An exploration of Peter Knapp's landmark 1965 photography for Elle, capturing Andre Courreges' revolutionary shift toward functional, liberating fashion for women.
Revisiting one of the most radical visual milestones in the history of fashion more than five decades later might seem like a simple trip down memory lane, but photographer Peter Knapp is doing far more than evoking nostalgia.
He is presenting a profound exploration of his legendary images of Andre Courreges, specifically focusing on the iconic series captured with a Hasselblad camera in January 1965 for the French publication Elle. This exhibition brings together a curated selection of his most influential works, complemented by archival materials and original garments from the collection that once shook the foundations of the industry. The story behind these images is one of extreme pressure and brilliant improvisation.
Knapp recalls that the issue of Elle had already been sent to the printers when journalists witnessed the spring collection. The reaction was instantaneous and chaotic; editors were thrown into a state of frenzy, declaring the collection a revolution and demanding an immediate overhaul of the magazine. Ten pages were scrapped and replaced in a matter of hours. Working in a darkened studio, Knapp had to shoot twelve dresses with almost no time.
Drawing inspiration from the contemporary space race between the United States and the Soviet Union, he created a makeshift apparatus using a two-meter-high stand and a bicycle seat to perch his models. By manually cutting and assembling photomontages, he depicted women floating in a dark, weightless void, simulating a journey to the moon. This imagery did not just capture clothes; it captured the zeitgeist of an era obsessed with the future.
The result was a paradigm shift that challenged the traditional codes of haute couture. While the collection was famously dubbed the bombe Courreges, Knapp argues that the true revolution lay in the designer's commitment to function over mere fashion. For decades, the female silhouette had been defined by the post-war New Look, characterized by the restrictive waists and slim proportions championed by figures like Christian Dior and Coco Chanel.
Courreges, however, approached clothing from an entirely different angle, prioritizing how a woman moved over how she appeared to a static observer. This philosophy was born from Courreges' observations during a trip to Los Angeles, where he noticed women running on the beach with the same freedom and ease as men. He realized that women's clothing was an obstacle to their autonomy. To rectify this, he introduced shorter skirts, flat shoes, and tights, stripping away unnecessary constraints.
He believed that the body should be free, arguing that a woman could not walk with the same purpose as a man if her skirt was too long. He even designed dresses to be so well-cut that restrictive undergarments like bras became unnecessary. This utility-driven approach set him apart from contemporaries like Mary Quant; while Quant's miniskirts were symbols of youth rebellion, Courreges' designs were tools for liberation.
This shift was mirrored in his choice of models, who were not merely fit but were often athletic women, such as marathon runners, embodying a new image of the active, muscular woman on the move. Knapp's photographic approach was deeply intertwined with Courreges' architectural sensibility. Influenced by the minimalist and graphic styles of Le Corbusier and Piet Mondrian, Knapp moved away from the static, information-heavy poses that had dominated fashion photography.
He sought to capture the essence of motion, believing that clothing looked better when influenced by the wind or the action of stepping out of a car. His work bridged the gap between commercial photography and fine art, creating images that were as much about composition and geometry as they were about apparel. The collaboration between Knapp and Courreges spanned decades, evolving into a lifelong friendship that lasted until the designer's death in 2016.
Reflecting on these images today, Knapp finds that they maintain a striking modernity. He notes that the boundary between fashion photography and fine art has blurred over time, suggesting that after a certain period, the commercial origin of a photo becomes secondary to its quality as art. He compares this phenomenon to the works of Bugatti, whose cars and furniture are now revered as museum pieces.
In the end, the collaboration between Knapp and Courreges was not just about creating a trend, but about documenting a fundamental change in the way women interacted with the world and their own bodies
Andre Courreges Peter Knapp Space Age Fashion Fashion Photography 60S Design
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