Cristóbal Balenciaga

Balenciaga was born in Getaria, Spain, and trained with tailors in San Sebastián and Madrid.² Vanity Fair España states that before turning 20, Balenciaga was already designing for Spanish royalty and high society.³ In March 1927, he established Martina Robes et Manteaux in San Sebastián, which was renamed EISA Costura in October 1927.⁴

EISA Costura subsequently expanded to Madrid in 1933 and Barcelona in 1935.⁴ Vanity Fair España writes that his Spanish shops served as training centres for designers who later joined the Paris couture house.³ According to a Disney+ series announcement reported by El Español, Balenciaga presented his first haute couture collection in Paris in 1937.⁵

The Cristóbal Balenciaga Museum describes his work as progressively departing from prevailing women's silhouettes toward abstraction.⁴ According to Fashion Model Directory, he introduced the Trapeze line in 1957, followed by the Empire line and the pillbox hat around 1958.² According to Fashion Model Directory, Balenciaga denied the fashion press entry to his collections from 1957 onward.² He retired in 1968 and died on 24 March 1972 in Valencia.^1,2