Couture in Black – Designs By Cristóbal Balenciaga

Cristóbal Balenciaga (1895 – 1972), regarded as ‘le maître’ among couturiers. “Haute couture is like an orchestra, for which only Balenciaga is the conductor. The rest of us are just musicians, following the directions he gives us”, Christian Dior once said. The Spanish designer was known as a strict taskmaster who regarded his work as a religion. His complex, sculptural designs worked best in black, one of his favourite colours. Kunstmuseum Den Haag presents an ode to his designs in black with its fashion exhibition Couture in Black: designs by Cristóbal Balenciaga. Over 100 masterpieces from the collections of Palais Galliera and Maison Balenciaga are stealing the show at Kunstmuseum Den Haag. This is the first time that such a large selection of Cristóbal Balenciaga’s work has been shown in the Netherlands.

This exhibition has been organised in collaboration with Palais Galliera, Musée de la Mode de la Ville de Paris, and Paris Musées.