Théâtre de la Mode

These mid-century miniature French fashion mannequins have long been a source of inspiration for designers of dolls and couture alike. Languishing for a while, they are now part of the permanent collection at Maryhill Museum of Art. This is a guide through the highlights together with dolls of a more recent vintage.

In the immediate period following World War II, the weary citizens of Paris were desperate to restore their city to its pinnacle as the center of style and fashion. Mindful of this, and drawn together by post-war adversity, the Parisian couturiers collaborated to create a most beautifully detailed representation of fashion splendor. The 1945 opening of the Théâtre de la Mode was designed to show ‘perfection in miniature’, in a world of hope for the future, and to reflect bygone days when apparel was not lacking a single exquisite element. The aim was to help restore the great haute couture houses of Paris to their former glory.

The man behind the Théâtre de la Mode was Robert Ricci, son of the famous couturier, Nina. He realized that the lack of fabric and luxury materials caused by the privations of war and rationing, would make the full-blown fashion shows of the past – with real models – virtually impossible to stage. So he proposed a collection in miniature, using 1:3 scale mannequins instead of real women. A careful balance between the sumptuousness of high fashion and the prudence of post-war austerity was vital. With this in mind M. Ricci sought the collaboration of some of France’s top artists and designers. The mannequins became simple, elegant figures created from salvaged wire, and given personality with plain, unpainted white plaster heads. The illustrator, Eliane Bonabel, designed them with the Spanish sculptor, Joan Rebull.

Over fifty Parisian houses of couture were asked to clothe the mannequins. Amongst those involved were couturiers still well-known today such as Balenciaga, Hermès, and Lanvin. Others included Carven, Fath, Madame Grès, Lelong, Schiaparelli, Worth, and of course, Ricci. All of the outfits were perfectly scaled and tailored for their diminutive models. The garments were made in exactly the same way as the full-size human versions, properly lined, and with exquisite embellishments. The usual couture art of hand-finishing was rigorously applied, and many of the outfits were supplied with bespoke underwear.

But it did not end at the clothing: all of the mannequins were wigged and shod by professional makers. The attention to detail was astonishing, right down to the tiniest accessory, whether jewelry or even a powder compact. A whole army of artisans were involved – much as for full-size couture.

The whole show was meticulously staged. Led by artistic director, Christian Berard, twelve sets were especially commissioned. Perhaps the most well-known of them is Ma Femme est une Sorcière, by Jean Cocteau, inspired by the René Clair film, I Married a Witch (featuring Veronica Lake). The shockingly dramatic set shows a bombed room, through the destroyed walls and roof of which can be seen pictures of a war-ravaged city. All of the sets were designed to be equally arresting, though possibly less distressing, and prevalant atistic themes such as surrealism were in evidence.

As Chloe Gambell wrote for HighHeelsNewsletter.com, “Le Théâtre de la Mode is, unsurprisingly, a popular source of inspiration for doll collectors and manufacturers. Organized to raise funds for French war relief and to resurrect the French fashion industry, the exhibition represents a unique collaboration between highly-noted haute couture, theater, coiffure and accessory designers of the time.”

“After a successful run at the Louvre, the mannequins and their sets were sent on a tour of Europe, and later to America. By early 1947, Christian Dior had grabbed the attention of the world’s fashion buyers and journalists with his ‘New Look’, and the Chambre Syndicale were reluctant to pay for the return of a group of mannequins dressed in outmoded designs. This was not the end of the Théâtre de la Mode, however. The mannequins were ‘rediscovered’ in the late 1980s, on display at the Maryhill Museum of Art, WA, where they had been for more than thirty years. Finally appreciated for their beauty and ingenuity, the remaining mannequins were sent back to Paris for restoration, whilst the sets, many of which no longer existed, were recreated with the aid of old photographs and descriptions.”

The Théâtre de la Mode, in the caring hands of Maryhill Museum of Art, lives on as one of the most important collections of couture finery and masterworks in the world. The mannequins have the luxury of nine room-size theater décors in which to parade. Each year, three of the nine sets are on display at the museum.

One notable designer who was inspired by this collection was Robert Tonner. According to the Tonner Doll Company, “Regina Wentworth, traveling to the austere beauty of the Columbia Gorge in Washington State, often drew upon the inspirations of the extraordinary silhouettes and themes in the collection. Tyler Wentworth, admirer of the retrospective and great innovator of new style from vintage art, follows her great-aunt’s passions by creating breathtaking beauty inspired by the dramatic masters of the Théâtre de la Mode.” Thus the Tonner Théâtre de la Mode-inspired collection was born. You can see some of the original versions and the modern interpretations from Tonner on these pages.

Wendy Roper was also inspired by the astonishing wire mannequins. She was blown away by these tiny ambassadors of fashion when she first discovered them and determined to create a doll of her own which captured the spirit of mid-century Paris, and the couture embodied in Théâtre de la Mode. Wendy’s initial concept was to make an articulated wire-framed doll as an homage to the diminutive French models. In Wendy’s own words:

“In 2003 I gave up the idea of bringing out the wire doll and concentrated on developing it in vinyl as Milou the Mannequin. There were too many imponderables with the wire version: the articulated joints become loose over time and don’t hold poses; couldn’t solve the problem of the paint peeling off the wire (and I didn’t want them in their natural coloured grey); the artisan in South Africa who made the wire bodies wasn’t willing to spend time looking for solutions to these problems; the Liquache (liquid papier mache) which was used to make the heads, hands, and feet was not that easy to work with and ultimately was not really strong enough to stand up to normal wear and tear; and, finally, it proved difficult to co-ordinate all the different processes involved.”

“Gary [Alston, the fashion designer] came on board in 2003 and made the Joie de Soleil suit and a pistachio ballgown for the wire version, but even he found it difficult to work with the wire body. The bust was not big enough to support the cut of his clothes, and as each wire body was hand-made (as indeed the whole doll is hand-made), we could never be sure that the costumes we wanted to bring out would fit each doll that would be bought.”

“So Gary suggested vinyl instead where there would be uniformity, and, importantly, it would be easier to produce. I may have found solutions to all these problems in the end, but I decided to put all my energies into the vinyl doll instead. I still love my wire Milou, though. I remember the day clearly when I got the inspiration for her. I was standing in the Conran shop in Marylebone, London, in January 2001 and saw a picture of one of the wire mannequins from Théâtre de la Mode in a fashion book. It was love at first sight! The production run of the wire torsos was small – about forty. And I only got as far as doing a few completed dolls which I sold. So the wire Milou is extremely rare.”

If you’re interested in fashion and in the rich wealth of design creativity that burst forth in the post-war years, as artists of all types were freed from he shackles of strife and privations, it’s well worth a trip to the Maryhill Museum of Art if you’re in the region. But even if you can’t make it toWashington state, these little mannequins are often sent out on missions either alone, to accompany other exhibitions, or as whole room sets, so look out for them. In recent years they have traveled to London and Australia with the V&A exhibition, The Golden Age of Couture, and the International Photography Museum in NYC for the David Seidner photo exhibition, and the Jean Cocteau set and mannequins have taken a trip to Barcelona to be part of a contemporary art exhibition at MACBA.

A video of the exhibit at the Maryhill Museum of Art

CREDITS
With particular thanks to Betty Long-Schleif, Collections Manager, the Théâtre de la Mode images are reproduced here by courtesy of Maryhill Museum of Art, 35 Maryhill Museum Drive, Goldendale, WA 98620, USA www.maryhillmuseum.org Tel: +1 (509) 773-3733.

Many thanks to Shauna Perry and Tom Courtney at Tonner, Inc. for all their help and the kind supply of archive Tyler Wentworth images.

I am grateful to Chloe Gambell for allowing me to use as source material, her feature Théâtre de la Mode from High Heels Newsletter and for her permission to quote directly from it.

Check out Gary Alston’s House of Retro for vintage fashion insights.

And a big thank you to Wendy Roper for entrusting her precious wire Milou to me for photography, despite some postal nightmares.

This is an edited version of a feature that appeared in Haute Doll magazine, September/October 2009. A video based on this feature is shown below.