Schiaparelli

Maison Schiaparelli was founded by Italian fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli in 1927 and instilled a creative spirit in twentieth-century fashion with her revolutionary vision on sportswear.. Haute Couture.. fine art and fragrance. Her much-discussed collaborations with iconic artists like Dalí, Cocteau, Man Ray, Giacometti and Marcel Vertès became legendary. 

The maison diversified into ready-to-wear after being bought in 2007 by Diego Della Valle and in no time became critically acclaimed for its eccentric design.. the use of Surrealism in its collections.. and some unconventional themes. Located at 21 Place Vendôme in Paris.. the current creative director of Maison Schiaparelli is Daniel Roseberry. Under his reins.. the maison cultivates the incredible heritage of offering today's woman bold albeit timeless style.

The daughter of a Neapolitan aristocrat and Italian scholar of the Middle-East.. Elsa Schiaparelli studied philosophy at the University of Rome and wrote poems. When she turned twenty-two and her parents insisted on marriage she ran away to London and took a job as a nanny. 

During her stay in London, she spent a lot of time in museums and attending lectures. In 1914 she attended a lecture given by Count Wilhelm de Wendt de Kerlor.. fell in love and married him nd they moved to his home in Nice. The young couple also lived in Paris, Cannes, Monte Carlo and New York. Onboard a ship she became friends with Gabrielle Picabia- wife of Dadaist painter Francis Picabia- and became interested in the Dada and Surrealist movements.

In 1922, Schiaparelli left New York and moved back to Paris where she assisted Man Ray with his Dada magazine Société Anonyme. Here she befriended famous couturier Paul Poiret who was renowned for favouring styles that allowed freedom of movement for the modern woman. Schiaparelli had no training in the technical skills of pattern making and clothing construction and draped fabric directly on the body- sometimes using herself as the model. The result was a line of uniquely wearable pieces. 

Elsa Schiaparelli launched a collection of knitwear in 1927 where she created her first trompe l’œil motif on a hand-knit sweater. The black and white pullover - with its bow, pierced heart, skeleton, or a sailor tattoo- immediately recieved popularity, serving as the catalyst to the creation of the House. Although her first designs appeared in Vogue the business really took off with the "pour le Sport collection" which ;after expanded to include bathing suits and ski-wear and linen dresses. Schiaparelli added evening wear to her collections in 1931 using the luxury silks of Robert Perrier and the business went from strength to strength in 1935.. culminating in a move from Rue de la Paix to the renowned salon of Louise Chéruit at 21 Place Vendôme, which was rechristened the Schiap Shop. 

1931 was truly a milestone year. Elsa Schiaparelli's collaboration with Russian-French writer Elsa Triolet led to the creation of the iconic Aspirin Necklace composed of porcelain beads reminiscent of the pain-relieving tablets!! This marks the first long line of Elsa's collaborations as she continued to work with the greatest artists including including Jean Cocteau, Salvador Dalí, Man Ray, Meret Oppenheim, and more.

Schiaparelli's 98-room salon and work studios occupied the seventeenth century Hôtel de Fontpertuis. Schiaparelli and her surrealist designs became a favourite of the European intelligentsia. She was one of the first designers to develop the wrap dress, taking inspiration from aprons to produce a design that would accommodate and flatter all female body types. In 1930, she created the first evening dress with a matching jacket. She also created a precursor to the sports short, with her divided skirt. Other innovations included a swimsuit design which incorporated an interior bra with an alluring low-cut back by using hidden straps that crossed in the back and closed around the waist. During Prohibition in the United States.. Schiaparelli's popular "speakeasy dress" provided a hidden pocket for a flask of alcohol. She also pioneered the use of visible zippers and gained notoriety for her unusual buttons. 

In 1934 Elsa appeared on the cover of Time- the first woman fashion designer to ever achieve this honor.  The article refers to her as one of the arbiters of ultra-modern Haute Couture. Schiaparelli's fanciful imaginative powers coupled with involvement in the Dada and Surrealist art movements directed her into new creative territory. Her partnership with Salvador Dali proved particularly fruitful and is best exemplified by the 1937 Lobster dress: a simple white silk evening dress with a crimson waistband featuring a large lobster painted by Dalí onto the skirt. His design for Schiaparelli was interpreted into a fabric print by leading silk designer Sache.

After World War II Elsa Schiaparelli did not manage to find success with her collections. The couture house was shut down on 13 December 1954. In 1957 she created a company mainly for her perfume licences. Per Vogue: "A Surrealist at heart, Schiaparelli approached fragrance with the same cheeky and original eye that she used to design a suede smoking glove with a striking board on its wrist or, say, a pair of sunglasses sporting their own feathery three-dimensional fringe. But Schiaparelli Parfums were more innovative than absurdist."

Elsa Schiaparelli passed away in her sleep in 1973 and the maison diversified into ready-to-wear after being bought in 2007 by Diego Della Valle. In no time it became critically acclaimed for its eccentric design.. the use of Surrealism in its collections.. and some unconventional themes. Located at 21 Place Vendôme in Paris.. the current creative director of Maison Schiaparelli is Daniel Roseberry. "I had no interest in echoing the archives" Roseberry told Vogue Arabia. "In the past few years, the brand has been heavily inspired by its heritage, so, in order to change the conversation, it was important that there were no references. It was more about capturing the spirit and the bravery of Schiaparelli."

The House has been nominated for a return to the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture list of members. Maison Schiaparelli used a business strategy to sell its first collection exclusively at a by-appointment boutique in Paris and the company is now moving towards luxury ready-to-wear under the baton of creative director Daniel Roseberry. Shiaparelli's most recent collection was praised by Vogue: "So this was the moment when Roseberry went into territory of his own, carving and draping sculptural, asymmetrical silhouettes out of black and white materials while experimenting with craftspeople to blur the boundaries between clothing, embroidery, jewelry and collages of textiles…"

The mission of Italian maison Schiaparelli  is to pay tribute to iconic fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli's surrealist designs with a modern spin.. to reinvent her classic aesthetic for modern day buyers and make the iconic fashion brand relevant for the twenty-first century.

The Schiaparelli vision embodies a romantic and experimental design aesthetic, boldly pushing the limits of haute couture by infusing it with fantastical elements and creating a vibe of heightened extravagance, creativity and an untamed interpretation of beauty.

Schiaparelli retails haute couture, ready to wear and fine jewellery.