Marie-Lise Grès (1939–1983) was the epitome of early-Sixties French chic — as French, perhaps, as only someone who’d grown up in suburban London could be. Born in Mauritius, Marie-Lise Volpeliere-Pierrot cane to England with her family aged 8, and came to prominence as a model a decade later. In an era of fragile blondes, Volpeliere-Pierrot’s blunt features, huge eyes and dark, heavy fringe set her apart from the pack — and though she shortened her surname for work, it was to the no-less Gallic Grès.
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Marie-Lise Grès in the 1960s |
Working with Frank Horvat, Eugene Vernier, Terence Donovan and David Bailey, Grès was lauded as one of the most promising faces of the coming decade. She fulfilled that promise by appearing in some of the era’s most dramatic fashion images — perhaps most notably for William Klein, who shot her outside the Paris Opera in Yves Saint Laurent, the only recognizable figure in a faceless crowd.
In 1967, Denholm Elliott introduced Grès to Hurt. Within a week they moved in together, marking the start of an enduring affair. Grès gave up modeling, and indulged in her passion for horse riding instead. One January morning, sixteen years later — a day that was ‘cold, wet, nasty altogether,’ Hurt would remember — the couple were out riding near their Oxfordshire home when their horses bolted. Grès was thrown into a ditch, and died.
A decade later, a journalist asked Ossie Clark which models had first inspired him. Clark’s answer, instantly, was the “truly wonderful” Grès. Take a look at these glamorous photos to see portraits of Marie-Lise Grès in the 1960s.
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Marie Lise Gres in strapless tiered lace evening dress by unidentified designer, photo by Frank Horvat, 1960 |
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Marie Lise Gres in black lace dress with swinging bolero, tiny waist and swirling skirt ruffled with lace and tied with satin by Nettie Vogues, shoes by Charles Jourdan, photo by Michel Molinare, Harper's Bazaar UK, December 1961 |
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Marie Lise Gres during fashion shoot at the home of Otto Lucas (milliner), photo by Sandra Lousada for Queen magazine, 1962 |
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Marie Lise Gres has a straight-on haircut, beautifully asymmetric that frames the face with a soft fringe, by John, photo by Michael Williams, Harper's Bazaar UK, July 1962 |
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Marie Lise Gres in black faille ball gown with gored skirt and braided and sequined top by Julian Rose, satin stole from Jacqmar, photo by Richard Dormer, Scott Memorial, Edinburgh, Scotland, Harper's Bazaar UK, August 1962 |