Fashionistas who are into French couturiers will remember how Marcel Rochas first launched his fashion house in 1925, becoming well-known when eight women who went to a party found themselves wearing the same dress.
Working with a great passion for fashion first in his salon in rue Faubourg St. Honoré founded in 1924 and, from 1931, in rue Matignon, Rochas was often at the centre of debates with other designers. Many remember the diatribe with Schiaparelli over who originated the emphasised shoulder: for Rochas his inspiration came from Javanese and Balinese dancers he saw at the Exposition Coloniale in 1931. The magazine Femina claimed in 1933 that both the couturiers had had the same idea at the same time, but they applied their results in different ways to their work.
Rochas was important for injecting into fashion a sort of elegant restraint and rich yet subtle decoration.
In many cases he anticipated the times: in 1932 he designed a grey flannel trouser suit and in 1939 a plain white lace shirtwaister, both the designs ended up being popular many decades after.
One of his most famous and successful designs in America was his multi-coloured striped gypsy evening dress that became the most copied French model in the States in 1938. Behind Rochas’ designs there were two main principles: elegance and simplicity. According to him the body had to be liberated from excessive decorations and freedom had to be highlighted.
This is why his skirts were slightly longer yet softer, his trousers became a wardrobe staple and not an item of clothing that belonged to the sportswear category and the padded shoulders of his jackets became a trademark of modern design. Rochas’s woman never stood still: she moved around the city, drove a car, travelled all over the world, yet she was always elegant and chic.
In the 30s Rochas collaborated with textile companies creating a new jersey that allowed him to design fluid items of clothing and also did further experiments in the textile field, launching a material ideal for bathing suits that combined a cellophane-like consistency with the elasticity of latex. Rochas also designed the costumes for a few films, among them also Jean Delannoy's L’éternel retour (1943).
Last year Italian Marco Zanini was appointed artistic director at the French fashion house and I’m quite interested to see how things will develop now that he is leading it. The Italian company that produces the line is planning to keep prices low compared to the French fashion house's standard.
The first collection designed by Zanini was presented in February during Paris Fashion Week and was definitely based on Rochas’ main principles.
The collection includes slip dresses, perfectly cut double-face cashmere coats with Rochas’ classic emphasis on ample sleeves, soft blazers with relaxed silhouettes, drop-waist dresses characterised by beautiful details such as hand-embroidered micro caviar beads or silk tulle overlays and practical trouser suits and tuxedos with a masculine cut. The palette comprises grey, beige, ivory and powdery pink with just a splash of ruby red and dark green. The fabrics Zanini opted for - silk charmeuse, silk georgette, cashmere, textured wool and tweed - are all luxurious.
As a whole the collection looks very different from Olivier Theyskens’s previous designs for the French fashion house, but everything is very wearable and, as I said, based on minimalism, proving that fashion doesn't need to be excessive to look good (and sell well).
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