OK EN fr en COLLECTIONS NEWS MAISON SCHIAPARELLI 21, PLACE VENDÔME A HOMMAGE TO THE FAMOUS FIRSTS OF A LEGENDARY COUTURIER I YOUTH AND INITIATION TO THE ART WORLD II DISCOVERY OF FASHION 1ST SUCCESS III INSPIRED DESIGNER AND GLOBAL EXPANSION IV WWII AND PERSONAL COMMITMENT V CONSECRATION AND WRITING OF HER AUTOBIOGRAPHY SHARE Elsa Schiaparelli was born in 1890, in the Corsini palace in Rome. With a father who was the director of the Lincei library and a professor of Oriental literature, an astronomer uncle and a mother descended from the Medicis, she grew up in a family of aristocrats and intellectuals. She studied philosophy, even though her dream was to become an actress. In 1911, she published a collection of overtly sensual poems, Arethusa. When her parents learnt about it, she was sent to a convent in Switzerland, where she left again after going on hunger strike. 1911 Elsa publishes a collection of overtly sensual poems, Arethusa. 1913 marked the year of emancipation. She set off for London with one of her sister’s friends to help to look after her children. This city proved to be the beginning of freedom. When she was attending a conference on theology by Count Wilhelm Wendt de Kerlor, she felt under the charm of this young theosophist. They married in 1914 and left London for New York in 1916, after spending several seasons in Nice. Palazzo Corsini, Rome On the liner taking them to New York, Elsa formed a friendship with Gabrielle Picabia, the wife of the Dada painter. This encounter would introduce Elsa into the circle of the avant-garde artists of the time: MAN RAY MARCEL DUCHAMP EDWARD STEICHEN The young couple lived on Elsa’s dowry, which was disappearing at the speed of light. Their daughter Yvonne, nicknamed Gogo, was born in 1920 and very soon contracted poliomyelitis. Juggling her Bohemian lifestyle, part-time jobs, her husband’s repeated absences and taking care of her daughter, Elsa asked for a divorce. In 1922, she moved to Paris with her daughter because Europe seemed to be ahead in terms of the treatments that Gogo needed. During the day, Elsa worked at an antique dealer’s. In the evening, she frequented the famous restaurant, Le Bœuf sur le Toit, which attracted the Paris smart set. Her circle of artist friends grew. One day, Elsa accompanied a friend to a fitting at Paul Poiret, the greatest couturier of the age. She tried on a few designs while she was waiting, even though she couldn’t afford to buy such pieces. Realising this and no doubt sensing that such an atypical woman would be a good advert for his clothes, Paul Poiret suggested that Elsa could borrow several designs. This experience of a couture house, luxury, quality, design, colors, materials, embroidery and shapes lit a spark in Elsa that would prove to be one of the turning points in her life. In Paris, the most famous Couturier of the age, PAUL POIRET, lends her several designs. Credits : Elsa Schiaparelli by George Hoyningen-Huene © Condé Nast Archive/Corbis ; Elsa Schiaparelli with her dog © Austrian Archives/CORBIS. NEXT CHAPTER SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER OK FOLLOW US CONTACT US CALL US EMAIL US © 2017 ELSA SCHIAPARELLI SAS ALL RIGHTS RESERVED LEGAL TERMS