Designer Showcase: Christian
Lacroix, France |

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“Fashion is authentic, coherent, and
legitimate when it is a sincere, lucid, and unadulterated
reflection of the times.”
—Christian Lacroix, 1996
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The wild and fanciful designs of Lacroix come partly from an
early interest in theater and opera when he was a child in Arles,
France. He wanted to be a museum curator and found his interest in
fashion emerge as he was writing his master’s thesis on French
costumes viewed through seventeenth century paintings.
“His designs are like pieces of puzzles, bringing together a
diverse group of craftsmen, including weavers, corset-makers,
painters, and embroiderers. His spell-binding shows present a
stylish clutter. Fantastic textures compete with embroidered
materials, and fluid fabrics are blended with spangles–the perfect
illustration of Christian Lacroix’s flamboyant design vocabulary.”
—Pamela Golbin, Fashion Designers
Lacroix’s croquis (say that ten times very fast!) are beautiful
works of art in addition to being working sketches of his designs.
Notice first the sense of attitude and energy in his models, how the
poses are exaggerated for elegance and sexiness. The arms and legs
are skinny and simply suggest the figure. There is much presence and
attitude in the sway of the back, tilt of the head and how the
shoulders dip low. He has a gorgeous sense of color and drawing in
the direction that the fabric drapes. It’s all about the shape and
silhouette of the garment. Notice too, that at least two of these
croquis are done on a toned paper which adds to their importance.
Fashion Design Croquis
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Picture, to Enlarge |
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