As a family-owned fabric company that blends tradition with innovation, we’re enthusiastic about long-standing businesses that have that respect for heritage, without losing sight of essence or curiosity to see out new things. Saint Eulalia It is one of those houses that has crossed generations and has established itself on its own merit as a reference emblem in Barcelona and abroad for elegant fashion. Now, an exhibition premiered in Palau Robert pays homage to her career through the most representative dresses of the golden years of haute couture in a brief but symbolic tour where the beauty of the festive models are the protagonists of this unique sample of anniversary.
A brief historical tour
The history of Santa Eulalia is intertwined with the story of Barcelona. It was originally founded in 1843 and was installed in Calle Boqueria as a textile store. Over the years, the space changed and the business expanded to also house shirts and tailoring made to measure. With the fall of the medieval walls of the city and with the urban projection of the new Ensanche, where the Catalan bourgeoisie quickly settled, the establishment moved at the beginning of the 20th century to Paseo de Gracia, where it is currently located. There is a date that marks a before and after: 1926. It was when Santa Eulalia held the first haute couture show, being a pioneer in Barcelona of this new formula from Paris for presenting fashion. An initiative that took place fruit of the talent of Pedro Formosa, creative director of the house until 1970. Since then, the most elegant handmade dresses and hats in the city have come out of his workshops and have dressed the wealthy classes of Barcelona and beyond. Good art and know-how in clothing arose from the Santa Eulalia workshops thanks to the meticulous craftsmanship of the tailors and dressmakers who worked to create exclusive designs for their distinguished clientele. There is another date that deserves to be remembered that denotes the work and prestige of the establishment. In 1941, Santa Eulalia formed part of the Cooperativa de Alta Costura and led fashion together with Pedro Rodríguez, Asunción Bastida, Manuel Pertegaz and El Dique Flotante, recognized as the Big Five of Spanish Couture; honors that they shared, in parallel, with Cristóbal Balenciaga.
The legacy through the dresses
Under the name ‘Santa Eulalia, 180 years of fashion’, the exhibition proposes a journey of 70 years (1930-1990) to enjoy a time in which Barcelona, with Santa Eulalia as a reference, was a leader in fashion design. Throughout four different rooms, organized by types of Street and Day, Night, Long Dresses and Brides, the visitor will be immersed in the wonderful world of Haute Couture through carefully selected dresses and hats, as well as one audiovisual piece that also includes advertising posters, fashion photographs and communications from Santa Eulalia that evoke the golden age of Haute Couture.
The exhibition has been led by Josep Casamartina, a renowned art historian specializing in the history of fashion, who has structured a fascinating journey bringing together 40 pieces (of the 500 pieces recovered) not only from the Santa Eulalia own archive but also others from the Fundació Antoni de Montpalau, the Barcelona Design Museum (DHUB), the Terrassa Textile Museum and Documentation Centre, and the Madrid Costume Museum.
All the dresses recreate the beauty of the craftsmanship of Santa Eulalia characterized by a very refined pattern and quality fabrics perfectly turned into elegant designs far from the stridency, which maintain contemporaneity over the years. There are designs that bear witness to a time of celebrations: dances, cocktails, evening gowns or operatic premieres at the Barcelona Lyceum, brought together the women of the time in society and were special occasions to wear a Santa Eulalia dress for the first time. . The evolution of the models, according to the trends of each decade, feminine details or fantasy elements are present throughout the exhibition.
On the other hand, the creative and scenographic direction has been carried out by Nacho Alegre, who is in charge of the Apartamento Studio project. Alegre has also been the editor of the catalogue that accompanies and collects the content of the exhibition in an absorbing retrospective that brings together fashion photographs, historical archive material and previously unpublished objects from private collections. The catalogue is published in a limited edition of 4,500 copies and can be found both in Palau Robert and Santa Eulalia and in selected bookstores. The free access exhibition will remain open until the 22nd January, 2023.
Santa Eulalia, today
Today Santa Eulalia maintains its status as one of the most influential fashion stores in the sector internationally and continues to be a benchmark for luxury in Barcelona. The establishment, which each season offers the collections of the international designers most desired by the new generation of consumers, is currently led by Luis Sans, a member of the fourth generation of the owner family, and his wife Sandra Domínguez. This marriage, which is also a business one, adapts to the new times to maintain the artisanal essence and the good knowledge of Santa Eulalia, without losing sight of the latest trends that are triumphing in the market.
