How did Parisian chic find its way into the archival vaults? Senior Curator Anne-Marie Condé takes us behind the scenes.
Curators at the National Archives have recently been exploring records that reveal the historic relationship between Australia and France. Knowing that Parisian style has long been an inspiration for Australian women, they did not have to look far to find examples in the Archives' collection.
In 1969 the Australian Women's Weekly joined forces with the Australian Wool Board and the Melbourne department store Georges to host a series of 'Focus on France' fashion parades featuring the work of Parisian couture house Jean Patou.
A collection of 80 spring and summer designs were brought from Paris under the care of Patou lead designer Michel Goma and directrice Madame Frederique Reusser.
For many years the Weekly had been organising such shows in leading Australian department stores. Georges, at the ‘Paris end' of Collins Street, had long established itself as Melbourne's most luxurious arbiter of taste and fashion.
For the Patou show Georges transformed its first floor into a Parisian-style salon, and the gala night was broadcast by television station GTV-9 on June 16, 1969. Champagne, petits-fours and music contributed to the glamorous atmosphere.
Patou brought one of its Parisian models, Sophie Blateyron, for the show. At 24, Sophie adopted a haughty air on the catwalk for, reportedly, her last fashion show before ‘retiring' to become a housewife.
Sophie was joined by nine Australian models and, over the next fortnight, tunics, trousers, skirts, cocktail dresses and evening gowns were shown to eager audiences of Australian women (and some of their husbands).
Images of the event in the Archives' collection were captured by the Australian News and Information Bureau. A favourite with the curators is of an un-named Australian girl modelling 'Sympathie', a cocktail dress in twirling apricot chiffon.
This research contributed to a joint project between the National Archives of Australia and the Archives de France. In April 2016, an agreement was signed in Paris between the two archival institutions. Over the following 6 years, Australian staff worked with their French colleagues on a series of historical seminars, professional exchanges, and an exhibition.
This story was originally published in NAA Magazine Issue 2, 2017.
