Survival of the Old Guard

The key word seems to be revival at the moment with labels from a by-gone era, gaining importance again and new-found love from press and the younger generations.  Biba is one example.  Schiaparelli has plans to do the same.   All it takes is a decent head designer and plenty of hype (could even do it minus the decent head designer….) and you too can make a powerful re-entrance onto the fashion scene again.  The latest addition to these label re-issues is Madeleine Vionnet, a label started in the 1920s which basically had the same principles of the view towards women as Coco Chanel (the only label that has well and truly stood the test of time….!).   Vogue has confirmed that Sophia Kokosalaki will be finalising the design deal for Vionnet, a house that had long gone since the 80;s and is now relegated to pungent perfume sticks on a Saturday in the morning.

Not everyone will know that Vionnet, despite not garnering as much fame early on as say Chanel definitely played her part in liberating women’s dress.  She invented the bias cut in 1922 which in itself is a singularly spectacular achievement  She avoided corsets, padding, stiffening and allowed the female body to breathe and shape normally.  Her love of the Greek aesthetic was reflected in her design, with lots of draping, flowing, slinky and excess fabrics.  Then there was the dropped waists which was a feature on 1920’s dress which she used a lot.  Looking at these past images, you can see that the main components of most of the outfits are definitely integral to modern dressmaking today.  I see so many contemporary designers time and time again using certain features of Vionnet’s work and if these pieces were taken out of their dated context, they would definitely work today. 

Sophia Kokosalaki is definitely a good fit, seeing as she IS Greek and definitely knows a thing or two about the Classical influences that were used so heavily by Vionnet.  If this ever does make it to fashion week, I would be most anxious to see whether Kokosalaki produces something that has the essence of Vionnet (what I’m hoping for), or completely take the house in a different direction (what I will rant about if she does).