November 05, 2023

Robin Givhan on The Battle of Versailles, a Night Where American Fashion Cemented Its Place in the Global Conversation 50 Years Ago This Month

39 minutes

From beauty in our last throwback pick episode to fashion in this one, I have another of my heroes, Robin Givhan, on the program today. Robin is a fashion critic at The Washington Post and is a Pulitzer Prize winner, having won the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism in 2006—the first time that award was given to a fashion writer. Just as she herself has made history, her 2015 book The Battle of Versailles: The Night American Fashion Stumbled into the Spotlight and Made History talks about a night that was so culturally impactful it forever changed the history of fashion, specifically American fashion. The Battle of Versailles took place 50 years ago this month, and saw five French designers (Yves Saint Laurent, Pierre Cardin, Emanuel Ungaro, Marc Bohan, and Hubert de Givenchy) pitted against five American designers (Oscar de la Renta, Stephen Burrows, Halston, Bill Blass, and Anne Klein) in a competition concocted to raise money for the restoration of the Palace of Versailles. The deck was more than stacked against the American fashion designers—it was all but assured that victory would go to the French. But then, lo and behold, the Americans stole the show, and not just the American fashion industry but the global fashion industry changed forever. It is a fantastic conversation about a game-changing moment in history with one of the most respected journalists in the fashion stratosphere. I can’t wait for you to listen.

The Battle of Versailles: The Night American Fashion Stumbled Into the Spotlight and Made History by Robin Givhan

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