L'Atelier Balmain Balmain

Blending two impressive heritages, the 2024 Balmain Resort Collections build upon the compelling legacy of Monsieur Balmain, melding his passion for American dynamism with the house’s mastery of French craftsmanship. 
 
For this podcast, Olivier Rousteing discusses how his decorative motifs channel the bold style of the American cowboy and how his collections reflect the true history of the Wild West, with designs celebrating the long-ignored diversity of the frontier.  
 
Rousteing walks us through the collections, explaining how they riff upon two distinct traditions, with the sharp cuts, impressive leatherwork and striking embellishments of Balmain’s latest designs looking to both mid-century couture salons and 19th-century frontier saloons.  
 
As you listen to this episode, we invite you to click here to open a special webpage, which will allow you to scroll through images of each collection, as Olivier Rousteing explains the inspirations, details and presentations of his designs. 
CREDITS L’ATELIER BALMAIN EPISODE 3.1 
  
GO WEST, BALMAIN! THE BALMAIN RESORT 2024 COLLECTIONS  
Balmain Creative Director: Olivier Rousteing 
Episode Direction and Production: Seb Lascoux 
Balmain Historian: Julia Guillon 
Episode Coordination: Jeremy Mace 
Webpage Layout and Coordination: Léa Bouyssou 
Olivier Rousteing was interviewed by John Gilligan 
 
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“My last runway surprised more than a few,” explains Olivier Rousteing. “Coverage of previous Balmain shows often focused on the fashion-week festivals and spectacles—but for our Fall 2023 Balmain Women’s designs, my team and I were determined to steer clear of the fireworks. Instead, we shone a single, perfectly directed spotlight upon the extraordinary possibilities offered to us whenever we celebrate this house’s rich heritage. We turned the volume way down, channeling the hushed atmosphere of Pierre Balmain’s intimate post-war couture salon presentations. By limiting the number of invitees, we allowed each guest the opportunity to better appreciate, close-up, just how our atelier’s impressive craftsmanship made possible the collection’s many surprising, fresh and modern spins on our founder’s signature silhouettes and this house’s most cherished codes. 
For this episode, Olivier Rousteing sits down once again with John Gilligan for a conversation about his Balmain Fall 2023 designs for men and women. Rousteing also explains the origins and inspirations for a special joint couture collection that he created in partnership with Beyoncé: The Beyoncé x Balmain Renaissance Collection. 
As you listen to this episode, we invite you to click here to open a special webpage, which will allow you to scroll through videos and images of each collection, as Olivier Rousteing explains the inspirations, details and presentations of his designs. 
CREDITS L’ATELIER BALMAIN EPISODE 2.7 
  
OLIVIER ROUSTEING: MY BALMAIN FALL 2023 COLLECTIONS 
Balmain Creative Director: Olivier Rousteing 
Episode Direction and Production: Seb Lascoux 
Balmain Historian: Julia Guillon 
Episode Coordination: Jeremy Mace 
Webpage Layout and Coordination: Léa Bouyssou 
Olivier Rousteing was interviewed by John Gilligan 
 
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For this episode, Vogue Writer and Editor Lynn Yaeger returns to explain why she is so inspired by the fascinating life of Josephine Baker. 
 
Born into a life of poverty, segregation and racial violence in Saint Louis, Josephine Baker managed to escape what seemed to have been her destiny—eventually transforming herself, through determination and talent, into the glamorous toast of Europe. She starred in successful movies, performed on the stages of the most important theaters and released a string of musical hits—some of which are now French classics. 
 
But, as Yaeger is very happy to let us know, Baker was so much more than a star. She was also a decorated war hero, bravely volunteering to work as a French spy during World War II. In later years, she would return to America to enlist in another battle: the Reverend Martin Luther King’s movement for civil rights. 
 
Josephine Baker was also a great inspiration for Pierre Balmain, who dressed Baker for several of her most legendary mid-century performances. Today, the house of Balmain is celebrated for its love of building upon the impressive power that results when music and fashion are connected. And that singular passion for weaving the two arts together began many decades ago, with Pierre Balmain’s stunning creations for one of the house’s original muses, Josephine Baker.
 
We invite you to click to open the episode’s special webpage, which will allow you to scroll through videos and images of Josephine Baker.
CREDITS L’ATELIER BALMAIN EPISODE 2.6
 
JOSEPHINE BAKER: SUPERSTAR, WAR HERO, ACTIVIST AND BALMAIN MUSE
Balmain Creative Director: Olivier Rousteing
Episode Direction and Production: Seb Lascoux
Balmain Historian: Julia Guillon
Episode Coordination: Jeremy Mace
Webpage Layout and Coordination: Léa Bouyssou
Episode researched, written and presented by John Gilligan
Special Podcast Guest: Lynn Yaeger
 
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Pierre Balmain’s early architectural training was clearly reflected in his distinctive mastery of haute couture’s volumes and strict tailoring. It also pushed him to partner with leading architects of his day on the construction of impressive structures, most notably Villa Balmain, the designer's extraordinary retreat on the Isle of Elba.
For Miami’s Art Week, Cuban artist Alexandre Arrechea has created “Hexagon Garden” in collaboration with LITO, a reimagined vision of Pierre Balmain’s beloved island get-away, with Arrechea transporting that sleek mid-century residence to a fascinating new location, set deep within the metaverse.
As Arrechea explains, inside his new, dreamlike universe, he’s played with important house symbols—bees and gems—as Villa Balmain’s bees carry a singularly precious pollen—dazzling gems—from the surrounding lush grounds into the artist’s hexagon gardens—honeycombs—that Arrechea has placed around and within the villa’s sleek walls. Ultimately, the bees create compelling shimmering variations on the architectural masks that Arrechea has explored in previous works.
We invite you to click to open the episode’s special webpage, which will allow you to scroll through videos and images of Villa Balmain and Alexandre Arrechea’s creations, powered by LITO Hi-Rnd© Technology.
CREDITS L’ATELIER BALMAIN EPISODE 2.5
VILLA BALMAIN: BEES, GEMS AND HEXAGON GARDEN
Balmain Creative Director: Olivier Rousteing
Episode Direction and Production: Seb Lascoux
Balmain Historian: Julia Guillon
Episode Coordination: Jeremy Mace
Webpage Layout and Coordination: Léa Bouyssou
Episode researched, written and presented by John Gilligan
 
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As we wrap up our series of in-depth conversations with Olivier Rousteing about his ten years of guiding Balmain, John Gilligan sits down again with Rousteing to talk about the Creative Director’s favorite house moments of the past decade. From a beautiful classical ballet at the Paris Opera House to two incredible weekends at Coachella, Rousteing walks us through his inspirations, motivations and creations, helping us to better understand some of Balmain’s most notable one-of-a-kind collaborations, events and messages. 
 
We invite you to click to open the episode’s special webpage, which will allow you to scroll through videos and images of the images and videos that Olivier Rousteing will be discussing during this episode. 
CREDITS L’ATELIER BALMAIN EPISODE 2.4
THE ROUSTEING ERA: THE KEY MOMENTS
Balmain Creative Director: Olivier Rousteing
Episode Direction and Production: Seb Lascoux
Balmain Historian: Julia Guillon
Episode Coordination: Jeremy Mace
Webpage Layout and Coordination: Léa Bouyssou
Episode researched, written and presented by John Gilligan
 
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For Olivier Rousteing, a house campaign marks the final creative moment of the season’s collection. And Rousteing is continually searching out surprising, engaging, and entertaining tools—new visions, new platforms—that he can rely on to ensure that each of his campaigns leaves a memorable impression. In this third episode of l’Atelier Balmain’s second season, we continue our series of conversations with Balmain’s creative director about his ten years of guiding the house, with Rousteing focusing on his favorite Balmain campaigns of the past decade, sharing the inspirations, challenges and stories behind his most successful campaigns.
 
We invite you to click to open the episode’s special webpage, which will allow you to scroll through videos and images of the images and videos that Olivier Rousteing will be discussing during this episode.
 
 
CREDITS L’ATELIER BALMAIN EPISODE 2.3
THE ROUSTEING ERA: THE KEY CAMPAIGNS
Balmain Creative Director: Olivier Rousteing
Episode Direction and Production: Seb Lascoux
Balmain Historian: Julia Guillon
Episode Coordination: Jeremy Mace
Webpage Layout and Coordination: Léa Bouyssou
Episode researched, written and presented by John Gilligan
 
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