Marie-Louise Carven Biography

Marie-Louise Carven (31 August 1909 - 8 June 2015) was a French fashion designer who founded the house of Carven in 1945. She was noted for her designs for petite women, her use of lightweight fabrics such as lace and pink gingham, and for being one of the first couturieres to launch a prt--porter line. She was the first Paris designer to patent a push-up bra.

Early life

Marie-Louise Carven was born Carmen de Tommaso on 31 August 1909 in Chtellerault, France. However, she strongly disliked her given name, and when she founded her business, she assumed the name by which she is better known. Carven showed an interest in fashion design from a young age by making outfits for her pet cat.

As a young woman, Carven studied architecture and interior decor at the cole des Beaux-Arts in Paris.

Career

In 1945, at the age of 34, Carven opened her fashion house on the Champs-lyses. The name Carven combined Carmen, her given name, with the last name of her aunt Josy Boyriven, who introduced her to couture. The 5'1" Carven focused her line on petite women, "because [she] was too short to wear the creations of the top couturiers, who only ever showed their designs on towering girls."

Carven soon became known as "the smallest of big couturiers."? The signature piece from her first collection was a full skirted, green and white striped summer dress. Green and white stripes became the signature of the House of Carven. The material had found in the attic of a chateau and was likely originally purchased for the summer uniforms of housemaids prior to World War I. Her early clients included Leslie Caron, Martine Carol, Zizi Jeanmaire, and Edith Pilaf.

Carven was an inventive marketer. In 1946, she publicized the launch of her first perfume by parachuting hundreds of sample bottles across Paris. In 1950, Carven created a collection inspired by Gone with the Wind to coincide with the film's French release. She toured France with the collection, staging fashion shows at movie theaters.

In 1950, she became one of the first couturiers to develop prt--porter. Her preference for simple materials such as pink gingham and broderie anglaise eased her transition to ready-to-wear.

Carven was one of the first fashion houses to stage runway shows around the world. The designer's travel inspired her to use diverse materials such as madras, batik, and raffia in her collections. In the 1950s, Carven was one of the first Western designers to use African textiles.

Carven designed uniforms for the 1976 French Olympic team, Parisian traffic wardens, Eurostar staff, and over 20 airlines. Carven is also credited as the costume designer for eleven films.

Later life

Carven retired at age 84.

In August 2000, Carven was named Righteous Among the Nations by Yad Vashem.

In 2001, she gifted her archives to the Muse Galliera.

At her hundredth birthday party in 2009, she was made a commander of the Legion of Honor.

Carven died in Paris on 8 June 2015, aged 105.