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An unprecedented sale of more than
600 items of clothes and furnishings by avant-garde French
designer Paul Poiret fetched more than €1.8-million organisers
said on Thursday.
"We had an extremely enthusiastic
public, and the sale finished with loud applause obviously
meant for Paul and Denise Poiret," auctioneer Pierre-Emmanuel
Audap told AFP.
He spent three years organising the sale
after being contacted by Poiret's granddaughter Sophie,
in whose house the collection dating from 1905 to 1928
had lain undisturbed for several decades.
Poiret revolutionised fashion
It was the first sale of its kind of
designs by Poiret, who revolutionised the world of fashion
in the early 20th century by casting off women's tight
corsets in favour of flowing dresses, often in bold, dramatic
prints.
The entire collection had belonged to
his wife and muse, Denise, who after divorcing her husband
in 1928 kept everything intact before passing it down
to her daughter, and then granddaughter.
World records set
Two world records for clothing were set
during the two-day sale at the Drouot-Richelieu showrooms
in Paris.
A striking 1914 blue and white car coat
set a new record for 20th-century couturier fashion when
it sold for more than €130 000, including costs, on Wednesday.
A pair of beaded evening shoes featuring
images of a man on one foot and a woman on the other went
for €40 912 on Tuesday — a new record for the auction
of shoes.
Many overseas collectors
Despite interest from French museums
and fashion lovers, Audap confirmed that many of the more
expensive items had been snapped up by overseas collectors
and museums.
Among the bidders for the collection
were the Metropolitan Museum and the Fashion Institute
of Technology, both in New York, along with the Fine Art
Museum in San Francisco, the Brussels Museum, the Fashion
Museum in Chile and the Louis Vuitton Museum.
"Yes, a lot of things have gone
abroad, but that's for the best as it helps to spread
French culture, whereas here we tend to bury things away
in the cellar," Audap said.
"I'm very happy that items have
gone to museums in America, Switzerland and others. They
will be kept in a good condition. And the greatness of
France is linked to that."
French museums however did take out options
on many smaller items.
"French couturiers also bought quite
a few things and others bought small things as souvenirs,"
Audap added.
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