YESTERDAY afternoon in Paris, the fashion world collectively held its breath: not to secure an even slimmer waistline, you understand, but to see if haute couture still has a future.
The man responsible for deciding whether or not custom made dresses will continue to: be produced is a touch out of the ordinary. After all, it's not very often that the 35 year old son of a plumber from Streatham is called upon to be the saviour of fashion. That's what was asked of John Galliano when last summer he was appointed to succeed Hubert de Givenchy as head of the latter's house.
Nobody has ever doubted Galliano's talents. Born Juan Carlos Antonio Galliano in Gibraltar, he moved to London as a child and studied design at St Martin's School of Art. His graduate collection in 1984 brought him instant recognition: it was snapped up in its entirety by Joan Burstein of Browns, giving Galliano the impetus to launch his own label a year later. Brilliant though his work may be, until now the designer has never managed to attract secure financial backing.
Galliano's big breakthrough came a couple of years ago when he caught the attention of American Vogue's editor Anna Wintour. Since then, he has received generous publicity from one of the fashion world's most influential figures.
Even before Hubert de Givenchy officially retired from the house he had founded 43 years earlier, its current owner French businessman Bernard Arnault was understood to have chosen Gallianot as the heir apparent. Yesterday, he was expected to make not only his debut but also a clear statement on the likelihood of couture surviving into the next century. For at least the last 20 years, couture has been losing customers and money alike. Whereas after the last world war there were approximately 100 haute couture houses in Paris, now 18 remain. The simplest day dress costs at least £8,000 and the number of women willing to pay that much is small. The hope is that Galliano - the first Englishman to produce haute couture since Captain Edward Molyneux closed his business in 1950 - will lure in new (and young) customers to this end of the market.
Hence the importance of yesterday's show which drew not just the likes of Tina Turner, Bryan Ferry and Joan Collins (spotted keenly taking notes of the evening dresses) but many fellow designers including Versace, Oscar de la Renta, Manolo Blahnik, Azzedine Alaia and Joseph. Although Givenchy had always been a stickler for punctuality, there was a half hour delay before the first clothes were shown and the atmosphere in the auditorium was hushed; "everyone's feeling terribly nervous for John," commented one member of the audience.
So how did the boy wonder do? After an opening that demonstrated his customary baroque love of extravagance - unbuttoned bustiers and 15 foot long trailing skirts in taffeta and duchesse satin.
Galliano settled down to produce a collection of just 50 outfits that were in the main as wearable as they were beautiful. Divided into five different colour stories, the show featured plenty of tailored suiting; tuxedo pant suits in black wool crepe, for example, their jackets having a drape effect across the front fastening. Coat dresses - always a mainstay at Givenchy under the previous regime - were presented in grey pinstripe. The house's strong tailoring department was put to good use for these outfits, as for a Savile Row inspired pinstripe bustier and pants worn under an enormous sugar almond taffeta cape.
Having paid homage to his immediate predecessor with coat dresses and suits, Galliano also acknowledged Givenchy's own greatest source of inspiration, the late Cristobal Balenciaga. The latter's sack dress was evoked first with a sleeveless black silk crepe dress (shown both short and full length), its drape sewn into the shoulder seams. This turned up again in the last section of the show in an orange silk chiffon. Other dresses in this category included a gently a line dress of flame chiffon over orange sari silk and a long sheath in the same fabric, its short train given a fishtail kick. Orange was preceded by chartreuse green silk, used for three dresses that looked as though inspired by Come Dancing; below close fitted bodices, their skirts flared out to mid calf over layered petticoats.
BUT for much of the collection Galliano held his fondness for extravagant gestures in check; after the opening ensembles, there were few of the over blown ballgowns he has produced in his own shows in recent seasons. Nor was there much evidence of the bias cutting which has almost become his hallmark. Costume drama was left to one side while he concentrated on creating a collection often looking effortlessly lovely. A simple flapper style dress in pale lilac silk, for example, was decorated with fine tear drop embroidery, while shimmering pearl kimono coats were fastened with chunky beaded tassles.
Has haute couture therefore found its saviour? "There was a restraint in this first collection that I thought extremely clever," commented Irish born Hilary Weston after the show. Keeping an eye on Galliano for Brown Thomas and the Canadian Holt Renfrew group, Mrs Weston particularly admired the designer's redefinition of classic Givenchy suits and coat dresses; "they were wonder fully fresh and new looking - I can see them, being picked up by everyone.
But whether Galliano's freshness is enough to secure the future of couture remains to be seen, particularly since the real money today lies with ready to wear and, even more lucratively, perfume and cosmetics licences. What matters is how good the orders from clients are over the weeks ahead and, in particular, whether new business for Givenchy comes through. Only then will it be known whether John Galliano be known to posterity as the man who put haute couture back on a high.