Cristóbal Balenciaga

Cristóbal Balenciaga
Cristóbal Balenciaga in 1950
Born	(1895-01-21)January 21, 1895 Getaria, Gipuzkoa, Spain
Died	March 23, 1972(1972-03-23) (aged 77) Xàbia, Alicante, Spain
Other names	Basque: Cristobal Balentziaga Eizagirre
Occupation	Fashion designer
Labels	Balenciaga

Cristóbal Balenciaga Eizaguirre (pronounced: [kɾisˈtoβal βalenˈθjaɣa ejθaˈɣire]) (January 21, 1895 – March 23, 1972) was a Spanish Basque fashion designer and the founder of the Balenciaga fashion house. He had a reputation as a couturier of uncompromising standards and was referred to as "the master of us all" by Christian Dior and as "the only couturier in the truest sense of the word" by Coco Chanel, who continued "The others are simply fashion designers". He continues to be revered as the supreme deity of the European salons. On the day of his death, in 1972, Women's Wear Daily ran the headline "The king is dead" (no one in the fashion world had any doubt as to whom it referred).

Since 2011 the purpose built Museo Balenciaga exhibits examples of his work in his birth town Getaria. Many of the 1200 pieces in the collection were supplied by his pupil Hubert de Givenchy and clients such as Grace Kelly.

Balenciaga was born in Getaria, a fishing town in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa, on January 21, 1895. His mother was a seamstress, and as a child Balenciaga often spent time with her as she worked. At the age of twelve, he began work as the apprentice of a tailor. When Balenciaga was a teenager, the Marchioness de Casa Torres, the foremost noblewoman in his town, became his customer and patron. She sent him to Madrid, where he was formally trained in tailoring. (Balenciaga is notable as one of the few couturiers in fashion history who could use their own hands to design, cut, and sew the models which symbolized the height of his artistry.)