community.

Through the use of the futuristic garden theme, the fabulous construction of the runway, breathtaking scenery, and impressive location, this Chanel couture show fulfilled the function to entertain. The music used in the show was dynamic and fresh, which perfectly emphasized the futuristic paper jungle theme thus creating contrast with the classic garments of the Chanel collection. The intention in the use of blooming mechanical flowers at the show‘s opening was clearly to entertain as well. The presence of celebrities including actresses Kristen Stewart and Vanessa Paradis at this particular show brought additional value and desired publicity. Connecting the world of pop culture with the world of high fashion makes all boundaries disappear. Famous persons from show business in the front row provides the impetus for the fashion show to go viral and become widely recognized. The innovative collection, containing garments with

39 unconventional shapes (not common for Chanel), bright floral colors and, most importantly, a remarkable, painstaking construction, also added an extra entertainment factor to the 2015 show.

Another function of performance that this Chanel couture show fulfilled was to create something beautiful. Following the commonly accepted standards of beauty, this show emphasized beauty in all aspects. The use of models, theme, location, and the finale are all factors that were manipulated to allow this show to be the definition of beauty itself. The models in the case of this show were all women, perfectly matched to the garments they presented. The most astonishing aspect of beauty in this show, however, was hidden in the craft of hand-stitched garments. From the flat sock-booties, the bared midriffs, the slouchy skirts ending just below the knee, and the huge Edwardian hats or the puffy beanies, all the way to the finale’s perfect wedding gown, the precise craftsmanship of the Chanel atelier workers stunned overwhelmingly (Blanks “Spring

2015 Couture Chanel”). The use of vivid colors that differed slightly from the usual palette used in Chanel collections was a risk taken by Karl Lagerfeld that consequently paid off with positive feedback from fashion critics.

Chanel was known for her signature design of the simple cropped jacket usually bound with braids, soutache, or ribbons, open and unbuttoned, with a soft, straight, or pleated skirt. Eventually, this garment earned the name, Chanel suit (Murray 128).

Admiration for the Chanel legacy has been universal since the beginning of the twentieth century and has continued until the current day. Karl Lagerfeld did not disappoint

Chanel’s many admirers in the 2015 couture collection. He continued the legacy of the icon in a graceful way, by adding tasteful twists to the look of the traditional Chanel suit,

40 utilizing bolder colors, and leaving raw edges at the bottom of the sleeves and the bottom hems. He also added plastic flowers to the hems. The identity of the Chanel brand was

“marked” and “changed” by using the signature designs and silhouettes and adding modern components to them. The collection looked very modern, but was still undeniably reminiscent of traditional Chanel designs. Lagerfeld incorporated the signature colors of

Chanel like black, white and red and also highlighted the signature flower of Coco

Chanel, white camellias.

The next function of performance fulfilled by this Chanel couture show was teaching, persuading and convincing. The show taught the audience about the latest fashion trends; persuaded the audience that Chanel was one of the top couture houses to follow that season; and convinced Chanel’s clients that the collection was worthy of their purchase. Although Chanel is an established brand in the fashion industry and is known around the world, the brand still needs to present a collection every season that stuns audiences and confirms its leading position among competitors.

The last performance function fulfilled by the 2015 Chanel couture show was to foster community. The authors in “The Fashion as an Art Form“write “that fashion shows serve to define the fashion industry as a community – in terms of production (fashion world personnel and fashion students), distribution (buyers), reproduction (media photography and reporting) and consumption (celebrities)’’ (28). Invited audience members play a significant role in the fashion community. Ideally, people attending the show have at least one thing in common: the love of fashion. Haute coutureshows are where the most influential people in the fashion industry meet twice each year and celebrate the craft and continued legacy of the best couture houses in the world. The 2015

Chanel show fostered community among the fashion elite, allowing them to become a part of the Chanel family for the duration of the show. The show also gave audience members the idea that if you purchase even a small Chanel item, you belong to this community. This idea of community also applies to the remote viewers who access online the livestream of the show and can still get the feeling of belonging to the Chanel family.

From this researcher’s point of view, the 2015 Chanel couture show did not contain the performance elements that would heal or deal with sacred or demonic, which are the two remaining elements of Richard Schechner’s seven functions of performance.

Characteristics of Performance Art as applied to the Chanel S/S 2015 Couture Show

The Chanel Spring/Summer 2015 couture show exhibited ten out of the eleven characteristics of performance art as distinguished by Amanda Coogan, Sophie Byrne and

Lisa Moran (4-9). Through the walk of the models down the runway, this couture show depended on the presence and the absence of the body. The models were entering the runway directed by the fashion show director within the specific time intervals, giving the audience enough time to focus on every look of the collection. After their specified time on the runway, they disappeared behind the scenes to the backstage area in order to change and present another look. The presence and disappearance of the body were embedded in the choreography of the models. Their full of confidence walk was intended to present the vision of the author, in this case, Karl Lagerfeld’s, and it also served as an expressive tool for his vision.

This S/S 2015 couture Chanel show was not a solo practice of the artist, with the artist’s body-as-medium at its core. The show incorporated additional people, like the audience members, and also included additional performers, such as models. The main artist behind the entire couture show was the creative director of Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld.

His designs were presented by the additional performers/models and he also appeared himself on the catwalk at the end of the show in order to thank the audience for its attendance, but his body was not the medium of the show. However, if one considers models in the role of the main artist of the show, each fashion show becomes a solo practice with the artist’s body-as-medium and its core. In the 2018 Chanel show, each model presented a look, individually fitted to the shape of her body. None of the looks were repeated; each one is a unique, individual design. Although the vision of the director seemed to create a show where the models look alike—from their make-up, through their dynamic walk, all the way to their stone cold facial expressions. Each model had her own individual style of expression and was individually attractive in her own way.

The show also involved people undertaking actions within a particular timeframe in a particular space and location for the audience. The entire spectacle of seventy-two garment pieces, including the walk of Karl Lagerfeld himself, was presented in the Grand

Palais des Champs-Élysées, a large historic site, exhibition hall, and museum complex in

Paris, and lasted eighteen minutes. Models walked down the runway at about ten-second time intervals, taking advantage of the spacious location.

Because this couture show involved the live presence of the models/artist and the real actions of their bodies, it created and presented an ephemeral art experience to an audience. The majority of actions performed through the body were based on movements

43 executed in the tempo dictated by the music. The models walked dynamically, stopping from time to time on the runway in order to allow the audience on each side to take a closer look at the garments.

The body served as the primary medium for presenting the clothes. The models’ bodies were a focal point of the performance. The garments interacted with the body, not only through the body’s movement, but also through the drape of the fabric or the length of the garment (i.e. mid calf). Each piece looked a certain way in combination with and in dialogue with the body of the model--the height, weight, hair, skin, and personality.

Additionally, although the garment might be remade, it will be worn differently and presented differently on each body, even on the exact same body in five years.

The show employed music, fashion, design, and architecture in its structure. The music served as a focal point for the vitality of the show, dictating the tempo and setting the mood of the show. While a couture show itself is a fashion event and clearly contains fashion as a medium, the 2015 Chanel show also expanded into design techniques from various fields. The architectural aspect of the show was embedded in the scenery, structural design of the venue, construction of the mechanical flowers and also in the style of the garments and accessories.

While performance art rarely employs a plot or narrative, the 2015 Chanel show sends a message, which could be read differently by each member of the audience. The show did not, however, follow any particular plot or clear narrative structure.

Another characteristic of performance art is that it can be spontaneous, one-off, durational, improvised or rehearsed and performed with or without scripts. This couture show was one-off. It happened once during the couture week and will never be repeated

44 in the future. It was also relatively short in duration, but definitely rehearsed by the models in order to present the ideal vision of the designer and the fashion show director.

The show was performed with a script, an organizing document that included the information on when each model was supposed to step onto the runway and the proper order of the models’ appearance.

Performance art can take the form of a series of small-scale intimate gestures all the way to public rallies, spectacles or parades presented in solo or collaborative form.

The 2015 Chanel couture show was a spectacle presented in a collaborative form, where the visual artist is not only the performer himself, but the creator of the performance. Karl

Lagerfeld was also a director of this Chanel couture show. The designer/creative director often receives additional help from the fashion show director in the organizational aspects of the show, but continues to have the biggest input into the structure of the presented spectacle.

Performance art can take place anywhere, in art museums, galleries and alternative art spaces or in impromptu sites, such as cafés, bars or the street, where the site and often unknowing audience become an integral part of the work’s meaning. The

Grand Palais des Champs-Élysées holds a significant place in French history, however, the audience for the Chanel 2015 couture show was not unknown or involved in the show accidentally. The audience attending the show consisted of members of the fashion industry who received a special invitation from the house of Chanel. The audience members are the ones that dictate the success of the couture show, just like in performance art. The feedback from the audience, often in the form of applause, is essential for both the couture show and performance art. An enthusiastic reaction from

45 the audience shows the members of the couture house who work for success as a team, as well as to the performance artists themselves, that their effort and the vision is seen, appreciated, and valued.

Christian Dior Couture Spring/Summer 2015

Christian Dior founded the Dior couture house in Paris in the middle of the twentieth century. Dior was born in 1905 in Granville, France (Seeling 257). He was interested in fashion as a child and he wanted to become an artist from a very young age

(Seeling 257). His father was strongly against him becoming an artist and encouraged him to study political science. In return for his effort, Christian received money from his father to open a small art gallery, where he was allowed to develop his passion for modern art (Seeling 257). Due to a family financial crisis and stock market crash, the gallery had to be closed (Seeling 257). When he began his fashion design career, he was hired in a permanent position at the designer Robert Piquet’s couture house. In 1942,

Christian Dior served in the army, but he was discharged after one year. He returned to

Paris and was joined the house of Lucien Lelong (Seeling 257). In 1946, Dior founded his own fashion house at 30 Avenue Montaigne (Seeling 261). On 12 February 1947 at

10:30 a.m., Christian Dior revealed a revolutionary collection that made women say that they would never look at fashion the same way again (“Signs and Superstition”

Dior.com). The collection was named the “New Look” by the Editor-in-Chief of Harper’s Bazaar, Carmel Snow, who strongly believed in Dior’s talent. With the

“New Look,” Dior wrote a new chapter in the history of fashion and brought a new spirit

46 to French haute couture. Most importantly, he brought back feminine shapes in clothing that disappeared when women performed men’s jobs during the war (Seeling 269). The

Dior fashion house has never lost the signature elegant look, even after Christian Dior’s death. The brand continues his legacy of distinctive feminine looks, always emphasizing a woman's beauty. The house of Dior has had seven different creative directors after

Christian Dior, including big names such as Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan, Gianfranco

Ferré, John Galliano, Bill Gaytten, Raf Simons and Maria Grazia Chiuri, the first woman to hold the position (Moss “What to Know About Dior’s New Artistic Director, Maria

Grazia Chiuri”). Similarly, like the house of Givenchy, men dominated the house of Dior since the beginning of its existence. Having a woman in a powerful position, such as creative director, in this prestigious couture house is extremely inspiring for women around the world and may make the label seem more relevant and relatable. Forbes reported Dior’s revenue at $49.3 billion in June 2018 (“Christian Dior on the Forbes

World's Best Employers List”).

An example of the French haute couture fashion show as performance art is the

Christian Dior Spring/Summer 2015 couture collection presented by the creative director and the designer of the collection, Raf Simons. The House of Dior is one of the most recognizable archetypes of Parisian French Couture style. The futuristic scenery of the

2015 show consisted of two-level white metal scaffolding with a playful display of mirrors on the walls and the ceiling. The contrast of the metal with pink bubble gum color carpet that covered the floor of the runways and two staircases, created a feeling of contradiction, but also demonstrated the playful, yet serious, tone, that the collection meant to portray. The choreography of the show was unusual, with up to five models

47 walking on the double-leveled runway at the same time, a couple seconds apart from each other, and in different directions, including walking down from the staircase. The show consisted of fifty-four looks and, surprisingly, the models chosen for this show were not as recognizable in the fashion industry as the Chanel supermodels (Blanks “Christian

Dior Spring 2015 Couture Fashion Show”). The models’ natural makeup and sleek hairstyles, made them look like dolls out of the same factory. The entire show lasted only twelve minutes and it was attended by celebrities, fashion editors and other significant people from the industry.

Creating collections outside of the traditional concepts that are embedded in the character of a particular couture house is extremely risky for a creative director. It is already challenging to invent a collection and produce a show that will be taken by the public as a positive change and fresh flair for the brand. The documentary, Dior and I, which premiered in 2015, perfectly depicts the enormous pressure on Raf Simons, who had recently taken over in 2012 as creative director at Dior and was tasked with putting together his first-ever haute couture show in just eight weeks. In comparison, five or six months is the usual time to create a show (Dior and I). Couture shows are a combination of the hard work of a large number of people whose names are rarely exposed to the public. The work behind the scenes, as for most performances, is the core of every fashion show. A couple hundred people work every season to create a spectacle such as the world has never seen. Everyone works towards the same goal: a successful haute couturefashion show and making a mark in the history of fashion.

Functions of Performance in the Dior S/S 2015 Couture Show

The S/S 2015 Dior couture show fulfilled five out of the seven functions of performance suggested by Richard Schechner. The show entertained; made something beautiful; marked identity; taught, persuaded and convinced; and also fostered the community.

Tim Blanks wrote in Vogue that Raf Simons was inspired by the great British artist, David Bowie, while creating the collection (“Christian Dior Spring 2015 Couture

Fashion Show”). A leading figure in the music industry in the 1970s, Bowie is often considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. He was known for his unique music and astonishing stage image. The rhythmical, staccato music of Bowie set the mood for the show and forthe models walking down the runway. The choreography was extremely entertaining and eye-catching and perfectly fit the eclectic style of the new Dior collection. Scattering models down the runway allowed the audience to look at five models walking at the same time. Although no single word was spoken, the elements of lighting, music, stationary props, and movement expressed more than a thousand words could have done. The collection contained pieces art which were emphasized through the use of the artificial, yet effective, lighting, and displayed by the models to the sound of very energetic music. The artistic vision was achieved through building up the emotions, by increasing the beats in the music as each new piece of the collection appeared on the catwalk. Stationary props in the form of white scaffolding erected together with pink carpet covered the two-story space and stairways. These features created an amazing background for the models, which helped them build the

49 excitement and set up the mood for the runway presentations. The movement of the models was an expression of the polished look they meant to present and had been trained to project with extreme confidence. The modernization of the collection‘s garments as worn and presented by the models, with their eccentric shapes, bizarre use of fabric (for the Dior brand) and, most importantly, their peculiar construction, also added an extra entertaining factor to the show.

The finale of the 2015 Dior show was actually less emphasized than it often appears in most couture shows. The dress at the end of the show was quite similar to the rest of the presented garments, bringing attention to the unity and the harmony of the collection. The playful use of neon colors contrasted with the bold, white canvas and added to the entertainment factor of this show. Many patterns were abstract, reminiscent of modern art. Combining 1950s silhouette gowns with latex boots was quite shocking and controversial, but an alluring choice for the couture collection. Although there are many definitions of beauty based on each person’s taste, fashion enthusiasts agree that this Dior couture show was quite appealing and beautiful.

Similarly, like the Chanel couture show dicussed earlier, the Dior couture show can be considered in the context of teaching, persuading and convincing. This Dior couture show taught the audience about the enchanting and captivating trends for the upcoming season. The show persuaded the audience that Dior was one of the leading couture houses for the 2015 Spring/Summer season, and it also convinced the many customers that the collection was worth purchasing.

Raf Simons achieved another function of performance with this fashion show by fostering community. The audience was divided into two floors, which allowed more

50 people to be seated in the first row. In a fashion show, the first row is considered to be the best seats in the house, reserved only for the most prestigious guests. There were several renowned names from the show business industry who attended Simons‘ spectacle. The actress who was featured in the Miss Dior perfume campaign, Natalie Portman, supermodel Natalia Vodianova, and actress Elizabeth Olsen were some of the many celebrities who were seated in the first row during the show.

Finally, the creative director of Dior marked the identity of the brand. After the show, he expressed: “My first Couture shows were exercises in understanding the history.

The more you understand, the more you see what it can become” (Blanks “Christian Dior

Spring 2015 Couture Fashion Show”). Since Simons took over the creative director position at Dior, his work has exceeded the expectations of the audience every season.

Just like performance art, fashion and especially the couture shows do not exist without innovation. Innovation is an inevitable part of these two worlds. It’s what sets the bar high for the artists of the current and future generations. Coming into Dior, Raf Simons specialized in ready-to-wear and he was new to the world of couture. Simons stated in one of his interviews that he was eager to create connections for couture that wire it to the wider world. His innovative mindset could be viewed in this particular collection, from the unconventional materials used through the graphic silhouettes to the color scheme that was chosen (Blanks (“Christian Dior Spring 2015 Couture Fashion Show”). Despite the innovation and the futuristic approach in this collection, he also marked the identity of the brand by using elements inherited from the history of Dior garments. The collection ranged from very feminine pieces with a strongly emphasized silhouette

51 through the narrow waist and the full skirt and a slight touch of embellishment to romantic and strongly extravagant pieces (Dior and I, 7:00-7:16).

From this researcher’s point of view, the 2015 Dior couture show did not contain any performance elements that would heal or deal with the sacred or demonic, which are the two remaining elements of Richard Schechner’s seven functions of performance.

Characteristics of Performance Art as applied to the Dior S/S 2015 Couture Show

The Christian Dior Spring/Summer 2015 couture show also contained ten out of the eleven characteristics of performance art distinguished by Amanda Coogan, Sophie

Byrne and Lisa Moran (4-9).

Through the fearless walk of the models down the runway, this couture show depended on the presence and the absence of the body. The models entered the runway, directed by the fashion show director, in specific time intervals, giving the audience enough time to focus on each look in the collection. After their specified time on the runway, the models disappeared to the backstage area in order to change and present another look. From the confident presentation of the collection by the models, it was easy to deduce that the show was diligently planned and choreographed in advance.

Coogan’s performance art characteristic, “…a solo practice with the artist’s body- as-medium at its core; an embodied practice, but it may also incorporate additional people including performers and audience members,” does not apply to this particular fashion show (10). The main artist behind the entire couture show was the creative director of Dior, Raf Simons. His designs were presented by the carefully chosen models,

52 who can be considered additional performers, and he also appeared himself on the catwalk at the end of the show in order to thank the audience for their presence, but his body was not a medium of this show. Although, if one considers models in the role of artists/performers, each presentation was an original solo practice with the artist’s body- as-medium at its core.

The show also involved people undertaking actions within a particular timeframe in a particular space and location for an audience. The show of fifty-four garment pieces took place in the exquisite gardens of the Musée Rodin and lasted twelve minutes.

Everything about the show seemed futuristic and magical. This couture show was presented to a live audience of several hundred.

The 2015 Dior couture show involved the live presence of the artist and the real actions of their body, to create and present an ephemeral art experience to an audience.

The majority of actions performed through the body were based on models walking in the tempo dictated by David Bowie’s remarkable Moonage Daydream. The models walked dynamically, scattered throughout the venue moving from upstairs and finishing their walk underneath the scaffolding scenery. The fabric and materials in the collection garments helped the models achieve the futuristic effect desired by the designer.

Transparent plastic raincoats were reminiscent of a science-fiction world, but they were also cut in retro shapes, which made them seem extremely functional.

The show involved the body as a primary medium. The bodies of the models represented a strong and confident silhouette, beginning from the powerful walk to the dynamic presentation of the clothes. The choice of boots for this show however, made the

53 walk of the models seem heavy. All of this combined to make the body a focal point of this fashion show.

The show employed music, fashion, design, and architecture. The music served as the driving force behind the vitality of the show. The music dictated the tempo and set the mood of the show. A couture show itself is a fashion cultural event, so it clearly contains fashion as a medium, but also expands design techniques from the various fields. The architectural aspect of the show was embedded in the magnificent scenery of the venue, the unique design of the scaffolding, and in the unconventional structure of the garments and accessories. The white spiral scaffolding combined with the bubble gum pink carpet was enlarged by the reflection of the mirrors. The very structural design of the garment pieces in this couture collection strongly emphasized elements established by its founder,

Christian Dior. Although the 2015 collection did not include the “Bar” suit silhouette, that appeared in Dior’s 1947 premiere collection, or padded peplum jackets, a signature

Dior design, the collection did include jacquard knit and embroidered silk, which were heavily used in the past.

While performance art rarely employs a plot or narrative, the 2015 S/S Dior couture show sends a message, which could be read differently by each member of the audience. The show did not, however, follow any particular plot or clear narrative structure. This couture show drew inspiration from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s fashion, but there was also a visible innovative flair embedded in the collection pieces as well.

There was also additional inspiration taken from the world of visual art, namely pop art- inspired prints.

This Dior couture show was a one-off; it happened once during couture week and it will never be repeated in the future. It was also fairly short and rehearsed by the entire team including models in order to present the ideal vision of the designer/creative director. This fashion show was also performed based on a script.

This Dior couture show was a spectacle presented in a collaborative form, where the visual artist was not only the performer himself, but he was a creator of the performance. Raf Simons, as visual artist, was also the creative director of the show and, although he recieved help from Dior house members who made sure that every idea of the creative director was fulfilled, he was the one whose decisions mattered the most.

When a fashion show features designs from celebrity designers, it is customary for the designer to join the models on the stage during the finale (Everett and Swanson 164). Raf

Simons, as a celebrity designer, was expected to walk down the runway or appear on the runway at the end of the show in order to receive the well-deserved applause by the audience. Simons, however, greeted the audience from the catwalk at the end of the show.

In the case of this particular show, the location and the audience members were not random, but chosen conscientiously by the Dior team. The audience attending this show consisted of members from the fashion industry who received a special invitation in the traditional manner.

Givenchy Couture Fall/Winter 2018-2019

Givenchy is a French luxury fashion house founded in 1952 by designer Hubert de Givenchy at the age of 25 (Seeling 272). Hubert James Taffin de Givenchy was born in Beauvais, northern France in 1927 (Seeling 272). He began his career in fashion with an apprenticeship at a couture house at the age of 17 and studied drawing at the École

Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, the French National School of Fine Art (Vogue

“Givenchy”). He was trained by renowned individuals of the fashion world like Jacques

Fath, Robert Piquet, and, briefly, by Lucien Lelong in 1947, before he became the

Artistic Director for Italian designer, Elsa Schiaparelli. In 1952, Givenchy founded his house in Paris. His debut collection brought as much attention from the press as did

Dior’s New Look, which guaranteed his success in the fashion industry and started decades of triumph (Seeling 272). Meeting and dressing Audrey Hepburn in 1953 started a long-term collaboration and friendship between the actress and the couturier (Seeling

272). In 1969, Givenchy introduced his first men’s ready-to-wear line. He stepped down from the house in 1995 and was replaced by John Galliano. Other famous names that took the position of creative director over the years have been Alexander McQueen,

Julien MacDonald, and Riccardo Tisci. Hubert de Givenchy died in 2017 at the age of 91.

The current position of creative director at Givenchy house is held by Clare Waight

Keller. Revenue of Givenchy in 2016 was estimated by an analyst at RBC Capital

Markets to be €250 million, which is equivalent to about $288 million (Long “British

Designer Appointed Artistic Director at Givenchy”).

The third example of a French Haute Couture show selected for this study is the collection of Givenchy for Fall/Winter 2018-2019. The house of Givenchy is a member of Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture et du Pret-a-Porter. Its current artistic director, Clare Waight Keller, is the first woman to hold that position. Tiziana Cardini writes in Italian Vogue: “For her second couture outing at the French Maison, she pays tribute to the legendary Hubert de Givenchy, who passed away only a few months ago, and does so by taking a journey into the archives and the legacy of the house.” Waight

Keller was the first artistic director who had a chance to honor the legacy of Givenchy after his death (Phelps “Fall 2018 Couture Givenchy”).

Entitled “Caraman,” the collection's name references the 19th Century townhouse originally built for the Duke of Caraman where Hubert de Givenchy opened his couture ateliers in 1959 and where they remain today (Fashionista “See Every Look From The

Givenchy 2018 Couture Collection”). The show was held in the garden of Paris’s

Archives Nationales (Museum of National Archives), which stores one of the largest and most important archival collections in the world, a testimony to the very ancient nature of the French state, which has been in existence for more than twelve centuries. Hubert de

Givenchy was known for dressing Audrey Hepburn, for her role in Breakfast at Tiffany’s and other films, but also in her personal life. His designs became timeless, as did his name thanks to the movies and his relationship with the actress. The designs of the 2018-

2019 couture tribute collection were deeply inspired by Givenchy’s designs Breakfast at

Tiffany’s, some of them almost being almost identical (Phelps “Fall 2018 Couture

Givenchy”). According to Phelps’s fashion show review, in the finale, rising model Fran

Summers, walked down the runway to the song, “Moon River,” Hepburn’s signature

57 song from the movie, altough that song was not played in the video availiable on You

Tube. It made this moment extraordinarily special and will remain as a touching tribute to

Hubert de Givenchy and his great talent. The garment presented by Summers was a hooded, black, long, velvet gown. However, one of the most moving parts of the show followed the finale. All the Givenchy atelier members who worked on this collection were presented on the runway at the end of the show. There is a large number of atelier members, highly skilled employees who work towards the success of every collection.

The names of the atelier members are usually not revealed to the public, which made this presentation of the entire team to the public such an exceptional tribute, allowing the audience to thank them for months or, in some cases, years of their hard work.

Functions of Performance in the Givenchy F/W 2018-2019 Couture Show

This couture show fulfilled six out of the seven of the functions of performance suggested by Richard Schechner: itentertained; made something that was beautiful; marked identity; taught persuaded and convinced; fostered community, and healed. The entertaining components of this show were: the collection, the theme, the location, the models and the music. All of these components were exquisite and visually appealing. The show consisted of forty-three extraordinary looks that were the epitome of the modern Western definition of beauty. The collection ranged from the long, metallic, distinctively feminine, gowns, through the graphic and assymetrically draped dresses, to the extravagantly jewelled, gem-coloured, sequined, male garments with feathers. Waight

Keller sent a strong message through her designs in memory of master Hubert de

Givenchy. Defined lines, broad shoulders, bold combinations of silky fabrics with a feather and a pop of color were only some of the breathtaking combinations in this collection. Keller speaks about the house founder, saying: “He believed in elegance. He believed in chic” (Foley “Givenchy Couture 2018”). Her collection contained long gowns that were the pure definition of elegance and sophistication, but also underlined the inner strength and power of women. There is a visible mixing of femininity and masculinity in

Keller’s garments, a signature of the house of Givenchy. Beginning with the use of elegant, but very unusual fabrics and the choice of models, all the way to the style and form of the presentation itself, Keller plays with gender perceptions. Metallic elements, including a piece of a harness, are reminiscent of pieces of armor, which places models in the role of modern female warriors. Similarly, like in performance art, the symbolism hidden behind the collection is one of the most entertaining factors of this couture show.

The location for this particular couture show was a fascinating choice. The garden of the Museum of National Archives, located in a place with such a defined history, makes an an unexpected venue for the fashion show. The enchanting, rectangular shape of the runway, with the main runway path down the middle of the garden, surrounded by precisely trimmed grass and trees was extremely captivating. The structure of the runway and its reflective surface highlighted successfully every garment of the collection.

Another extremely entertaining factor of the show was the distinctive music. Nostalgic, slow, melancholic piano melody playing in the background for the entire sixteen minutes of the show established a blissful aura. A delightful choice of models, including different nationalities, races, and genders allowed diverse audience members to identify with the collection and feel comfortable. The artist worked to provide a feeling of comfort, which

59 is extremely important for the accuracy in perception of the message the artist is trying to send.

Waight Keller marked a strong identity of the Givenchy brand that has existed for over half a century, adding her own original style to its long history. Through the use of

Audrey Hepburn’s image and music associated with her, Keller managed to bring back the memory of Givenchy’s longtime muse and create a deeply nostalgic and emotional moment in the show. Like in performance art, this act performed in front of a live audience intended to highlight the quintessence of the artist’s astonishing craft, unusual skills, and the strongly embedded values of the couture house.

Just like in case of both the Chanel and Dior shows, Givenchy’s couture show taught the audience about upcoming asymmetrical and graphic trends of the season, persuaded them to identify the brand as a leader in the industry, and also convinced the clients to purchase items from the newest collection.

The Givenchy couture show fostered community in the fashion industry, fulfilling the fifth function of performance. By paying tribute to one of the icons of the industry and, at the same time, recognizing the craftspeople behind the scenes, the show reasserted the principles, values, ethics, and aesthetics of the one of the great couture houses, while placing it firmly in the 21stcentury.

The last function of performance this Givenchy show fulfilled was the healing process. After such a loss for the fashion industry after Hubert de Givenchy’s death, the tribute created at this show served as a healing force that helped to remember the genius of his designs as well as his deeply embedded style in the brand of Givenchy. Bringing memories back can be an impactful force, which in the case of this couture show played

60 an enormous role and brought deeper significance. The use of cloaks was reminiscent of traditional ritual or processional garments in the memorial gardens and was a deep metaphor. The models’ focused strongly on their walk and the fact that they didn’t acknowledge the audience made it look like they were there on a mission. Their entry onto the runway, as well as their departure from the runway, was the central doorway of a large building. The models were exiting to somewhere else, which was unknown to the audience, but it seemed to be a building of the French archives, which methaphorically becomes a proper place for the garments to go, since after the show the pieces will not be seen by majority, only the weathiest clients in the world. The show itself also becomes history; a historical record that ought to be kept in the archives. The river walkway, reminiscent of the “Moon River” imagery, could be said to symbolize the passage of time and the movement of the models onto the river may be read as a symbol of life itself.

Through the soothing music, use of particular colors that have healing powers, and the evocation of memories closely associated with the legend, Hubert de Givenchy, and his designs, this particular show spoke to the body, mind, and soul. Clinical evidence suggests that color therapy can alter emotions and even blood pressure, and it has been used for healing purposes from ancient times. In Chinese medicine, there are five primary recognized colors that are a healing force for human organs, which have a direct influence on human emotions (Yang “The Healing Power of Performing Arts”). The

2018-2019 Givenchy show can be analyzed as a performance designed to directly effect emotions and usher participants towards a healing process.

From this researcher’s point of view, the 2018 Givenchy couture show did not contain the performance elements that deal with the sacred or demonic, which is the only remaining element of Richard Schechner’s seven functions of performance.

Characteristics of Performance Art as applied to the Givenchy F/W 2018-2019 Couture

Show

The Givenchy Fall/Winter 2018-2019 couture show contained ten out of the eleven of Amanda Coogans’s, Sophie Byrne’s and Lisa Moran’s characteristics of performance art. This is the same ratio as the other two fashion shows analyzed in this study (4-9).

Through the magnificent walk of the female and male models down the runway, this couture show depended on the presence and the absence of the body. The models entered the runway directed by the fashion show director in specific time intervals giving the audience enough time to focus on every look of the collection. The walk on the runway was rather lenghty which put the models in continuous motion without any stops along the way. After their specified time on the runway, they disappeared to the backstage area.

The show was not a solo practice with the artist’s body-as-medium at its core, although it incorporated additional people including models as performers as well as the audience members. The main artist behind the entire couture show collection was the creative director of Givenchy, Waight Keller. Her chic and assymetrical designs were presented by the additional performers/models and she also appeared herself on the

62 catwalk along with the team of the atelier members at the end of the show in order to thank the audience for their attendance. Similarly, like in the two previous examples of

Chanel’s and Dior’s show, if one considers the models in the role of performers, each presentation of a garment was a solo practice with the artist’s body-as-medium and its core, an embodied practice.

The Givenchy show also involved people undertaking actions within a particular timeframe in a particular space and location for an audience. The show was held at the garden of the Museum of National Archives in Paris and presented forty-three glamorous garments of the collection. The show lasted a little over sixteen minutes.

This couture show involved the live presence of the artists and the real actions of their bodies to create and present an ephemeral art experience to an audience. The majority of actions performed through the body were based on walking in a distinct tempo-rhythm, dictated by the slow, peaceful and harmonious music. The models’ smooth and continuous movement was slightly slower than in the Chanel or Dior shows and was appropriately adjusted to the melancholic piano melody played in the background. The models’ bodies not only showed off the newest pieces of the collection, but also glorified the human body through their movement. The fascinating work of the fabrics interacting with the body emphasized the beauty and simplicity in the nature of walk.

The Givenchy show undeniably involved the body as a primary medium. From the simple act of walking to serving as a mannequin and medium to present the unconventional garments, bodies were a major focus of this show.

The show employed music, fashion, film, design, and architecture. A slow harmonious tune and soothing melody served as a focal point for the vitality of the show, it dictated the tempo and set the nostalgic mood of the show. There were several inspirations taken straight out of the movie costumes designed by Hubert de Givenchy himself for Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. The architectural aspect of the show was embedded in the geometrical design of the runway and also in the detailed structure of the garments and accessories. The colors that dominated this Givenchy couture show were black, white, and silver, with a slight pop of color.

While performance art rarely employs a plot or narrative, the 2018 Givenchy F/W couture show sends a message, which could be read differently by each member of the audience. The show did not, however, follow any particular plot or clear narrative structure.

This couture show was a one-off, happening only once during couture week and it will never be repeated in the future. It was also relatively short and rehearsed by the entire team including models in order to present the ideal vision of the creative director.

The show was definitely scripted and rehearsed.

This Givenchy couture show was a spectacle presented in a collaborative form, where the visual artist, Waight Keller, was not only a performer herself, but she was also the creator of the performance and director of the show, with great help from the members of the Givenchy house. Couture fashion shows can be seen as a group ritual during which there is a transformation of the garments into the collection, the couturier into a genius designer, and models into performing artists on the stage (Raciniewska

101).

The location, the garden of Paris’s Archives Nationales (Museum of National

Archives), and the renowned audience members were not randomly chosen for this show.

The audience attending this show consisted of members of the fashion industry who received a special invitation from the house of Givenchy.

CHAPTER V

CONCLUSION

Modern haute couture shows connect the art of the seamstress with the innovative design and body movement of performers recognized as living sculptures. Although some might argue that the main purpose of the modern haute couture shows, to serve as a marketing tool to sell merchandise to clients, remains the same today, this research reveals that there were significant changes within the structure of haute couture shows over the years that shifted the purpose into a different direction. The main purpose of haute couture shows today is, not only to sell the haute couture garments, but moreso to serve as an advertising tool to promote the superiority and excellence of the couture houses and their products. As an advertising event, which promotes the new collection of the brand and truly increases the brand prestige in a very indirect way, couture fashion shows have a lot in common with performance art. Just like performance art, all three analyzed fashion shows sent indirect messages through the use of the performer’s body, in order to promote its own name and to create a very artistic identity for the brand beyond logos, signature pieces, or looks.

Even though all three analyzed couture shows were very different from each other, based on this researcher’s personal observations and analysis of the video documents of the shows, in almost every case, their functions clearly overlapped with the

66 functions of performance. The seven functions of performance distinguished by Richard

Schechner in Performance Studies were applied to each couture show in this study. All three couture shows in this case study fulfilled five of Schechner’s functions: entertaining the audience; making something beautiful; marking identity; teaching, persuading and convincing; and fostering community. From this researcher’s point of view, the

Givenchy haute couture show exhibited an extra function, which was to heal the audience. None of the analyzed fashion shows dealt with the sacred and/or demonic.

All three analyzed shows were presented as a purely entertaining form of the designers’ artistic expression. The models’ bodies served as tools that, through their movement, not only inserted life into the designer’s garment, but also became initiators of the transformation of a hand-made garment into a three-dimentional piece of art presented on the runway to an audience. The audience members invited to these couture shows became involved in the artistic act and held a unique place as witnesses, the few selected ones in the world to view personally the newest pieces of the collection up close during their premier showing. What made all three of these haute couture shows so distinctive and different form othee fashion shows, like ready-to-wear, was the craft and the haute couture hand-stitched masterpieces of the various highly skilled artists that work for the couture house. The presented couture garments, which in some cases took several hundred hours of work to accomplish, not only have an extremely high price, but also high artistic value. These garments were never massed-produced and each piece was one of a kind. Haute couture garments are highly desired, collected, and carefully preserved by a handful of women around the world. Haute couture fashion is rarely affordable for the middle-class customer.

All three analyzed shows displayed a tendency for similar looking models for the show; however, there were also some signs of pushing the standards of the traditional haute couture model choices. Givenchy’s creative director, Waight Keller, included both female and male models in the show, which was very unusual for haute couture standards, because the majority of the haute couture shows are designed for women only.

Moreover, this same show presented an artistic vision that blurred the boundaries between the typical meaning of feminine and masculine. The garments featured current cultural trends, acceptance of difference and free expression without judgement. The male models dressed in very feminine and unconventional designs for the men’s wardrobe pieces, which made the show extraordinarily memorable and original.

Symbolic meanings and metaphors used in this Givenchy show were also reminiscent of performance art.

While in performance art the artist’s body is the medium and core of the artistic act, this research study demonstrates that modern haute couture shows also have an extremely strong connection to artistic expression through the body. The main difference between performance art and haute couture fashion shows is that the artistic vision of the artist/designer is not expressed though his/her own body, but through the “borrowed” bodies of the models, diligently chosen for each show by the designer him/herself. The majority of models in all three couture shows featured in this study had a distinctive size and height, typical of the couture model. The models in each show did not reveal their personality or emotions in order to avoid taking attention away from the presented couture pieces. Models might serve as muses for the creator and also stimulate the artist’s vision for the garment or the show itself. Designers often become inspired during the

68 couture show fittings, when they see the model first wearing the garment. The symbiotic relationship that occurs between the models’ bodies and the garments they will present on the runway is extremely important in order to succeed in such a competitive industry.

From this researcher’s point of view, all three designers of the analyzed couture shows produced extremely successful shows and definitely maintained the standards and the expectations of the high fashion industry. The goals of a couture fashion show were achieved in these three examples because they each made a statement and created timeless images and objects. Additionally, each of these three couture shows were an expression of the artistic vision of the creator and included the cultural contexts, which allowed them to be examined as performance art.

All three couture shows also contained ten out of the eleven characteristics of performance art as distinguished by Amanda Coogan, Sophie Byrne and Lisa Moran.

Based on the findings of this researcher, modern haute couture shows definitely have a strong connection to the performance art world and should be considered a form of performance art.

The definition of performance art suggested by Byrne and Moran, that performance art is a form of arts practice that involves a person or persons undertaking an action or actions within a particular timeframe in a particular space or location for an audience, helps to substantiate this researcher’s point of view that modern haute couture shows can be considered a form of performance art (4). Additionally, all three analyzed shows identified cultural trends and articulated it through body movement and a signature walk, which varied widely for each couture show. The spirit or mood of an era

69 could be easily identified throughout the shows, which is also a factor associated with performance art.

Lately, the boundaries between art and fashion have blurred, which emphasizes the significance of this study for the world of art. Haute couture shows today are much more than a simple spectacle, although all three analyzed modern couture shows were examples of rather conventional fashion show structure. Each show started with the arrival of the audience; followed by the opening of the show, accompanied by the music and lights in order to engage and focus the attention of the audience towards the runway; the parade of models then presented the newest garments of the collection; and the finale act with the presentation of the designer himself/herself in order to experience the reaction of the audience in the form of applause and summarize the show. The magic of these shows relied on their deeper contexts, the implications of the diverse inspirations by the designers, as well as the glorification of the human body. From this researcher’s point of view, this study provides the evidence needed in order to qualify modern haute couture fashion shows as a branch of performance art and promote these fashion shows to the artistic practice and the public as a vital performing art form in the 21st century.

Recommendations for Further Research

Based on this study, which suggests that haute couture fashion shows are a form of performance art, many avenues of research open that should be explored in further detail. Analysis of both contemporary fashion shows and ready-to-wear fashion shows through the lens of performance and performance art and comparing them to haute couture fashion shows would uncover some of the differences in their structure and

70 functions. Another suggestion is to analyze haute couture fashion shows from different decades and compare them to each other in order to discover the changes and developments they have undergone over the years. Additionally, the couture shows could be analyzed in relation to other aspects of performance and performance art, different from functions and characteristics, such as economic and cultural impact. Another suggestion would be to survey current designers/show producers to determine if they move in the same artistic circles with any performance artists or have attend any theatre performances that inspired them. Similar research could be conducted concerning historical designers. This type of research might provide a correlation between the aesthetic, cultural, and social influcences on the designers and their artistic expression.

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APPENDICES

APPENDIX A

TABLE 1

Functions of Performance (based on Schechner 38).

Chanel Dior Givenchy

Entertains

Makes something that is beautiful

Marks or changes identity

Makes or fosters community

Heals

Teaches, Persuades, or Convinces

Deals with the sacred and/or demonic

APPENDIX B

TABLE 2

Characteristics of Performance Art (based on Coogan 9; Byrne and Moran 4-8)

Chanel Dior Givenchy It depends on the presence and the absence of the body It is a solo practice with the artist’s body- as-medium at its core; an embodied practice, but it may also incorporate additional people including performers and audience members It involves a person or persons undertaking an action or actions within a particular timeframe in a particular space or location for an audience.

It involves the live presence of the artist and the real actions of his/her body, to create and present an ephemeral art experience to an audience.

It involves the body as a primary medium It can employ any material or medium across and discipline, including music, dance, poetry, literature, film, fashion, design, and architecture It rarely employs a plot or narrative It can be spontaneous, one-off, durational, improvised or rehearsed and performed with or without scripts It can be a series of small-scale intimate gestures to public rallies, spectacles or parades presented in the solo or collaborative form The visual artist is the performer, creator, and director of the performance It can be situated anywhere: in art museums, galleries and alternative art spaces or in impromptu sites, such as cafés, bars or the street, where the site and often unknowing audience become an integral part of the work’s meaning