Thursday, March 28

Sybilla, the invisible thread of fashion


Sybilla ‘Spain’ dress, in silk crepe. / rc

A retrospective reviews the designer’s career, from her beginnings in La Movida to her international triumph

Glory Salgado

The ‘Spain’ dress is one of the most iconic pieces in fashion history. Made in 1996 by Sybilla, it is a masterpiece praised by colleagues such as Jean Paul Gaultier. The French dressmaker selected the garment for his ‘Cinema and Fashion’ exhibition, next to which he placed a sign in which he stated: “I would have loved it if it had occurred to me.” The dress is made with a complex technique in which the pieces of the chest are joined with nylon thread, ‘the invisible thread’ that gives its name to the retrospective exhibition on the work of the American designer, nationalized Spanish, Sybilla Sorondo Mielzynska (New York, 1963).

But not only because of the extraordinary use of that very resistant elastic filament that is nylon, has the name been given to the sample. Laura Cerrato, curator of the exhibition, wanted to delve into why the designer is recognized “when the Sybilla of the 80s, the Sybilla of the 90s and the Sybilla of 2014 -when she returned to fashion after a time away from the industry- They are so different in colors, in cuts, in proposals, in fabrics. What this exhibition aims to resolve are those common codes, that invisible thread that connects her 40-year career».

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The first point in common in all his work is photography. «Sybilla always feels that the piece is finished when the photography is done, because images appear to her while she is working on a garment and then she seeks the support of the photographers to translate those visions». A fundamental link with the world of art. «She makes a garment as if it were a canvas, painting on the fabric. She also -she adds- the sculptural is essential to be able to mold and give volume to the suits, as well as the architectural », achieving complex structures through pattern making. “There is another code that cuts across the others,” explains the fashion curator and historian, which is “that the pieces are transformable to give them versatility.”

A universe that of Sybilla in which complex pairings appear, not always opposite, but difficult to combine, such as the artisan and the industrial. To help understand and contextualize this work, ‘Sybilla, the invisible thread’ emerges, located in the Sala Canal de Isabel II, in Madrid, which can be seen until January 15, 2023. It includes pieces of different kinds, support and format , from the designer’s garments to the images of her collections, their catalogues, invitations, fashion shows and press articles.

His work is considered the arrival of modernity in the field of design in Spain. He began his career in 1982, being part of the movement known as La Movida. At the end of the 1980s, he signed contracts in Italy -specifically, with Gibo, the same company that produced Jean Paul Gaultier, John Galliano or Alexander McQueen- and Japan, making the leap to international fashion with a brutal expansion.

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It is worth noting his commitment to sustainability, which has been present since almost the beginning of his career, at a time when very few names in the industry were reflecting on such a topical issue today.

Now, Sybilla is in a period of active reflection, as she continues to collaborate with Japan, a country that knew how to market her entire conceptual side. There she produces three brands that include lines of ‘prêt-à-porter’, decoration and accessories, with more than 40 points of sale. “I think it’s a longer marriage,” says Cerrato about her collaboration with the Japanese company Itokin, which began in 1989. Meanwhile, the curator confesses, “she is thinking of opening a small tailor-made clothing and bridal workshop because He really likes dealing with clients.”


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