Slava Zaitsev
Encyclopedia
Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Zaitsev , more commonly known as Slava Zaitsev , born 2 March 1938 in Ivanovo
, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
, is a Russian
fashion designer, painter
, graphic artist and theatrical costume designer.
to Mikhail Yakovlevich Zaitsev and Maria Ivanovna Zaitseva. His father was a victim of the repressions of Joseph Stalin
and was incarcerated in one of Stalin's camps, and his mother was a cleaner and laundress. From 19451952 he studied Secondary School № 22 in Ivanovo. As his father was deemed by the State to be an Enemy of the people
, Zaitsev was denied the opportunity to study at an industrial academy, a theatrical school and a pilot training school.
In 1952 he began studies in the Faculty of Applied Arts at the University of Chemistry and Technology in Ivanovo, and during this time he became interested in manufacturing and received the credentials to become a textile artist. He graduated, with honours, from the university in 1956. After realising that working with textiles was his dream, he moved to Moscow
in 1956, and commenced studies at the Moscow Textile Institute, from which he graduated in 1962 with a Bachelor's degree
in painting and designing. Whilst he was studying at the Institute, he married Marina Vladimirovna Zaitseva in 1959, and fathered a son, Yegor Vyacheslavovich Zaitsev, in 1960.
During the Soviet era, haute couture
was dominated by Zaitsev and Valentin Yudashkin
, and he was compared to other world-renowned fashion designers such as Christian Lacroix
, Christian Dior
, Pierre Cardin
, and Yves Saint Laurent, Zaitsev was seen as being to compete with Western designers, however, under the communist regime, the only country outside of the USSR where Zaitsev was able to work was Czechoslovakia
. Alexandre Vassiliev, a Russian-born, Paris-based fashion historian and designer, stated that "(i)f he had had a chance to show his collections abroad he would have been most possibly a world-famed brand."
In March 1962, he began work as the artistic director of «Experimental technical garment factory «Mosoblsovnarkhoza», where he oversaw production of women's clothing for retail stores in Moscow
and the surrounding region. Zaitsev came to attention in 1963 when he designed a chic
version of the telogreika
, Pavlovsky Posad
shawl
-inspired skirts and multi-coloured valenki
for kolkhoz
workers. Whilst his creations were lauded by the authorities for "sparkling with all colours of the rainbow", his collection was not approved for production by the Methodical Council. In February 1963, Paris Match
became the first foreign media outlet to profile Zaitsev, and highly rated his collection.
In March 1965 Zaitsev became the Chief Designer at the All-Union Fashion House, which was also known as Dom Modeli, on Kuznetsky Most
. In April 1965 Pierre Cardin
, Marc Bohan
(then with Dior) and Guy Laroche
visited Moscow and became familiar with Zaitsev's works, although Zaitsev wasn't present, and was covered in an article of Paris Match. Pierre Cardin
called Zaitsev an "equal among equals", and the French press dubbed him the Red Dior Between 19651968 Zaitsev's works, dubbed the Russian series, were displayed abroad.
He resigned from the All-Union Fashion House in 1978, and began to work out of a small studio. His mother, with whom he had a great affinity died in the same year, and after her death he took up the writing of poetry
. Zaitsev designed a collection of costumes for the Soviet team for the 1980 Summer Olympics
which were held in Moscow
, for which he was awarded the Order of the Badge of Honor
. He authored two books in 1980, "Such Changeable Fashion" and "This Multifaceted World of Fashion" , which were republished in Bulgaria
and Czechoslovakia
in 1983.
In 1982 he transformed his studio into the «Slava Zaitsev» Moscow Fashion House , also known as Dom Modi, becoming the first Soviet couturier
who was permitted by the Soviet Government
to label his own clothing. By the mid-1980s, Dom Modi employed 600 civil servants and was required to produce some 2 million rubles
worth of clothing each year. In 1984 it was reported that Dom Modi had served 10,000 customers, and prices ranged from US$170 to US$260 for prêt-à-porter dresses, and up to US$1000 for haute couture
gowns. Zaitsev met with Thierry Mugler
in 1985 in Moscow, and the French couturier photographed Zaitsev's fashions for an article in Paris Match.
Raisa Gorbachyova
wore Zaitsev creations when she made what The New York Times
described as a "perestroika
splash" in the 1980s. Due to the patronage
of the Soviet First Lady, he gained a reputation as one of the world's hottest fashion designers, and became an international celebrity in his own right and a household name in Russia
. Zaitsev fashions were displayed at Expo '85
in Tsukuba
, Japan
, although it wasn't until 1986 when he was able to visit a capitalist country when he displayed some of his works in the Soviet pavilion at Expo 86
in Vancouver
, Canada
.
A member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
, Zaitsev affirmed his belief in the Soviet Union and the future of communism, including the communist ideals of a workers' paradise. The New York Times reported that by the 1980s, he became dillusioned with the Party. Zaitsev told the newspaper that at mandatory party meetings he "began to defend the right to be free, as it says in the Communist charter. They constantly tried to distract me, not to let me get in. I'd be stuck in the elevator or I'd be sent off to some other event." This dissillusionment led to Zaitsev quitting the party in the late 1980s.
Zaitsev often complained to the Soviet authorities about the lack of essential materials for his craft, which The New York Times noted in 1988 that he "until recently" was forced to use dressmaker's mannequin
s from World War II
. Zaitsev signed a three year contract with Intertorg Inc. in August 1987, which saw Dom Modi selling its designs in the United States
, with profits going to the design house rather than the Soviet Treasury. The contract was the first commercial consumer venture signed between the two countries. In October 1987 he showed his collection at the iconic Waldorf-Astoria in New York City
, which critics called overwrought, out-of-date and reminiscent of Western fashion from several seasons earlier. Undiscouraged, Zaitsev said that he planned to return with a "pared-down, sexier collection". He returned to New York
in 1988 where he designed costumes for the musical
revue
Sophisticated Ladies
, based on the music of Duke Ellington
. Participation in his first Paris
fashion show
s came in January 1988 at the invitation of Madame Carven, whom Zaitsev met in Moscow in December 1987, showing his collection under the banner of "Russian Seasons". He also joined the Maison de Couture and was made an honorary citizen of Paris, by then Mayor Jacques Chirac
. The following year in March, Maison de Couture named Zaitsev as "Man of the Year in the World of Fashion"
In September 1989, Zaitsev showed his collections in West Germany
for the first time under the theme "Fashion and Music Revue '90", and in December 1989 he won first prize at "Five top fashion designers in the world-90" in Tokyo
, Japan
, where he was competing against Donna Karan
, Claude Montana
, Hanae Mori
and Byblos
.
, which as a state employee he earned the maximum of 1,000 rubles
per month, after the collapse of the Soviet Union
he became responsible for financing the business out of his private income, with New Russians making up the bulk of his clientele. In 1991 he designed a new uniform for the Russian police, and was bestowed the title of Honored Worker in the Field of the Arts. By 1992, Jane Fonda
, Ted Turner
and Herb Ritts
were amongst celebrities who became customers of Zaitsev, and in the same year Zaitsev launched a women's perfume
named Maroussia, in conjunction with French-based
L'Oréal
. The perfume which is classified as a floral oriental and is still in production, was launched in a few Europe
an countries in 1992 and was launched worldwide in 1993.
1992 was also a significant year in Zaitsev's career, because it was then that he presented for the first time his recent fashion collection, as well as his paintings and works on paper in prestigious venues, both in New York and in Beverly Hills. Never before was Russian fashion design demonstrated on the American runways, and never before were Zaitsev's most personal paintings and drawings allowed to be exhibited in the West. Fashion shows and exhibitions were held at the Bowles-Sorokko Galleries
on both the East and the West Coasts, and they were widely attended, marking the beginning of cultural exchanges in the area of visual arts between the USA and the new Russia. According to Serge Sorokko
, then president of the Bowles-Sorokko Galleries, Mr. Zaitsev was a lifelong painter, but was never free to exhibit publicly his art before. "[That was] because his work was outside the dogmas of socialist realism," Mr. Sorokko told The New York Times
. "He was permitted to paint only for his own soul. When I visited his home in Moscow, I saw 20 years of pictorial work on his walls."
In 1994, Zaitsev hosted the inaugural Nadezhda Lamanova Prize competition for professional Russian designers at Dom Modi, and the competition has been held under his patronage since. In 1996 he launched a competition in Russia, using the slogan of "Goodbye Barbie
, welcome Maroussia", to find the "purest essence of" female adolescence, with the aim of decreasing the influence of the American
doll in Russia. In Zaitsev's words, "Barbie is rigid, cold, cynical, pragmatic. Now look at the faces of our children... they are not only beautiful, but sweet, charming and mysterious. In every face there's a secret, and so must the new Russian doll". Also in 1996, a follow-up to 1992s Maroussia, a floriental fragrance named Authentic Maroussia was launched but has since been discontinued.
Zaitsev was the tailor to Vladimir Zhirinovsky
for his 1996 Russian presidential campaign
. Zaitsev, who planned to vote for Boris Yeltsin
, stated on Zhirinovsky, "He wanted something distinctly Russian, so I thought back to the military-style jackets of the 20s, the 30slike Stalin, only in new colours". On 27 May 1996, President of Russia Boris Yeltsin
awarded Zaitsev the State Prize of the Russian Federation
in the field of literature and the arts. In 1996, Zaitsev was also made an honorary citizen of the city of his birth, Ivanovo
.
His 2001 collection entitled Dedication saw the most expensive dresses costing between $10,00012,000, whilst the cheapest were in the $2,0003,000 price range.
When then-President of Russia Vladimir Putin
was due to travel on a state visit
to the United Kingdom
in June 2003, Zaitsev designed attire for First Lady of Russia Lyudmila Putina
to wear for the visit, which included an audience with Queen Elizabeth II. Zaitsev told Zhizn
that it took some time to convince Putina to wear a hat, due to Russian women in general not wearing them.
By February 2005, Zaitsev had opened 4 «Слава Зайцев. Men’s wear» stores in Ryazan
, Ufa
, Orenburg
and Samara
. The New York Times described Zaitsev in 2004 as one of the few Soviet icons who is still an icon in modern-day Russia, and Time Magazine reported in 2007 that the Zaitsev name has 93% brand awareness in Russia. In 2007 Kommersant
commissioned VCIOM
to run a poll on public perception as to the make-up of the Russian elite; Zaitsev, who is often referred to as the Patriarch
of Russian fashion, was rated at 74.
Zaitsev is not interested in achieving worldwide renown by showing his creations abroad, preferring to stay true to his Russian
roots and encourages other Russian designers not to be influenced by the West. Zaitsev was quoted by Women's Wear Daily
in April 2008 as saying:
In 2007 Zaitsev took part in the TV show "Fashion Sentence" on Channel One
, in which he acted as a judge passing down sentence on contestant's fashion sense. After visiting Ashgabat in June 2008 for the Turkmen Textile Exhibition, Zaitsev stated that he was fascinated by traditional Turkmen
clothing, and announced plans for a new collection which would incorporate traditional Turkmen elements. The casual wear collection is to be made exclusively from cotton from Turkmenistan
and would feature the traditional Turkmen embroidery
which captured his imagination. In September 2008, Zaitsev participated in "The Russian Evening-2008" at the Institute for International Political Studies
in Milan
, which was attended by Svetlana Medvedeva
and Clio Maria Bittoni, the wife of Italian President Giorgio Napolitano
.
Zaitsev has always been an admirer of the costumes sketches supplied by Pablo Picasso
and Albert Benois
, amongst others, for Sergei Diaghilev's
Paris
troupe, and to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes
, Zaitsev's collection for the 2009 Russian Fashion Week pays homage to the Russian
ballet
impresario
.
Zaitsev stated that his mother, Maria Ivanovna, was a cleaning lady and never owned a fancy dress. In 2004, the New York Times stated, "(i)t is her stolid image that he has been dressing all these years in flounces and feathers, pouf
s and peplum
s, gold and glitter." During the Soviet era, he regularly complained that he designed collections for the "larger" woman in the 1970s, but only models up to size 48 were accepted for production.
Whilst Zaitsev regards fashion designers Coco Chanel
, Christian Dior
, Gianfranco Ferré
and Hubert de Givenchy
as idols, his own creations are strongly influenced by traditional Russian and Slavic
styles, and his collections include a variety of theme-based shows reflecting his take on the industry at the time. Past collections include the Millennium of the Christianisation of Russia in 1988; Russian Seasons in Paris in 1988; Agony of Perestroika in 1991; and Recollections of the Future in 19961997. In his creations, Zaitsev includes elements such as traditional Pavlovsky Posad
shawl
s and embroidered quilted jackets, which have been featured in collections such as Expectation of Changes.
As of 2009, Dom Modi employs 500 people.
Ivanovo
Ivanovo is a city and the administrative center of Ivanovo Oblast, Russia. Population: Ivanovo has traditionally been called the textile capital of Russia. Since most textile workers are women, it has also been known as the "City of Brides"...
, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
, is a Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
fashion designer, painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, graphic artist and theatrical costume designer.
Early life
Zaitsev was born on 2 March 1938 in IvanovoIvanovo
Ivanovo is a city and the administrative center of Ivanovo Oblast, Russia. Population: Ivanovo has traditionally been called the textile capital of Russia. Since most textile workers are women, it has also been known as the "City of Brides"...
to Mikhail Yakovlevich Zaitsev and Maria Ivanovna Zaitseva. His father was a victim of the repressions of Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
and was incarcerated in one of Stalin's camps, and his mother was a cleaner and laundress. From 19451952 he studied Secondary School № 22 in Ivanovo. As his father was deemed by the State to be an Enemy of the people
Enemy of the people
The term enemy of the people is a fluid designation of political or class opponents of the group using the term. The term implies that the "enemies" in question are acting against society as a whole. It is similar to the notion of "enemy of the state". The term originated in Roman times as ,...
, Zaitsev was denied the opportunity to study at an industrial academy, a theatrical school and a pilot training school.
In 1952 he began studies in the Faculty of Applied Arts at the University of Chemistry and Technology in Ivanovo, and during this time he became interested in manufacturing and received the credentials to become a textile artist. He graduated, with honours, from the university in 1956. After realising that working with textiles was his dream, he moved to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
in 1956, and commenced studies at the Moscow Textile Institute, from which he graduated in 1962 with a Bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in painting and designing. Whilst he was studying at the Institute, he married Marina Vladimirovna Zaitseva in 1959, and fathered a son, Yegor Vyacheslavovich Zaitsev, in 1960.
Career in the Soviet Union
Haute couture
Haute couture refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing. Haute couture is made to order for a specific customer, and it is usually made from high-quality, expensive fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable seamstresses,...
was dominated by Zaitsev and Valentin Yudashkin
Valentin Yudashkin
Valentin Abramovich Yudashkin is a Russian fashion designer. His designs have been exhibited in museums such as the Louvre Museum of Fashion in Paris, the California Museum of Fashion in Los Angeles, the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and the State Historical Museum in Moscow...
, and he was compared to other world-renowned fashion designers such as Christian Lacroix
Christian Lacroix
Christian Marie Marc Lacroix is a French fashion designer. The name may also refer to the company he founded.-Early life:Lacroix was born in Arles, Bouches-du-Rhône in southern France. At a young age he began sketching historical costumes and fashions. Lacroix graduated from high school in 1969...
, Christian Dior
Christian Dior
Christian Dior , was a French fashion designer, best known as the founder of one of the world's top fashion houses, also called Christian Dior.-Life:...
, Pierre Cardin
Pierre Cardin
Pierre Cardin Cardin was known for his avant-garde style and his Space Age designs. He prefers geometric shapes and motifs, often ignoring the female form. He advanced into unisex fashions, sometimes experimental, and not always practical...
, and Yves Saint Laurent, Zaitsev was seen as being to compete with Western designers, however, under the communist regime, the only country outside of the USSR where Zaitsev was able to work was Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. Alexandre Vassiliev, a Russian-born, Paris-based fashion historian and designer, stated that "(i)f he had had a chance to show his collections abroad he would have been most possibly a world-famed brand."
In March 1962, he began work as the artistic director of «Experimental technical garment factory «Mosoblsovnarkhoza», where he oversaw production of women's clothing for retail stores in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
and the surrounding region. Zaitsev came to attention in 1963 when he designed a chic
Chic (style)
Chic , meaning 'stylish' or 'smart', is an element of fashion.-Etymology:Chic is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s...
version of the telogreika
Telogreika
Telogreika is a type of winter uniform first issued by the Red Army during the German-Soviet War. Telogreikas continued to be issued until the late 1960s.- Variations :...
, Pavlovsky Posad
Pavlovsky Posad
Pavlovsky Posad is a town and the administrative center of Pavlovo-Posadsky District of Moscow Oblast, Russia, located from Moscow, at the confluence of the Klyazma and the Vokhna Rivers. Population: The Moscow–Vladimir railway goes through the town....
shawl
Shawl
A shawl is a simple item of clothing, loosely worn over the shoulders, upper body and arms, and sometimes also over the head. It is usually a rectangular or square piece of cloth, that is often folded to make a triangle but can also be triangular in shape...
-inspired skirts and multi-coloured valenki
Valenki
Valenki are traditional Russian winter footwear, essentially felt boots: the name valenok literally means "made by felting". Valenki are made of wool felt. They are not water-resistant, and are often worn with galoshes to keep water out and protect the soles from wear and tear...
for kolkhoz
Kolkhoz
A kolkhoz , plural kolkhozy, was a form of collective farming in the Soviet Union that existed along with state farms . The word is a contraction of коллекти́вное хозя́йство, or "collective farm", while sovkhoz is a contraction of советское хозяйство...
workers. Whilst his creations were lauded by the authorities for "sparkling with all colours of the rainbow", his collection was not approved for production by the Methodical Council. In February 1963, Paris Match
Paris Match
Paris Match is a French weekly magazine. It covers major national and international news along with celebrity lifestyle features. It was founded in 1949 by the industrialist Jean Prouvost....
became the first foreign media outlet to profile Zaitsev, and highly rated his collection.
In March 1965 Zaitsev became the Chief Designer at the All-Union Fashion House, which was also known as Dom Modeli, on Kuznetsky Most
Kuznetsky Most
Kuznetsky Most is a street in central Moscow, that runs from Bolshaya Dmitrovka Street to Lubyanka Street. The name, literally Blacksmith's Bridge, refers to the 18th century bridge over Neglinnaya River, now running in an underground tunnel, and a nearby foundry and the settlement of its workers...
. In April 1965 Pierre Cardin
Pierre Cardin
Pierre Cardin Cardin was known for his avant-garde style and his Space Age designs. He prefers geometric shapes and motifs, often ignoring the female form. He advanced into unisex fashions, sometimes experimental, and not always practical...
, Marc Bohan
Marc Bohan
Marc Bohan is a French fashion designer.In 1945, he worked as a design assistant for Robert Piguet. In 1949, he left the Piguet couture house and worked as a design assistant for Edward Molyneux. From 1954 until 1958, Bohan worked as a designer for Jean Patou.In 1958, he joined the Christian...
(then with Dior) and Guy Laroche
Guy Laroche
Guy Laroche was a French fashion designer and founder of the eponymous company.Laroche began his career in millinery and, from 1949, Laroche worked for Jean Desses and eventually became his assistant. In 1955, he visited the US to investigate new ready-to-wear manufacturing methods...
visited Moscow and became familiar with Zaitsev's works, although Zaitsev wasn't present, and was covered in an article of Paris Match. Pierre Cardin
Pierre Cardin
Pierre Cardin Cardin was known for his avant-garde style and his Space Age designs. He prefers geometric shapes and motifs, often ignoring the female form. He advanced into unisex fashions, sometimes experimental, and not always practical...
called Zaitsev an "equal among equals", and the French press dubbed him the Red Dior Between 19651968 Zaitsev's works, dubbed the Russian series, were displayed abroad.
He resigned from the All-Union Fashion House in 1978, and began to work out of a small studio. His mother, with whom he had a great affinity died in the same year, and after her death he took up the writing of poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
. Zaitsev designed a collection of costumes for the Soviet team for the 1980 Summer Olympics
1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament...
which were held in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, for which he was awarded the Order of the Badge of Honor
Order of the Badge of Honor
The Order of the Badge of Honour was a civilian award of the Soviet Union.It was instituted on 25 November 1935 and conferred on citizens of the USSR for outstanding achievements in production, scientific research and social, cultural and other forms of social activity, for promotion of economic,...
. He authored two books in 1980, "Such Changeable Fashion" and "This Multifaceted World of Fashion" , which were republished in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
and Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
in 1983.
In 1982 he transformed his studio into the «Slava Zaitsev» Moscow Fashion House , also known as Dom Modi, becoming the first Soviet couturier
Couturier
A couturier is an establishment or person involved in the clothing fashion industry who makes original garments to order for private clients. A couturier may make what is known as haute couture. Such a person usually hires patternmakers and machinists for garment production, and is either employed...
who was permitted by the Soviet Government
Government of the Soviet Union
The Council of Ministers of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was the de jure government comprising the highest executive and administrative body of the Soviet Union from 1946 until 1991....
to label his own clothing. By the mid-1980s, Dom Modi employed 600 civil servants and was required to produce some 2 million rubles
Soviet ruble
The Soviet ruble or rouble was the currency of the Soviet Union. One ruble is divided into 100 kopeks, ....
worth of clothing each year. In 1984 it was reported that Dom Modi had served 10,000 customers, and prices ranged from US$170 to US$260 for prêt-à-porter dresses, and up to US$1000 for haute couture
Haute couture
Haute couture refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing. Haute couture is made to order for a specific customer, and it is usually made from high-quality, expensive fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable seamstresses,...
gowns. Zaitsev met with Thierry Mugler
Thierry Mugler
Thierry Mugler is a French fashion designer and creator of several perfumes.-Childhood:Mugler was born in Strasbourg, France on 21 December 1948. His passion led him to focus more on drawing than on school and at the age of 9, he began to study classical dance...
in 1985 in Moscow, and the French couturier photographed Zaitsev's fashions for an article in Paris Match.
Raisa Gorbachyova
Raisa Maximovna Gorbachova was a major fundraiser for preservation of the Russian heritage, for new talents' education and for children's blood cancer treatment programs in Russia....
wore Zaitsev creations when she made what The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
described as a "perestroika
Perestroika
Perestroika was a political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s, widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev...
splash" in the 1980s. Due to the patronage
Patronage
Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows to another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings or popes have provided to musicians, painters, and sculptors...
of the Soviet First Lady, he gained a reputation as one of the world's hottest fashion designers, and became an international celebrity in his own right and a household name in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. Zaitsev fashions were displayed at Expo '85
Expo '85
Expo '85, officially called , was a world's fair held in Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan between Sunday, March 17 and Monday, September 16, 1985. The theme of the fair was "Dwellings and Surroundings - Science and Technology for Man at Home"...
in Tsukuba
Tsukuba, Ibaraki
is a city located in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. It is known as the location of the , a planned city developed in the 1960s.As of 2008, the city has an estimated population of 207,394 and a population density of 730 persons per km². Its total area is 284.07 km².Mount Tsukuba, particularly well-known...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, although it wasn't until 1986 when he was able to visit a capitalist country when he displayed some of his works in the Soviet pavilion at Expo 86
Expo 86
The 1986 World Exposition on Transportation and Communication, or simply Expo '86, was a World's Fair held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada from Friday, May 2 until Monday, October 13, 1986...
in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
A member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...
, Zaitsev affirmed his belief in the Soviet Union and the future of communism, including the communist ideals of a workers' paradise. The New York Times reported that by the 1980s, he became dillusioned with the Party. Zaitsev told the newspaper that at mandatory party meetings he "began to defend the right to be free, as it says in the Communist charter. They constantly tried to distract me, not to let me get in. I'd be stuck in the elevator or I'd be sent off to some other event." This dissillusionment led to Zaitsev quitting the party in the late 1980s.
Zaitsev often complained to the Soviet authorities about the lack of essential materials for his craft, which The New York Times noted in 1988 that he "until recently" was forced to use dressmaker's mannequin
Mannequin
A mannequin is an often articulated doll used by artists, tailors, dressmakers, and others especially to display or fit clothing...
s from World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Zaitsev signed a three year contract with Intertorg Inc. in August 1987, which saw Dom Modi selling its designs in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, with profits going to the design house rather than the Soviet Treasury. The contract was the first commercial consumer venture signed between the two countries. In October 1987 he showed his collection at the iconic Waldorf-Astoria in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, which critics called overwrought, out-of-date and reminiscent of Western fashion from several seasons earlier. Undiscouraged, Zaitsev said that he planned to return with a "pared-down, sexier collection". He returned to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
in 1988 where he designed costumes for the musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
revue
Revue
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century American popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own during its golden years from 1916 to 1932...
Sophisticated Ladies
Sophisticated Ladies
Sophisticated Ladies is a musical revue based on the music of Duke Ellington.After fifteen previews, the Broadway production, conceived by Donald McKayle, directed by Michael Smuin, and choreographed by McKayle, Smuin, Henry LeTang, Bruce Heath, and Mercedes Ellington, opened on March 1, 1981 at...
, based on the music of Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
. Participation in his first Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
fashion show
Fashion show
A fashion show is an event put on by a fashion designer to showcase his or her upcoming line of clothing during Fashion Week. Fashion shows debut every season, particularly the Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter seasons. This is where the latest fashion trends are made...
s came in January 1988 at the invitation of Madame Carven, whom Zaitsev met in Moscow in December 1987, showing his collection under the banner of "Russian Seasons". He also joined the Maison de Couture and was made an honorary citizen of Paris, by then Mayor Jacques Chirac
Jacques Chirac
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...
. The following year in March, Maison de Couture named Zaitsev as "Man of the Year in the World of Fashion"
In September 1989, Zaitsev showed his collections in West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
for the first time under the theme "Fashion and Music Revue '90", and in December 1989 he won first prize at "Five top fashion designers in the world-90" in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, where he was competing against Donna Karan
Donna Karan
Donna Karan is an American fashion designer and the creator of the Donna Karan New York and DKNY clothing labels.-Early life:...
, Claude Montana
Claude Montana
Claude Montana is a French fashion designer. His company, The House of Montana, founded in 1979, went bankrupt in 1997.Born in Paris in 1949 to a Catalonian father and German mother, Montana began his career by designing papier-mâché jewelry covered with rhinestones...
, Hanae Mori
Hanae Mori
Hanae Mori is a fashion designer in Japan. She is the only Japanese woman to have presented her collections on the runways of Paris and New York, and the first Asian woman to be admitted as an official haute couture design house by the fédération française de la couture in France...
and Byblos
Byblos
Byblos is the Greek name of the Phoenician city Gebal . It is a Mediterranean city in the Mount Lebanon Governorate of present-day Lebanon under the current Arabic name of Jubayl and was also referred to as Gibelet during the Crusades...
.
Career in Russia
Whilst during the Soviet era Zaitsev's work was funded by the Soviet governmentGovernment of the Soviet Union
The Council of Ministers of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was the de jure government comprising the highest executive and administrative body of the Soviet Union from 1946 until 1991....
, which as a state employee he earned the maximum of 1,000 rubles
Soviet ruble
The Soviet ruble or rouble was the currency of the Soviet Union. One ruble is divided into 100 kopeks, ....
per month, after the collapse of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
he became responsible for financing the business out of his private income, with New Russians making up the bulk of his clientele. In 1991 he designed a new uniform for the Russian police, and was bestowed the title of Honored Worker in the Field of the Arts. By 1992, Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda is an American actress, writer, political activist, former fashion model, and fitness guru. She rose to fame in the 1960s with films such as Barbarella and Cat Ballou. She has won two Academy Awards and received several other movie awards and nominations during more than 50 years as an...
, Ted Turner
Ted Turner
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III is an American media mogul and philanthropist. As a businessman, he is known as founder of the cable news network CNN, the first dedicated 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television...
and Herb Ritts
Herb Ritts
Herbert "Herb" Ritts was an American fashion photographer who concentrated on black-and-white photography and portraits, often in the style of classical Greek sculpture.-Early life and career:...
were amongst celebrities who became customers of Zaitsev, and in the same year Zaitsev launched a women's perfume
Perfume
Perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and/or aroma compounds, fixatives, and solvents used to give the human body, animals, objects, and living spaces "a pleasant scent"...
named Maroussia, in conjunction with French-based
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
L'Oréal
L'Oréal
The L'Oréal Group is the world's largest cosmetics and beauty company. With its registered office in Paris and head office in the Paris suburb of Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine, France, it has developed activities in the field of cosmetics...
. The perfume which is classified as a floral oriental and is still in production, was launched in a few Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an countries in 1992 and was launched worldwide in 1993.
Serge Sorokko
Serge Sorokko is an American art dealer, publisher and owner of the Serge Sorokko Gallery in San Francisco. He played a major role in establishing the first cultural exchanges in the field of visual arts between the United States and the Soviet Union during the period of perestroika...
on both the East and the West Coasts, and they were widely attended, marking the beginning of cultural exchanges in the area of visual arts between the USA and the new Russia. According to Serge Sorokko
Serge Sorokko
Serge Sorokko is an American art dealer, publisher and owner of the Serge Sorokko Gallery in San Francisco. He played a major role in establishing the first cultural exchanges in the field of visual arts between the United States and the Soviet Union during the period of perestroika...
, then president of the Bowles-Sorokko Galleries, Mr. Zaitsev was a lifelong painter, but was never free to exhibit publicly his art before. "[That was] because his work was outside the dogmas of socialist realism," Mr. Sorokko told The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. "He was permitted to paint only for his own soul. When I visited his home in Moscow, I saw 20 years of pictorial work on his walls."
In 1994, Zaitsev hosted the inaugural Nadezhda Lamanova Prize competition for professional Russian designers at Dom Modi, and the competition has been held under his patronage since. In 1996 he launched a competition in Russia, using the slogan of "Goodbye Barbie
Barbie
Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by the American toy-company Mattel, Inc. and launched in March 1959. American businesswoman Ruth Handler is credited with the creation of the doll using a German doll called Bild Lilli as her inspiration....
, welcome Maroussia", to find the "purest essence of" female adolescence, with the aim of decreasing the influence of the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
doll in Russia. In Zaitsev's words, "Barbie is rigid, cold, cynical, pragmatic. Now look at the faces of our children... they are not only beautiful, but sweet, charming and mysterious. In every face there's a secret, and so must the new Russian doll". Also in 1996, a follow-up to 1992s Maroussia, a floriental fragrance named Authentic Maroussia was launched but has since been discontinued.
Zaitsev was the tailor to Vladimir Zhirinovsky
Vladimir Zhirinovsky
Vladimir Volfovich Zhirinovsky is a Russian politician, colonel of the Russian Army, founder and the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia , Vice-Chairman of the State Duma, and a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe....
for his 1996 Russian presidential campaign
Russian presidential election, 1996
Presidential elections were held in Russia in 1996. Incumbent Russian President Boris Yeltsin was seeking a four-year term after officially winning the 1991 presidential election. The first round was held on 16 June 1996...
. Zaitsev, who planned to vote for Boris Yeltsin
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of...
, stated on Zhirinovsky, "He wanted something distinctly Russian, so I thought back to the military-style jackets of the 20s, the 30slike Stalin, only in new colours". On 27 May 1996, President of Russia Boris Yeltsin
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999.Originally a supporter of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yeltsin emerged under the perestroika reforms as one of Gorbachev's most powerful political opponents. On 29 May 1990 he was elected the chairman of...
awarded Zaitsev the State Prize of the Russian Federation
State Prize of the Russian Federation
State Prize of the Russian Federation is a state honorary prize established in 1992 as the substitute for the USSR State Prize. In 2004 the rules for selection of laureates and the status of the award was significantly changed making them closer to such awards as Nobel Prize or the Soviet Lenin...
in the field of literature and the arts. In 1996, Zaitsev was also made an honorary citizen of the city of his birth, Ivanovo
Ivanovo
Ivanovo is a city and the administrative center of Ivanovo Oblast, Russia. Population: Ivanovo has traditionally been called the textile capital of Russia. Since most textile workers are women, it has also been known as the "City of Brides"...
.
His 2001 collection entitled Dedication saw the most expensive dresses costing between $10,00012,000, whilst the cheapest were in the $2,0003,000 price range.
When then-President of Russia Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
was due to travel on a state visit
State visit
A state visit is a formal visit by a foreign head of state to another nation, at the invitation of that nation's head of state. State visits are the highest form of diplomatic contact between two nations, and are marked by ceremonial pomp and diplomatic protocol. In parliamentary democracies, heads...
to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in June 2003, Zaitsev designed attire for First Lady of Russia Lyudmila Putina
Lyudmila Putina
Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Putina is the wife of former Russian President and current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.She married Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin on July 28, 1983; they have two daughters, Maria, born 1985 and Yekaterina...
to wear for the visit, which included an audience with Queen Elizabeth II. Zaitsev told Zhizn
Zhizn
Zhizn was a Russian magazine published first in Saint Petersburg , then in London and Geneva .Zhizn began its existence as a general purpose magazine in January 1897. For the first two years it was edited, at various times, by S. V. Voejkov, D. M. Ostafyev, M. V. Kalitin, and M. S. Ermolaev and...
that it took some time to convince Putina to wear a hat, due to Russian women in general not wearing them.
By February 2005, Zaitsev had opened 4 «Слава Зайцев. Men’s wear» stores in Ryazan
Ryazan
Ryazan is a city and the administrative center of Ryazan Oblast, Russia. It is located on the Oka River southeast of Moscow. Population: The strategic bomber base Dyagilevo is just west of the city, and the air base of Alexandrovo is to the southeast as is the Ryazan Turlatovo Airport...
, Ufa
Ufa
-Demographics:Nationally, dominated by Russian , Bashkirs and Tatars . In addition, numerous are Ukrainians , Chuvash , Mari , Belarusians , Mordovians , Armenian , Germans , Jews , Azeris .-Government and administration:Local...
, Orenburg
Orenburg
Orenburg is a city on the Ural River and the administrative center of Orenburg Oblast, Russia. It lies southeast of Moscow, very close to the border with Kazakhstan. Population: 546,987 ; 549,361 ; Highest point: 154.4 m...
and Samara
Samara, Russia
Samara , is the sixth largest city in Russia. It is situated in the southeastern part of European Russia at the confluence of the Volga and Samara Rivers. Samara is the administrative center of Samara Oblast. Population: . The metropolitan area of Samara-Tolyatti-Syzran within Samara Oblast...
. The New York Times described Zaitsev in 2004 as one of the few Soviet icons who is still an icon in modern-day Russia, and Time Magazine reported in 2007 that the Zaitsev name has 93% brand awareness in Russia. In 2007 Kommersant
Kommersant
Kommersant is a commerce-oriented newspaper published in Russia. , the circulation was 131,000.- History :The newspaper was initially published in 1909, and it was closed down following the Bolshevik seizure of power and the introduction of censorship in 1917.In 1989, with the onset of press...
commissioned VCIOM
VCIOM
All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion, VTsIOM, [established in 1987; till 1992 – All-Union Center for the Study of Public Opinion] is the oldest polling institution in the post-Soviet space and is one of the leading sociological and market research companies in Russia.-General...
to run a poll on public perception as to the make-up of the Russian elite; Zaitsev, who is often referred to as the Patriarch
Patriarch
Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is called patriarchy. This is a Greek word, a compound of πατριά , "lineage, descent", esp...
of Russian fashion, was rated at 74.
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
roots and encourages other Russian designers not to be influenced by the West. Zaitsev was quoted by Women's Wear Daily
Women's Wear Daily
Women's Wear Daily is a fashion-industry trade journal sometimes called "the bible of fashion." WWD delivers information and intelligence on changing trends and breaking news in the fashion, beauty and retail industries with a readership composed largely of retailers, designers, manufacturers,...
in April 2008 as saying:
In 2007 Zaitsev took part in the TV show "Fashion Sentence" on Channel One
Channel One (Russia)
Channel One is the first television channel to broadcast in the Soviet Union. The channel was renamed Ostankino Channel 1 in 1991, after the Soviet Union broke up and the Russian SFSR became the Russian Federation. According to a recent government publication, the Russian government controls 51%...
, in which he acted as a judge passing down sentence on contestant's fashion sense. After visiting Ashgabat in June 2008 for the Turkmen Textile Exhibition, Zaitsev stated that he was fascinated by traditional Turkmen
Turkmen people
The Turkmen are a Turkic people located primarily in the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and northeastern Iran. They speak the Turkmen language, which is classified as a part of the Western Oghuz branch of the Turkic languages family together with Turkish, Azerbaijani, Qashqai,...
clothing, and announced plans for a new collection which would incorporate traditional Turkmen elements. The casual wear collection is to be made exclusively from cotton from Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...
and would feature the traditional Turkmen embroidery
Embroidery
Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
which captured his imagination. In September 2008, Zaitsev participated in "The Russian Evening-2008" at the Institute for International Political Studies
Institute for International Political Studies
Institute for International Political Studies - ISPI , founded in 1934, ISPI is one of the oldest Italian institutes specialising in international affairs...
in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, which was attended by Svetlana Medvedeva
Svetlana Medvedeva
Svetlana Vladimirovna Medvedeva , is the wife of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and thus the First Lady of Russia.-Early years:Svetlana Linnik was born into a military family in Kronstadt, a town administered by Leningrad...
and Clio Maria Bittoni, the wife of Italian President Giorgio Napolitano
Giorgio Napolitano
Giorgio Napolitano is an Italian politician who has been the 11th President of Italy since 2006. A long-time member of the Italian Communist Party and later the Democrats of the Left, he served as President of the Chamber of Deputies from 1992 to 1994 and as Minister of the Interior from 1996 to...
.
Zaitsev has always been an admirer of the costumes sketches supplied by Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
and Albert Benois
Albert Benois
Albert Nikolayevitch Benois was a talented Russian water-colorist. The Benois family produced many talented artists over several generations. Albert was the elder son of architect Nicholas Benois, brother of artist and theatrical designer Alexander Benois, uncle of the painter Zinaida...
, amongst others, for Sergei Diaghilev's
Sergei Diaghilev
Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev , usually referred to outside of Russia as Serge, was a Russian art critic, patron, ballet impresario and founder of the Ballets Russes, from which many famous dancers and choreographers would arise.-Early life and career:...
Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
troupe, and to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes
Ballets Russes
The Ballets Russes was an itinerant ballet company from Russia which performed between 1909 and 1929 in many countries. Directed by Sergei Diaghilev, it is regarded as the greatest ballet company of the 20th century. Many of its dancers originated from the Imperial Ballet of Saint Petersburg...
, Zaitsev's collection for the 2009 Russian Fashion Week pays homage to the Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
ballet
Ballet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
impresario
Impresario
An impresario is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, plays or operas; analogous to a film producer in filmmaking, television production and an angel investor in business...
.
Style
Pouf
The pouf is a hairstyle deriving from 18th-century France. It was made popular by the Queen of France, Marie Antoinette in 1774, first sporting it when she attended her husband Louis XVI's coronation, triggering a wave of young french woman to wear their hair in the same manner...
s and peplum
Peplum
Peplum originates in the Greek word for 'tunic' and may refer to one of the following:*A genre of Italian films also known as 'Sword and Sandal'*Peplos, a kind of women's garment in ancient Greece*Veil...
s, gold and glitter." During the Soviet era, he regularly complained that he designed collections for the "larger" woman in the 1970s, but only models up to size 48 were accepted for production.
Whilst Zaitsev regards fashion designers Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel
Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel was a pioneering French fashion designer whose modernist thought, menswear-inspired fashions, and pursuit of expensive simplicity made her an important figure in 20th-century fashion. She was the founder of one of the most famous fashion brands, Chanel...
, Christian Dior
Christian Dior
Christian Dior , was a French fashion designer, best known as the founder of one of the world's top fashion houses, also called Christian Dior.-Life:...
, Gianfranco Ferré
Gianfranco Ferrè
Gianfranco Ferré was a fashion designer also known as "the architect of fashion" for his background and his original attitude toward creating fashion design....
and Hubert de Givenchy
Hubert de Givenchy
Count Hubert James Marcel Taffin de Givenchy is a French aristocrat and fashion designer who founded The House of Givenchy in 1952. He is famous for having designed much of the personal and professional wardrobe of Audrey Hepburn, as well as clothing for clients such as Jacqueline Kennedy...
as idols, his own creations are strongly influenced by traditional Russian and Slavic
Slavic Europe
Slavic Europe is a region of Europe where Slavic languages are spoken. This area is situated in Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans, and includes the nations of Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, the Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Russia,...
styles, and his collections include a variety of theme-based shows reflecting his take on the industry at the time. Past collections include the Millennium of the Christianisation of Russia in 1988; Russian Seasons in Paris in 1988; Agony of Perestroika in 1991; and Recollections of the Future in 19961997. In his creations, Zaitsev includes elements such as traditional Pavlovsky Posad
Pavlovsky Posad
Pavlovsky Posad is a town and the administrative center of Pavlovo-Posadsky District of Moscow Oblast, Russia, located from Moscow, at the confluence of the Klyazma and the Vokhna Rivers. Population: The Moscow–Vladimir railway goes through the town....
shawl
Shawl
A shawl is a simple item of clothing, loosely worn over the shoulders, upper body and arms, and sometimes also over the head. It is usually a rectangular or square piece of cloth, that is often folded to make a triangle but can also be triangular in shape...
s and embroidered quilted jackets, which have been featured in collections such as Expectation of Changes.
Dom Modi