Few names in haute couture embody the harmony between fashion and sculpture like Madame Grès. Known for her Grecian-inspired gowns that seemed to flow like marble brought to life, Grès transformed fabric into architecture through her signature pleating technique.
Each dress could take hundreds of hours to complete, with silk jersey painstakingly draped and hand-pleated directly onto the mannequin, no pattern, just instinct and artistry. The result was a purity of form that blurred the line between garment and sculpture, earning her a reputation as a “couturier of couture.”
Today, her spirit endures at the Paris American Academy, where students explore the intricate craftsmanship behind her legendary pleats. Inside the school’s dedicated workshop, emerging designers make their way to Paris to learn to manipulate fabric the way Grès once did with precision, patience, and respect for material. The process is deeply tactile: steaming, folding, and stitching pleats by hand to understand how light, movement, and volume interact.
In revisiting Grès’s methods, the Academy not only preserves a historic couture technique but also encourages a new generation to approach design as both an artistic and meditative practice. Much like Madame Grès herself, students discover that true innovation often begins with mastery of tradition — and the quiet discipline of the hand.
The Paris American Academy, now located at 19 rue Claude Bernard in the heart of Paris’s Latin Quarter, continues to honor its legacy as a hub for creativity and craftsmanship. Surrounded by the city’s historic universities and ateliers, the new address provides an inspiring setting where fashion, design, and fine arts students carry forward the school’s long-standing tradition of blending American innovation with French savoir-faire.
Photo by Mary Ruppert at Paris American Academy 19 rue Claude Bernard, 75005 Paris, France
