“Balenciaga -Kublin: A Fashion Record”

Cristóbal Balenciaga in his salon at 10 Avenue George V, photography by Tom Kublin, Paris 1957 Courtesy Cristóbal Balenciaga Balenciaga Museum, Getaria, Spain

It is common for a fashion photographer to be associated with a specific house or designer. Between the 1950s and the 1960s, Balenciaga’s image was defined by one photographer, Tom Kublin (Zalaszentgrot, 1924—Locarno, 1966). He is hailed as the “Father of High Fashion Photography” and one of the most illustrious fashion photographers of the twentieth century.

Tom Kublin behind the Camera, 1965, Courtesy Maria Kublin

Kublin first shot Balenciaga’s designs in 1954 for the British edition of Harper’s Bazaar. In the same year, he started photographing for the Balenciaga house and established a friendship with the couturier. The two had much in common: both were perfectionists and had to flee their war-torn countries. The collaboration continued until the photographer’s sudden death in 1966.

While working in Switzerland, Kublin discovered the local textile industry and worked for over two decades for the exclusive Abraham silk company. This association with Abraham, a supplier of the leading Haute Couture houses, put Kublin in contact with Cristóbal Balenciaga in the mid-1950s.

Katinka wearing Yves Saint Laurent, fabric by Abraham & Cie, 1965, photograph by Tom Kublin, courtesy of Maria Kublin

Kublin is best known for his photographs and fashion films for Balenciaga, but he also worked with Givenchy, Yves Saint Laurent, and Chanel. His inner circle included creatives like Marc Chagall, Diana Vreeland, and legendary Harper’s Bazaar art director Alexey Brodovitch.

“The Great Kublin was a master. He went deep into the essence of an image to find and convey the chemistry within for the onlooker and the object being photographed. When you go through this book, you are astounded by the how and what he has captured. It is our bible, for those beholding this church.” – Ralph Rucci

Balenciaga photograph by Tom Kublin, November 1963, Harper’s Bazaar US Courtesy Hearst Magazine Media Inc

Balenciaga – Kublin: A Fashion Record is the first book to document Kublin’s short yet prolific career and celebrate his creative union with Cristóbal Balenciaga during the fashion house’s postwar heyday in Paris.

Balenciaga Kublin A Fashion History, Courtesy of Thames & Hudson

Published by Thames & Hudson, the 194-page photography tome will be released on September 26 in Europe and October 22 in the US. It can be pre-ordered on Amazon.com for $75. The edition is filled with over 140 photographs, covers, and editorials from high-profile magazines, film stills (some show Balenciaga at work), and film footage that perfectly captures the elegance of the collection shoots and the golden age of Balenciaga couture in the 1950s and 1960s.

Maria Kublin, Courtesy of Maria Kublin

Ana Balda, a fashion curator, wrote the biography with contributions by Miren Vives, head of the Cristóbal Balenciaga Museum. Maria Kublin, an independent art curator, wrote the forward. She is the daughter of Tom Kublin and Katinka Bleeker, a fashion model, wife, and muse to her photographer husband.

November 1958, Harper’s Bazaar UK, Courtesy Hearst Magazine UK

I was introduced to Maria by Ralph Rucci, an avowed Balenciaga devotee. While Maria and I did not meet in person, we connected by phone and email. Maria lives in Amsterdam and works as an independent curator.

Balenciaga, 1955 photograph by Tom Kublin, Courtesy Abraham Textile Archive, Swiss national Museum, Zurich

She has curated many art and photography exhibitions. She co-curated “Tom Kublin for Balenciaga: An Unusual Collaboration” with Ana Balda, which ran from June 2022 to November 2022 at the Cristóbal Balenciaga Museum in Getaria, Spain.

Balenciaga, July 1964, Harper’s Bazaar US, photograph by Tom Kublin, Courtesy Hearst Magazine Media Inc.

Maria views the book as a natural follow-up to this exhibition, which presented a vast and comprehensive selection of Kublin’s extensive work for Balenciaga, with more than 100 glamourous ultra-stylized photographs and 5 film excerpts. Many of the photos portray models posing from the front, back, and profile, holding the number of the design in their hands.

Balenciaga, photograph by Tom Kublin, Courtesy Balenciaga Archives Paris

Kublin would photograph the designs of each House of Balenciaga collection for copyright protection, as was the custom in Parisian haute couture. The illegal production of copycat garments was a real threat to business. A complete photographic record of every look in a collection was a way for a house to record copyright in its original designs.

“Although my father’s style evolved with time, his vision and clarity of purpose remained. He always wanted to get to the essence of the clothing through his photographs.” – Maria Kublin

Maria admits to having a very unusual upbringing. She was exposed to high fashion very young and was always mesmerized by fashion magazines, but her interest in fashion photography blossomed during the pandemic.

Balenciaga, 1955 Photograph by Tom Kublin, Courtesy of Abraham Textile Archive, Swiss National Museum, Zurich

Maria had a lot of time to pour through her father’s photographs and was struck by their simplistic, timeless elegance. “Photography is so much more than just a picture of a gown. You can see the woman’s role evolving in fashion photography,” says Maria.

Balenciaga 1955, photograph by Tom Kublin, Courtesy Abraham Textile Archive, Swiss National Museum, Zurich

Maria admits that talking about her father is emotional because she never knew him. Tom passed away in 1966 at the age of 42, just a few months before she was born. Everything Maria knows about her late father, who was born into a middle-class family in Hungary and showed an aptitude for photography as a young boy, has been passed on by her mother, Katinka, and grandmother.

Katinka June 1965, Harper’s Bazaar, US Courtesy Hearst Magazine Media Inc.

Katinka appears in many of Kublin’s most iconic, instantly recognizable photographs. A former Miss Holland and Ford model, Katikina retired from modeling in the 70’s and became a stylist. Katinka is 85 years old and lives in Amsterdam, where her daughter Maria resides.

Portrait of muse Katinka by Tom Kublin, courtesy of Maria Kublin

When I asked Maria if she had a favorite photo of her father, she quickly answered yes. It’s the one of her mother wearing a large black Balenciaga silk tulle and organza hat that half-shadows her face. The photo is stylized, elegant, and very captivating, and it also happens to be her mother’s favorite.

Marilyn Kirschner

I am a long time fashion editor with 40+ years of experience. As senior market of Harper's Bazaar for 21 years I met and worked with every major fashion designer in the world and covered all of the collections in Paris, London, Milan and New York. I was responsible for overall content, finding and pulling in the best clothes out there, and for formulating ideas and stories.

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