Balenciaga is a French fashion house founded by Crist?bal Balenciaga, a Spanish designer, born in the Basque Country, Spain. He had a reputation as a couturier of uncompromising standards and was referred to as \"the master of us all\" by Christian Dior.His bubble skirts and odd, feminine, yet ultra-modern shapes were trademarks of the house. The House of Balenciaga is now owned by the French multinational company Kering. Balenciaga\'s current Creative Director is Alexander Wang.Crist?bal Balenciaga opened his first boutique in San Sebasti?n, Spain in 1918, which expanded to include branches in Madrid and Barcelona.The Spanish royal family and the aristocracy wore his designs, but when the Spanish Civil War forced him to close his stores, Balenciaga moved to Paris.Balenciaga opened his Paris couture house on Avenue George V in August 1937, and his first runway show featured designs heavily influenced by the Spanish Renaissance.Balenciaga\'s success in Paris was nearly immediate. Within two years, the French press lauded him as a revolutionary, and his designs were highly sought-after.Customers risked their safety to travel to Europe during World War II to see Balenciaga\'s clothing. During this period, he was noted for his \"square coat,\" with sleeves cut in a single piece with the yoke, and for his designs with black (or black and brown) lace over bright pink fabric.However, it was not until the post-war years that the full scale of the inventiveness of this highly original designer became evident. His lines became more linear and sleek, diverging from the hourglass shape popularized by Christian Dior\'s \"New Look\". The fluidity of his silhouettes enabled him to manipulate the relationship between his clothing and women\'s bodies. In 1951, he totally transformed the silhouette, broadening the shoulders and removing the waist. In 1955, he designed the tunic dress, which later developed into the chemise dress of 1958. Other contributions in the postwar era included the spherical balloon jacket (1953), the high-waisted baby doll dress (1957), the cocoon coat (1957), the balloon skirt (1957), and the sack dress (1957). In 1959, his work culminated in the Empire line, with high-waisted dresses and coats cut like kimonos. His manipulation of the waist, in particular, contributed to \"what is considered to be his most important contribution to the world of fashion: a new silhouette for women.\"