Givenchy: Rare and Classic Photos From a Fashionable Life
Givenchy: Rare and Classic Photos From a Fashionable Life
2 minute read
Caption from LIFE. His designs specialize in separates like the three tops, three skirts which can be used interchangeably to make nine outfits. They are: white cardigan with coral beads over short black skirt (left), organdy blouse over long black skirt (center), fringed black sweater over striped skirt (right, worn by Bettina)Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
French designer Hubert de Givenchy rose to fame in the 1950s, but his elegant, feminine aesthetic continues to reverberate in fashion a full half-century later.
Raised in an aristocratic family that valued artistic pursuits, Givenchy journeyed to Paris in 1944 and by the early ‘50s had established a couture house of his own. While responsible for many sartorial innovations, such as the easy shape of the sack dress and the raw cotton Bettina blouse, he is best known for his strong professional relationship with Audrey Hepburn at the height of her Hollywood glamour days. In addition to outfitting her in films like Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Charade, Givenchy also featured Hepburn in his fragrance ads, making him one of the first designers to pioneer the use of the celebrity spokesperson.
While Givenchy himself retired from designing in 1995, his namesake house remains at fashion’s forefront in the hands of creative director Riccardo Tisci. Tisci began his tenure at the house in 2005 with a dark gothic bent, but his collections of late have embraced a more romantic feel.
Here, LIFE looks back at the young Givenchy during the nascent days of his storied label.
Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LizabethRonk.
Caption from LIFE. Designer de Givenchy (right) and fitter study effect in a mirror of hat tried on by his partner Bettina between her publicity chores.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGivenchy style, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGivenchy style, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGivenchy style, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. Lace ball gown was one of styles which showed De Givenchy could do bigger things than gimmicks. Copy will be $250 at Wanamaker's, Philadelphia.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. High buttoned cuffs with black-embroidered ruffles falling over them are one of many De Givenchy treatments of big sleeve, an important fashion this season. Worn by Bettina, this cotton shirt is called Blanchisseuse (Washerwoman). It will be copied by Russeks, New York, for $10.95.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. His designs specialize in separates like the three tops, three skirts which can be used interchangeably to make nine outfits. They are: white cardigan with coral beads over short black skirt (left), organdy blouse over long black skirt (center), fringed black sweater over striped skirt (right, worn by Bettina)Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGivenchy style, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGivenchy style, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesGivenchy style, 1952.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. Busy Bettina models shantung dress with tweed jacket for press show. By end of showings every single outfit in the collection was sold.Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
