1970s Louis Feraud Vibrant Graphic Pink Blue and Black Swirl Knit Maxi Dress MRS Couture

Brilliant late 1970s slinky knit maxi dress by Louis Feraud! The dress has long sleeves, a jewel collar, and a cinched waist further accented by a knit tube belt. The dress features an amazing Peter – Max – style technicolor rainbow – like swirl across the shoulders and skirt, giving the dress an energetic appearance of being in motion. The shoulders have a slight puff sleeve to them, predicting the impending, rampant, voluminous balloon sleeves of the 1980s.

Louis Feraud was born in 1921, in Arles in the south of France. Feraud’s early life was idyllic, he was the son of a baker and spent his childhood under the mediterranean sun. His happiness was short lived, and in his youth he became an operative in the French Resistance. After World War II Feraud worked various jobs, including as a ski instructor. He eventually established his first boutique in Cannes in 1954. His clientele included wealthy vacationers, and his first big break was when Brigitte Bardot came in and purchased a white sundress. He would go on to design many of her film costumes.

By 1956 Feraud had opened a couture house in Paris across from the Elysee Palace. A few years later, in 1958, he presented his first haute couture collection alongside other Parisian fashion luminaries including Dior, Givenchy, and Lanvin. Feraud created his first ready to wear line in 1970, and introduced his menswear line in 1975. He won the “Golden Thimble” for his 1978 Haute Couture Spring/Summer line and went on to win again in 1984. In 1991 he was chosen as “Prince de l’Art de Vivre” and in 1955 Feraud was made a “Officier de la Légion d’honneur.”

Feraud dressed the Paris elite in bright, striking colors. His silhouettes ranged from traditional suits to avant-garde ruffled pieces. Throughout the years, he employed designers Jean-Louis Scherrer, Margit Brandt, Helga Bjornsson and Per Spook to help materialize his vision.

Clients include: Kim Novak, Ingrid Bergman, Danielle Mitterrand, Brigitte Bardot, Elizabeth Taylor