​Jeanne Paquin(23 June 1869-28 August 1936)

​Jeanne Paquin(23 June 1869–28 August 1936) was a leading French fashion designer, known for her resolutely modern and innovative designs. She was the first major female couturier and one of the pioneers of the modern fashion business.

​Jeanne Paquin, née Jeanne Beckers le 23 juin 1869 à L'Île-Saint-Denis et décédée le 28 août 1936 à Paris 7e, est une grande couturière française. Elle est l'une des premières à avoir acquis une renommée internationale, à la fin du xixe siècle.

'Five Hours at Paquin' by Henri Gervex, 1906

Biography

Jeanne Paquin was born Jeanne Marie Charlotte Beckers in 1869. Her father was a physician. She was one of five children.

Sent out to work as a young teenager, Jeanne trained as a dressmaker at Rouff (a Paris couture house established in 1884 and located on Boulevard Haussmann). She quickly rose through to ranks becoming première, in charge of the atelier.

In 1891, Jeanne Marie Charlotte Beckers married Isidore René Jacob, who was also known as Paquin. Isidore owned Paquin Lalanne et cie, a couture house which had grown out of a menswear shop in the 1840s. The couple renamed the company Paquin and set about building the business.

I​n 1891, Jeanne and Isidore Paquin opened their Maison de Couture at 3 Rue de la Paix in Paris, next to the celebrated House of Worth. Jeanne was in charge of design, while Isidore ran the business.

Initially, Jeanne favored the pastels in fashion at the time. Eventually, she moved on to stronger colors like black and her signature red. Black had been traditionally the color of mourning. Jeanne made the color fashionable by blending it with vividly colorful linings and embroidered trim.

Chincilla fur stole and muff by Jeanne Paquin. 1903.

Jeanne Paquin was the first couturier to send models dressed in her apparel to public events such operas and horse races for publicity. Paquin also frequently collaborated with the illustrators and architects such as Léon Bakst, George Barbier, Robert Mallet-Stevens, and Louis Süe. She was also known to collaborate with the theatre, in a time when other houses rejected collaboration. In 1913, a New York Times reporter described Jeanne as "the most commercial artist alive".

A London branch of The House of Paquin was opened in 1896 and the business became a limited company the same year. This shop employed a young Madeleine Vionnet. The company later expanded with shops in Buenos Aires and Madrid.

In 1900, Jeanne was instrumental in organizing the Universal Exhibition and she was elected president of the Fashion Section. Her designs were featured prominently at the Exhibition and Jeanne created a mannequin of herself for display.

Isidore Paquin died in 1907 at the age of 45, leaving Jeanne a widow at 38. Over 2,000 people attended Isidore's funeral. After Isidore's death, Jeanne dressed mostly in black and white.

In 1912, Jeanne and her half-brother opened a furrier, Paquin-Joire, on Fifth Avenue in New York City. The same year, Jeanne signed an exclusive illustration contract with La Gazette du Bon Ton, which featured six other leading Paris designers of the day – Louise Chéruit, Georges Doeuillet, Jacques Doucet, Paul Poiret, Redfern & Sons, and the House of Worth.

In 1913, Jeanne accepted France's prestigious Legion d’Honneur in recognition of her economic contributions to the country – the first woman designer to receive the honor. A year later, Jeanne toured the United States. For five dollars, attendees saw The House of Paquin's latest designs. Despite the high ticket price, the tour sold out.

During World War I, Jeanne served as president of the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture. She was the first woman to serve as president of an employers syndicate in France.

At its height, the House of Paquin was so well known that Edith Wharton mentioned the company by name in The House of Mirth.

evening dress by Jeanne Paquin, 1914

evening dress by Jeanne Paquin, 1915-17

At a time when couture houses employed 50 to 400 workers, the House of Paquin employed up to 2,000 people at its apex. The Queens of Spain, Belgium, and Portugal were all customers of Paquin. So were courtesans such as La Belle Otero and Liane de Pougy.

dresses designed by Léon Bakst for Paquin,1912

When Jeanne Paquin retired in 1920, she passed responsibility to her assistant Madeleine Wallis. Wallis remained as house designer for Paquin until 1936, the same year that Jeanne Paquin died.

Between 1936 and 1941, the Spanish designer Ana de Pombo, Wallis's assistant, was house designer. In 1941, de Pombo left, and her assistant, Antonio del Castillo (1908–1984) took over as head designer. In 1945 del Castillo left Paquin to become a designer for Elizabeth Arden, and would later become head designer for the house of Lanvin. He was succeeded by Colette Massignac, who was tasked with the challenge of keeping Paquin going during the post-War years, when new designers such as Christian Dior were receiving greater publicity and attention. In 1949, the Basque designer Lou Claverie became head designer at Paquin, until 1953, when he was succeeded by a young American designer, Alan Graham. However, Graham's understated designs failed to reinvigorate the brand of Paquin, and the Paris house closed on 1 July 1956.

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Biographie

​Née à L'Île-Saint-Denis, Jeanne Beckers commence sa formation de modeliste pour faire son apprentissage.

En 1891, après son mariage avec Isidore Jacob, dit Paquin, elle ouvre sa propre maison de couture à Paris, 3, rue de la Paix. Ses robes du soir aux motifs « xviiie siècle », ses modèles ornés de fourrure ou de dentelle, lui assurent une grande notoriété. Femme d’affaires avisée, elle est l’une des premières à pressentir l’intérêt des techniques de promotion, n’hésitant pas à apparaître entourée de ses mannequins lors de soirées à l'opéra Garnier ou encore lors des jours de grands prix équestres, et à organiser de véritables défilés de mode pour promouvoir ses nouveaux modèles.

Jean Béraud, Sortie des ouvrières de la maison Paquin, rue de la Paix.

Elle préside la section Modes de l'Exposition universelle de 1900. Dans son stand, elle se fait représenter par un mannequin de cire vêtu d'un déshabillé brodé de roses d'or.

Associée à des partenaires britanniques, Jeanne Paquin transfère, en 1896, son siège à Londres, au 39 Dover Street, tout en gardant sa succursale de Paris. En 1912, elle ouvre à New York, au 398 de la Cinquième Avenue, une boutique consacrée à la fourrure, qu’elle confie à son demi-frère, Henri Joire et dont l'agencement est réalisé par Robert Mallet-Stevens. La même année elle fait réaliser une villa au 33, rue du Mont-Valérien à Saint-Cloud (alors en Seine-et-Oise, aujourd'hui dans les Hauts-de-Seine) par l'architecte décorateur Louis Süe. Peu de temps après, deux nouvelles succursales voient le jour à Madrid et à Buenos Aires. Elle est la première grande couturière à recevoir, en 1913, la croix de la Légion d'honneur.

Robe Jeanne Paquin illustrée par George Barbier dans la Gazette du Bon Ton, en 1914.

Si l’inspiration de Jeanne Paquin puise largement dans le passé, elle sait également s’adapter aux évolutions de l’époque, proposant un modèle de tailleur adapté à la « civilisation du métro » ou, à la veille de la Première Guerre mondiale, une robe intermédiaire entre le tailleur et le costume. Son esprit résolument moderne s’exprime encore dans sa collaboration avec Léon Bakst pour la création de costumes de théâtre.

Présidente de la Chambre syndicale de la couture de 1917 à 1919, Jeanne Paquin se retire en 1920, laissant l’administration de la maison à Henri Joire, et la direction artistique à Madeleine Wallis. Ana de Pombo la remplace en 1936, année de la mort de Jeanne Paquin, puis cède la place en 1942 à Antonio Canovas del Castillo.

La direction de la maison revient ensuite à Colette Massignac, puis à Lou Claverie, qui sauront adapter le style des collections au New Look mis à la mode par Christian Dior. En 1956, la maison Paquin, essuyant de graves difficultés financières, cessera son activité.

La « maison Paquin » est immortalisée par la chanson de Léo Lelièvre, La Biaiseuse en 1912 (reprise notamment par Annie Cordy et Marie-Paule Belle) : « Je suis biaiseuse chez Paquin... ».

La couturière se fait construire une villa à Deauville en 1909 : le premier projet, demandé à Robert Mallet-Stevens, semblant ne pas avoir abouti, c'est finalement l'architecte Auguste Bluysen qui est retenu. Au xxie siècle, la villa est baptisée Les Abeilles.