ABOUT BIANCHINI-FÉRIER
An icon of textile design, Bianchini-Férier became world-famous after the Paris Exposition of 1889. The firm operated continuously for over 100 years, surviving through the Great Depression, two World Wars, and a century’s worth of design eras. Their archive is a course in 20th century art, from Art Nouveau to Postmodernism. Bianchini-Férier textiles were used in couture fashion houses including Balenciaga, Givenchy, Poiret, and Yves Saint-Laurent.
ABOUT ÉTINCELLE
Étincelle is French for spark. It describes the organic, bursting, firecracker movement evoked in this pattern. The rounded, boomerang-like motifs in this design would become popular in the “atomic age” to follow. Textile designers of that era were excited by advances in space travel and technology, which they interpreted into motifs resembling rocket ships and atoms under a microscope. The original source document was likely meant for a monochrome jacquard or brocade design, rather than a 2-tone print.