12 - LOUIS FERAUD.

LOUIS FERAUD. Velvet jacket with silk panels in shades of pink, red, and orange in a harlequin pattern. Circa 1980. Size 40 A Riviera fashion designer who became a leading figure in Parisian haute couture, Louis Féraud made color and volume his signature. Brigitte Bardot, whom he dressed for some twenty films, launched his fame. He presented his first haute couture collection in 1958, alongside Dior, Balenciaga, Lanvin, and Givenchy. With its bold hues and loose lines, this jacket evokes the audacity of Yves Saint Laurent: the same taste for bright colors, the same sense of silhouette. The harlequin, a figure from the commedia dell’arte and the circus, is a favorite motif in fashion. Yves Saint Laurent made it one of his favorite themes: his “Hommage à Picasso” (Fall-Winter 1979 haute couture) collection blends Cubist motifs with harlequins rendered in silk velvet and embroidery, and the “Harlequin” print reappears in his Spring-Summer 1988 collection.