Remembering the time when the iconic Jean Paul Gaultier made bread couture and turned food into fashion in a rare 2004 exhibition in Paris.
The year was 2004; the bags were great, people were less afraid to be weird, and social media basically didn’t exist yet. In Paris, the legendary designer Jean Paul Gaultier opened the “Pain Couture” exhibition at the Fondation Cartier where he transformed bread into avant-garde couture-level outfits, in collaboration with the French Bakers Guild. “‘Bread is noble, bread is pure, bread is life itself — we can live without clothes but not without bread!” he said, later musing on the sensuality and humility of the global staple. Baguettes exploded into bustier cone bras and loafs were layered and expanded into monumental hoop skirts. Some media outlets claimed there were as many as 4,000 loaves of bread used for the show at one time; each once replaced throughout the months-long exhibition as it spoiled.
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The freshly baked bread reached its most surreal form when it was constructed into conical bras and corsets, inspired by the infamous designs Gaultier created for Madonna. Taking place in the basement of the museum, the huge glass windows created a surreal effect. Bread was shaped into little rolls and then turned into edible beaded curtains. Large wicker baskets helped contain some of the loaves, which were lovingly shaped into giant hoop skirts and sculptural dresses. Gaultier was adamant that the bread–all baked by the top bakers of France–must be made with yeast and actually be edible–contrary to traditional bread displays that are often not meant for consumption.
The exhibition served as a visual example of the ephemeral nature of fashion: the bread had to be re-baked and replaced throughout the duration of the show, made fresh by the master bakers. For Gaultier, it was also a testament to cross-disciplinary craft; and a reminder that creative fields (like baking or sewing) often have overlapping skills as well as similar missions. Both sculptors, both artisans, both masters of things we consume: food and fashion have had one of the most unique overlying relationships of all time.
The accompanying “Pain Couture” book goes into detail about how Gaultier had a childhood dream of becoming a baker. During the show, the museum’s cafe reportedly sold the baked goods in the cafe, like giant croissants and baguettes with blue stripes to mirror Gaultier’s classic marinière. The idea for the exhibition came from the design guru Souhed Nemlaghi, according to The New York Times. Fondation Cartier asked Gaultier for a fashion retrospective, but he thought it seemed too “funereal”. Gaultier convinced the bakers to create the fashion and they worked together as a team, dreaming up the right (and wrong) pieces that would work for the surreal display. All the bread designs were based on Gaultier’s original sketches created just for the occasion.
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