Givenchy legacy: Hepburn’s little black dress, much more
PARIS (AP) — In her sleeveless black gown, with rows of pearl at the neck and oversized sunglasses, Audrey Hepburn’s Holly Golightly defined understated elegance. Hers was the iconic little black dress.
It was the work of Hubert de Givenchy, the French couturier who, along with Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent and Cristobal Balenciaga, redefined fashion in the wake of World War II. Givenchy was the epitome of Paris chic. His death at age 91 was announced Monday.
A towering man of elegance and impeccable manners, Givenchy forged close friendships with his famous clients, including Elizabeth Taylor, Lauren Bacall, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Princess Grace of Monaco.
But none were as close to him or the fashion house that bore his name as Hepburn, whose simple chic became a kind of shorthand for the label. Besides the little black dress from the 1961 hit “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” Hepburn wore Givenchy’s designs in nearly a dozen other movies, as well on the red carpet and also in real life.
Born Feb. 21, 1927, in the provincial city of Beauvais, north of Paris, Givenchy was raised by his mother and maternal grandparents after his father, a business executive and amateur pilot, died when he was a toddler.
His grandfather, an administrator of a tapestry workshop in Beauvais, cultivated the young Givenchy’s appreciation of the arts and honed his aesthetic sensibility.
Early on, Givenchy set his sights on fashion — a career choice that left his family cold. After high school, he acceded to family pressure and joined a notary firm in Beauvais, but it didn’t last long.
Givenchy struck out for Paris in his late teens, in the wake of World War II.
Couturier Jacques Fath hired Givenchy on the strength of his sketches and he spent two years learning the basics of fashion design, from sketching to cutting and fitting haute couture styles.
After a brief stint at the house of Piguet, he joined celebrated Italian designer Elsa Schiaparelli in 1949, leaving her to found his own house in 1952.
Headquartered in a small room off the Parc Monceau, well off Paris’ famed Golden Triangle, the house of Givenchy proved an instant success.
His debut collection ushered in the concept of separates — tops and bottoms that could be mixed and matched, as opposed to head-to-toe looks that were the norm among Paris couture purveyors. Working on a tight budget, Givenchy served up the floorlength skirts and country chic blouses in raw cotton materials normally reserved for fittings.
The collection’s body-conscious shapes created a sensation among the fashion