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72 indulge selvedge.org Royal Dolls FIT FOR THE LITTLE PRINCESSES Blonde haired France, brunette Marianneand their magnificent 360-piece trousseau were given to the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret Rose in 1938 to mark the State Visit to France by King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. This gift from ‘the children of France’ was an expression of the entente cordiale between Great Britain and France on the eve of the Second World War and a valuable showcase for Parisian haute couture. The doll’s bisque heads were modelled by Jumeau, the most famous French doll-makers. Their dresses were designed by Worth, Lanvin and Rochas among others. No detail was over looked. An image of the dolls ‘driving’ along the Champs Elyséées in their miniature Citroen sports cars was reproduced around the world. Le Journal, a Paris newspaper, published fre quent editions of the Courrier des Poupéées, (doll news) which fed an enthralled audience details about this ambitious project. ••• France and Marianne are on permanent display at Windsor Castle, www.royal.gov.ukDolls for the Princesses: The Story of France and Marianne, Faith Eaton, with a foreword by Suzy Menkes is published by the Royal Collection Royal C olle ction © 2008, H er Majesty Queen Eliz abethII They stand 27 inches high. Bird cage body; white, mask-like face, hair coiled and coiffed out of silver thread into the chic-est of arrangements or else curled in blonde or chestnut and tucked under headpieces and hats. And the clothes! A black wool suit by Balenciaga, with a wide black knotted sash around the hips. Or Maggy Rouff’s white, horizontally pleated organdy dress with puffed sleeves and Peter Pan collar, worn with white leather peep toe shoes. This is the world of La Theatre de la Mode. 228 mannequins constructed at the end of the Second World War and dressed by Parisian couturiers. Perhaps the idea, in a country that could scarcely feed itself, let alone get hold of luxury fabrics, should have been laughed off as absurd. But as the Germans retreated from Paris in 1944, and a bitter winter set in, Robert Ricci, head of La Chambre Syndicale de la Haut Couture Parisienne, was asked by the new government to think of something that would both show off the vigour and artistry Mary Hill M useum

Theatre de la mode COUTURE DOLLS THAT RESTORED FRANCE’S POST WAR CONFIDENCE of the surviving fashion industry and support the country’s reconstruction. After all, if France was to get back on her feet, she would have to find the money to buy herself some shoes. As the French minister for reconstruc tion, Raoul Dautry explained, “France has little, alas, to export, but she has her appreciation of beautiful things and the skill of her couture houses.” And so, the idea was mooted to have an exhibition of dolls dressed by couture houses in sets designed by French artists. The task of designing the figure was given to a young illustrator called Eliane Bonabel. “We immediately thought that these dolls should not be too solid as this would be reminiscent of a toy,” she remarked. Jean Saint-Martin from the mannequin company, Siegel, constructed the figure and the face was the creation of the refugee Catalan sculptor, Rebull. As the winter wore on and Paris continued to be subject to blackouts and food shortages, the clothes, sewn by the ‘petits mains’ of the haute couture ate liers and perfect miniatures of original designs, were constructed. It was not just a case of making small er versions of the human-sized patterns: often the scale of the fabric was wrong for the mannequin. The stripes of Carven’s ‘Sucre d’Or’ fabric were too wide and the fabric had to be cut into thinner stripes and then sewn back together. But it was not only the ‘petits mains’ who stitched and sewed with such artistry and dedication in barely heated workrooms. The specialist manufacturers supplied the ateliers with hand worked lace, silk flowers, embroidery, but tons and hats. As the government had realised, haute couture supported a whole army of skilled arti sans as well as textile manufacturers. As the project gained momentum, it seems a friendly rivalry broke out: originally, the figures were only to be dressed, no hats or shoes would be need ed. But if these figures were to represent a chic Parisienne, and properly advertise not just France’s flair but her ability to rebuild her shattered industries; gloves, shoes, hats were essential. And so, the milliner Janette Colombier created a pink satin tur ban for Pierre Balmain’s figure and there were black suede sling back platforms by Leandre for Nina Ricci’s elegantly dressed mannequin. Meanwhile, artists were busy creating back drops. Jean Cocteau’s, Ma Femme est une Sorcièère was an ‘homage’ to Renéé Clair. The scene of destruction with its tattered black and white images of buildings was a shocking contrast to the dolls in their satin and tulle gowns. Christian Berard, darling of the French decorative arts, composed a impres sionistic theatre set whilst the young Andréé Baurepaire created an enchanted grotto. The exhibition opened on 27 March, 1945 and all of Paris gasped in delight. After taking a million francs for the national reconstruction fund, l’Entraide Franççaise, the dolls toured to London, Stockholm, Vienna and the USA. Then, despite the theatre’s amazing success, the figures were forgotten, pre sumed lost or destroyed. Until fashion historian, Stanley Garfinkel discovered that some of the figures had found their way to the Maryhill Museum of Art in Washington. Along with Susan Train, Condéé Nast’s Paris Bureau Chief, the idea was conceived to bring the mannequins back to France to be restored. In 1990 the figures once again delighted Paris when exhibited at the Muséée de la Mode. The late David Seidner was commissioned to take new photographs and these form the bulk of the book Theatre de la Mode Fashion Dolls: The Survival of the Haute Couture. The sets had been lost and so he photographed them as theatrical divas, lighting them dramatically. He wrote, “Some of them were charming and cooperative, other capricious. Some were sophisticated, others provincial. Some were so convincing that it was frightening to watch them come to life under the lights, and some were just impossible.” But after weeks of photography, he “fell under their spell and found it difficult to leave the studio each night.” It is astonishing that after over 60 years, these figures still have the ability to charm and as such are a testimony to the creativity and skill of France’s haute couture.•••Kate Constable Theatre de la Mode Fashion Dolls: The Survival of Haute Couture (Palmer/Pletsch) £25.99

Page Text

72

indulge

selvedge.org

Royal Dolls FIT FOR THE LITTLE PRINCESSES

Blonde haired France, brunette Marianneand

their magnificent 360-piece trousseau were given

to the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret Rose in

1938 to mark the State Visit to France by King

George VI and Queen Elizabeth.

This gift from ‘the children of France’ was

an expression of the entente cordiale between

Great Britain and France on the eve of the

Second World War and a valuable showcase for

Parisian haute couture.

The doll’s bisque heads were modelled by

Jumeau, the most famous French doll-makers.

Their dresses were designed by Worth, Lanvin

and Rochas among others. No detail was over

looked. An image of the dolls ‘driving’ along the

Champs Elyséées in their miniature Citroen sports

cars was reproduced around the world.

Le Journal, a Paris newspaper, published fre

quent editions of the Courrier des Poupéées, (doll

news) which fed an enthralled audience details

about this ambitious project. •••

France and Marianne are on permanent display

at Windsor Castle, www.royal.gov.ukDolls for

the Princesses: The Story of France and

Marianne, Faith Eaton, with a foreword by Suzy

Menkes is published by the Royal Collection

Royal C olle ction © 2008, H er Majesty Queen Eliz abethII

They stand 27 inches

high. Bird cage body;

white, mask-like face,

hair coiled and coiffed out

of silver thread into the

chic-est of arrangements or

else curled in blonde or

chestnut and tucked under

headpieces and hats. And

the clothes! A black wool

suit by Balenciaga, with a

wide black knotted sash

around the hips. Or Maggy

Rouff’s white, horizontally

pleated organdy dress with

puffed sleeves and Peter Pan

collar, worn with white leather

peep toe shoes.

This is the world of La

Theatre de la Mode. 228

mannequins constructed

at the end of the Second

World War and dressed by

Parisian couturiers. Perhaps the idea, in a

country that could scarcely feed itself, let

alone get hold of luxury fabrics, should

have been laughed off as absurd. But as

the Germans retreated from Paris in 1944,

and a bitter winter set in, Robert Ricci,

head of La Chambre Syndicale de la Haut

Couture Parisienne, was asked by the new

government to think of something that

would both show off the vigour and artistry

Mary Hill M useum

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