Name Varvara Karynska today, it is familiar to everyone who is at least a little interested in ballet or costumes for the stage. This Ukrainian artist from Kharkiv has forever changed the way ballerinas look —, she created a modern multi-layered ballet pack worn by the world's leading theaters.
Varvara Karynska was born in 1880 in a wealthy Kharkiv family. She received a good education, knew several languages and had a talent for art. After the revolution, she emigrated first to Europe, and later — to the USA, where she revealed her talent as a costume designer. In Paris, she worked with Sergei Diaghilev and his «Russian Ballet», and later — with George Balanchine at the New York City Ballet. It was in this partnership that her most famous innovation — new ballet pack was born.
костюм для постановки «Сон літньої ночі»
Before Karinska, ballet skirts were heavy, hard and often uncomfortable. She came up with the idea of making them light, multi-layered, made of tulle, where each layer was attached separately. This allowed the ballerina to move more freely and the — suit to "swim" with her. Such a pack has become a standard in ballet and is used to this day — it is even called «karinska» (the "Karinska tutu").
Karinska also worked on costumes for Hollywood and Broadway, received the «Oscar» award for costumes for the film «Joan of Arc» (1948) — is a rare case where a ballet costume designer conquered the film industry as well. Her groundbreaking approach combined technical excellence with artistic vision, and each costume was thought out to the smallest detail.
кадр з фільму "Жанна Д'Арк", 1948
Today, the influence of Varvara Karinska is felt in every major ballet theater in the world — from New York to Paris and London. Her name stands alongside Balanchine and Diaghilev as a symbol of elegance, technical innovation and female genius in art.
