’In March of 1932, Elsa Schiaparelli’s reputation was already established: a multifaceted entrepreneur, she blurred the lines between fashion and art, and between life and art. A glorious enigma, she was (depending on whom you asked) either a mystery or a scandal, striking for her freedom, her lack of inhibition, and her manifest inability to care about conventions. As her dear friend Salvador Dalí said of her: “Nobody knows how to say Schiaparelli, but everyone knows what it means.”

Nine years later, for the opening gala of the Ambassadeurs restaurant in Paris, Schiaparelli wore a dress painted by Dunand, with a swan feather stole elegantly wrapped around her shoulders. It was a tribute to the great ballerina Anna Pavlova, who had died that same year, with whom Schiaparelli was often confused due to her short black hair and sharp features. But while Pavlova was always associated with her iconic performance in “The Dying Swan,” Schiaparelli was a Phoenix, a magical creature whose power lay in her relentless ability to reinvent not only herself but also fashion.

The context of this collection, honoring Elsa’s singular power of rebirth, is second only to its craftsmanship. Each piece is clear in its silhouette and technique. One can see the origins of each look, how each moved from sketch, to studio, to fabric. Above all, each dress is intended to evoke some kind of emotion, even if—paraphrasing Hemingway—a deeply controlled emotion.

This larger design is the ever-expanding universe of the Maison Schiaparelli. I was recently told that “people don’t buy Schiaparelli, they collect it.” This kind of loyalty is inspired exclusively by a unique relationship between client and creation. This is what makes Haute Couture so special: it is the expression of my vision of the Maison today, free from marketing and merchandising. But it is also something else: a way to honor this relationship, one of the most intimate in the world, in which I give women the power to be reborn, again and again and again.’’

-Daniel Roseberry