Azzedine Alaïa: The Couturier

Elegant exhibition at the Design Museum looking at the career of fashion designer, Azzedine Alaïa who died in 2017.

 
The clothes were beautifully shown against screens designed by his friends and colleagues. The models were impossibly tall and thin which worried me a little but I later learnt that the mannequins were designed by Alaïa himself, based on the proportions of Naomi Campbell. They are elongated to resemble the work of Alberto Giacometti and the exaggerated proportions of fashion illustrations.


The clothes were stunning although I’m not sure I will be wearing any of them soon! I loved three dresses in different jewel coloured lace with a skin colour underbody. The far end of the show was devoted to romantic full skirted evening dresses which were displayed on podiums so you could walk round each one and study the detail. There was also a display of black dresses with long, simple, slim silhouettes and however the simplicity was deceptive.

My favourite piece was a beige leather halter neck mini dress. It looked soft and structured at the same time.


 
Closes on 7 October 2018
 
Review
Guardian





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