Models wearing Balenciaga in the fashion press: A comparative study

This article analyses to what extent Cristóbal Balenciaga’s 1956 censure of the fashion press affected the subsequent coverage of his creations in major fashion magazines. The study focuses on the models that wore Balenciaga’s designs as they were displayed in L’Officiel and American editions of Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar from 1937, the date of Balenciaga’s first appearance in the fashion press, and 1968, the year the designer retired, and makes a comparative analysis of the models to determine if there was a change in the fashion coverage of Balenciaga after 1956. In order to assess any possible variation, the study takes into account the evolving context of modelling throughout the period being studied and the characteristics of the models working exclusively for Maison Balenciaga.