The exhibition “Balenciaga. The elegance of the hat” delves into the uniqueness of the designer's work: its almost sculptural forms, exquisite materials, the search for innovative techniques, as well as the artisan character of its production of hats.
Between17 June and 3 de octubre de 2021, the exhibition is presented“Balenciaga. The elegance of the hat”, a sample fruit of years of joint research of the collections of hats of theCristóbal Balenciaga Museum andMuseu del Disseny de Barcelona, institutions that co-produce the sample. Curated byIgor Uria, curator of the Cristóbal Balenciaga Museum and bySílvia Ventosa, curator of fabrics and clothing of the Design Museum of Barcelona.
“Balenciaga. The elegance of the hat” is thefirst international exhibition focused on Cristóbal Balenciaga's hats and headdressesthat were created in the headgear departments of the House of Haute Couture in Paris and Madrid, since the end of the years 30 until the closing of the Balenciaga houses in 1968.
In the exhibition are showneighty seven hats, seventy-eight of which are presented individually, nine with a set and a dress with stole. Forty-three are from the collection of the Museu del Disseny and the other forty-four from the collection of the Cristóbal Balenciaga Museum.
Cristóbal Balenciaga established astyle and shape very characteristic in their designs for hats, with purified volumes, stylized that are created by very simple shapes, almost abstract, being in themselves, authentic sculptures.
The sample «Balenciaga. The elegance of the hat» The elegance of the hatuniqueness of the designer's work highlighting innovative and imaginative ways, the selection of exquisite materials, the search for techniques, and the artisan character of its hat production. The sum of all these factors makes them unique, unique and magnetic.
Good connoisseur of historical and popular headdresses, updated them and put them in moda, always experimenting to create new models, Likewise, studied the hats of multiple cultures that he reinterpreted in the key of modernity. He also played with the harmony and contrast of the colors seeking to create a deep visual impact.
Estamonographic exhibition allows us to admire some unique piecesy, at the same time, reveal certain aspects of the making of the rather unknown hats, both with regard to the work in the workshops and its dissemination, bothtasks mainly performed by women. Thus, it highlights the feminine world that shaped Balenciaga's design and creations.: the Paris and Madrid departments were run by women, and hatters and vendors were too. And this work of women as a counterpoint in the feminine world that used them, to the women of the social elite dressed by Balenciaga.
From a contemporary perspective, the sample approaches the importance of this accessory to distinguish itself in the social and cultural context of the time.
The exhibition «Balenciaga. The elegance of the hat» The elegance of the hatknowledge space, a library service with consultation and loan of more than 300 titles offered by the Documentation Center of the Design Museum in collaboration with the El Clot Library – Joseph Benet.
ElCatalogue of the exhibition features articles by the curators and a special collaboration from the renowned hat makerPhilip Treacy. With editions in Catalan, Castilian, euskera and english. “Balenciaga. The elegance of the hat” can also be seen inCristóbal Balenciaga Museum of Getaria from May 2022.
