The exhibition is dedicated to one of the most exciting periods in the fashion industry, the years 1960–1980. Famous couturiers, such as Karl Lagerfeld, Yves Saint Laurent, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Sonia Rykiel, and Kenzō Takada, have left behind a rich legacy, forever cemented in the history of fashion.

The exhibition will include photos by Vladimir Sichov, who immigrated to France in 1980 and became a fashion photographer for Vogue magazine. Vladimir Sichov took photographs of the great couturiers at work and leisure and documented backstage at fashion shows. The show includes informal photos of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berger, shots of the famous model Mounia, photos of Loulou de la Falaise, a friend and creative partner of the YSL house, rare shots of young Karl Lagerfeld, and street shots of Jean-Paul Gaultier. Some photographs from Vladimir Sichov's personal archive will be presented to the public for the first time.

To complement the photographs and recreate the atmosphere of the golden age, the exhibition features haute couture collections of vintage garments and jewellery provided by Vintage Dream gallery. Among them are Christian Dior and Chanel bijouterie and costumes, the latter created both during the lifetime of Coco Chanel and under the leadership of Karl Lagerfeld, and the collections by Yves Saint Laurent. 

Vladimir Sichov

Vladimir Sichov made his way from Soviet underground to French fashion houses. Having become interested in photography in the mid-1960s in Kazan, Vladimir Sichov moved to Moscow in 1972. There he worked at the Trade Union of Graphic Artists, took photos of street life and portraits of fellow nonconformist artists, and held apartment exhibitions of nonconformist art.

In 1980, Vladimir Sichov emigrated to France and brought his photo archive through the Iron Curtain. The photographs he took in the Soviet Union were first published by Paris Match, then Stern, Oggi and Life, making the author the most published magazine photographer in the world that year. Helmut Newton praised his work, and it was due to his favorable reference that Sichov got noticed by the director of Vogue magazine. His first runway pictures, shot in Paris in July 1980, secured him a contract with Vogue. He was the first photographer in 50 years to have a real contract with the famous magazine. In the beginning of the 1980s, Sichov took runway and promotional pictures for iconic French couturiers and published his photographs in both French and American Vogue.

Although the world of fashion was open to him, Sichov chose street photography as his occupation and worked as at Sipa Press Agency until 2010. Over almost two decades, he shot international news stories, such as the fall of the Berlin Wall, the overthrow of Ceaușescu, three days with Mikhail Gorbachev and his family after his resignation, the first and second coup d'état attempts in 1991 Moscow, trips with presidents Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, François Mitterrand, Jacques Chirac, and Nicolas Sarkozy.

Vintage Dream

Today, the collection of Vintage Dream consists of around five thousand articles, created by the greatest couturiers of the 20th century. The gallery's mission is to breathe new life into objects with a history, conserving and promoting the legacy of outstanding designers.

To access the exhibition “Great Couturiers of Bygone Era,” you must purchase a special ticket.

Ticket price: 300 rubles

Reduced ticket price: 150 rubles (children from 7 to 16, ICOM and AICA members)

Free admission: children under 7