Azzedine Alaia Long Elegant Dress New
View Similar Items
Azzedine Alaia Long Elegant Dress New
About the Item
- Designer:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: S (EU)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:
- Seller Location:New York, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: AU140317449328
Azzedine Alaïa
Master Couturier, King of Cling: legendary fashion designer Azzedine Alaïa (1935–2017) is known by many names, each referring to his unparalleled ability to mold fabric onto the female form in unexpected and radical ways. The Tunisian-born designer spent his entire life in relentless pursuit of a wholly distinctive and most-flattering fit.
“For me, fashion is the body,” said Alaïa. “I make clothes; women make fashion.”
Alaïa is credited with inventing the supermodel through his exclusive fashion shows, the body-con dress — which, quite literally, hugs the body and emphasizes and embraces every curve — and pioneering what industry professionals have taken to calling “slow fashion.” The designer openly rejected empty, of-the-moment fads as well as the structure of biannual seasons and instead took his time, unhurried by press and releasing collections at his own pace. Most importantly, Alaïa was a visionary when it came to traditional notions of femininity and sexuality. At a time when loose, soft silhouettes were the norm, Alaïa’s sexy, waist-cinching hourglass and body-con outfits were shocking.
Alaïa’s “body-conscious clothes,” wrote fashion critic Suzy Menkes, “seemed a deliberate challenge — throwing down a sexist gauntlet in a feminist world.”
While powerful women such as Madonna, Michelle Obama, Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington wear Alaïa’s creations today, his origins were remarkably humble.
Born to a farming family, Alaïa always had a creative streak. As a young boy, he would flip through women’s fashion magazines and quickly became interested in the design of women's clothing. He went on to study sculpture at the School of Fine Arts in Tunis and later worked as a tailor for a dressmaker before he found work creating garments based on Parisian haute couture designs. The combination of his classical training in sculpture and practical experience as a tailor convinced Alaïa that fashion was his calling. In 1957, he moved to Paris and worked for Christian Dior for less than a week before being fired. From there, Alaïa secured a job with Guy Laroche and opened his own maison in the 1970s.
At his core, Alaïa was a couturier who cut and sewed his samples himself. He also experimented with zips, seams, unexpected materials, textures, animal prints and floral patterns like an artist. Today, Alaïa’s clothes look untouched by the passage of time and the various trends that have materialized since their debut; they are as fresh, stylish and stunning as ever. His garments are pop-culture icons in their own right: Cher Horowitz, played by Alicia Silverstone in 1995’s Clueless, exasperated with a perpetrator holding her at gunpoint, declares, “But this is an Alaïa!”
Vintage Alaïa evening dresses, skirts and other attire continue to influence contemporary designers such as Nicolas Ghesquière and Hervé Léger. Not only are his clothes timeless in their glamour, but they also represent the groundbreaking vision of an artist, one who was known to proclaim, “I am not a designer. I am a couturier.”
Find a collection of Azzedine Alaïa day dresses, suits, jackets and more on 1stDibs.
- Rare Issey Miyake Dress Photography By Irving PenBy Issey MiyakeLocated in New York, NYIssey Miyake dress from 1990's Same dress in off white version was photographed by Irving Pen Excellent condition. Made in Japan.FINAL SALECategory
1990s Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Proenza Schouler Lace Embroidered Dress Seen At Manus X Machina ExhibitBy Proenza SchoulerLocated in New York, NYProenza Schouler embroidered asymmetrical dress Seen at Met NY Manus X Machina exhibit in off white color. Contrasting embroidered pattern throughout, crew neck featuring asymmetri...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Viktor & Rolf Big Puff Sleeve DressBy Viktor & RolfLocated in New York, NYViktor & Rolf dress.New with tags. Made In Italy. Size 44 IT. Sleeves are very puffy made of kind of hard silk mesh fabric that does not loose ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Versace Pop Art Mini Dress 2018 Tribute To Spring / Summer 1991 NEW With TagsBy VersaceLocated in New York, NYSleeveless, power shoulder, mini dress, merging Gianni Versace's love of art and contemporary fashion in the Spring Summer 1991 collection. Pop Art SS'91 print Sleeveless,Power shoul...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Vintage Dolce & Gabbana 1998 Silk Hand Painted Dress Flowers & BirdsBy Dolce & GabbanaLocated in New York, NYDolce Gabbana Yellow Gold silk dress 1998 Hand-painted with flowers and birds and flowers on the side. Condition is very good Pictured on mannequin s...Category
21st Century and Contemporary European Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Rare Comme Des Garcons Runway 2019 Dress X Heavy Chains Artwork By baanai NEW SBy Comme des GarçonsLocated in New York, NYComme Des Garcons Runway 2018 Dress with chain Artwork By baanai Size S Dress and chain comes separate.Please see image on how to display chain ,it goes...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Evening Dresses and Gowns
- Vintage 1930's Cartwright Ivory Striped Silk Rayon Cut-Out Maxi Dress & JacketLocated in Beverly Hills, CAThe vibrant rainbow-stripe used on this ivory silk rayon 1930's "Cartwright" designer dress ensemble has a whimsical allure that I find irresistible. The sleeveless bodice has a flir...Category
1930s American Aesthetic Day Dresses
- The little black dress by Chanel black and white silk Sculpted figureLocated in Bilbao, ESAbsence of vulgarity was central to Chanel’s definition of luxury, a view formed during her impoverished early life. Born in 1883 in Saumur, France, as Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel, she was just 12 years old when her mother died and her itinerant father put her in a home for orphaned girls run by a local convent. She learned to sew and, upon moving to Moulins six years later, became a seamstress. She also sang in nightclubs, earning the sobriquet “Coco,” an allusion to a popular song of the time. Beautiful, one of a kind vintage silk dress and jacket for everyday ware as a coktail dress...Category
1990s Aesthetic Evening Dresses
$2,748 Sale Price32% Off - Givenchy Printed Plunging Maxi DressBy GivenchyLocated in Geneva, CHWonderful 70's silhouette with this Givenchy maxi dress. Made of airy silk chiffon featuring a red and white graphic print, the dress has a deep plunging neckline at the front and re...Category
1970s French Maxi Dresses
- F/2012 look # 6 NEW VERSACE MACRAME GOTHIC CROSS COCKTAIL SILK DRESS 38 - 2By VersaceLocated in Montgomery, TXVERSACE Actual Runway Samole Fall/Winter 2012 Look # 6 Macrame Gothic Cross Cocktail Dress This long sleeve, turtle neck cocktail dress features an allover macrame Gothic cross...Category
2010s Italian Cocktail Dresses
- Elaborately Beaded French FLapper Dress, c.1920sLocated in New York, NYElaborately Beaded French FLapper Dress, c.1920s Indigo knee-length gauze Flapper dress with intricate beading of art deco style motifs in shades of indigo, blue and silver. Featurin...Category
1920s French Aesthetic Evening Dresses
- Thierry Mugler Strapless Black Satin Gown, c.1980sBy Thierry MuglerLocated in New York, NYThierry Mugler Strapless Black Satin Gown, c.1980s Thierry Mugler Strapless Black Satin Gown featuring asymmetrical, gathered corseted bodice with rhi...Category
1980s French Aesthetic Evening Dresses
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Azzedine Alaïa Was a Couturier Who Thought Like a Sculptor
The first fashion exhibit to be held at the new London Design Museum celebrates the famed Tunisian-Parisian couturier's lifetime of work.
This Comme des Garçons Runway Gown Features the Work of 10 Artists
The standout look, from a collection that left fashion critics breathless, has us mesmerized.