Nicolas Ghesquière's Legacy at Balenciaga, 1997-2012

A few weeks ago, the fashion world was struck by news that Nicolas Ghesquière was to leave Balenciaga after 15 long, influential years. Ghesquière's departure from Balenciaga is effective November 30th--today. Alexander Wang is confirmed to fill Ghesquière's shoes.  I could not believe the news and it was truly the worst news to hear first thing in the morning. Besides original Cristobals, the Balenciaga I had grown up to know was all the work of Ghesquière; I cannot euphemize what I am about to say, but personally, his leaving Balenciaga almost equates to his passing. I will sorely miss the innovation, boldness, and pure beauty of his work. __________ After spending much time in his archives, I have finally finished my compilation of a sort of "tribute" post to Nicolas Ghesquière's tenure at Balenciaga. Finding quality pictures of his earliest collections were difficult, so  most of the following pictures will be 2007 and on. 

I might sound a little crazy for saying this, but Balenciaga was one of, if not the first, labels that influenced me as a child. I came across my first issue of Vogue in 2006 through my aunt, an avid reader of fashion magazines. As a 6th grader still being dressed by her mother, I had no idea what I was looking at, but all I knew was that it was magical and I wanted to see more of it. Both the spring and fall 2006 ready to wear collections are etched into my memory; I can recall my many attempts to sketch the SS06 cream dress and the grid patterned ensemble in FW06. My transition from grade school to middle school was very much affected by fashion, and carried on throughout high school to lead me to study fashion in college.

One of Nicolas Ghesquière's most iconic collections, I never imagined repeated subject matter to be as interesting as this. Composed almost entirely of incredible floral prints on strong silhouettes, this collection was truly unforgettable.

After SS09 I became infatuated with the idea of tights going over my shoes (ha, that never worked) 

I think that the early teens of 2000 were the defining moments for Ghesquière. I feel like the collections following FW10 very consistent with Ghesquiere's true aesthetic but did not show traces of mere repetition. 

As an admirer and fan of Ghesquière's work for literally half of my life, I will truly miss his high standards for fashion, his genius, and his innovation as creative director of Balenciaga.

iamges via style.com xx

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