The gesture of haute couture
Pertegaz draws on the legacy of one of the great names of Spanish fashion — Manuel Pertegaz. The same rigour that defined his haute couture lives on today in every jewel that carries his signature.
The couturier
Manuel Pertegaz (Olba, Teruel, 1917 — Barcelona, 2014) was, alongside Balenciaga, the great name of Spanish fashion. A tailoring apprentice in Barcelona from the age of twelve, he opened his own haute couture house in the early nineteen-forties.
He imagined women in soft lines and a serene elegance. He dressed queens, aristocrats and Hollywood stars — among them Audrey Hepburn and Ava Gardner — and his name became a byword for distinction.
“Fashion stirs the spirit of those who behold it and those who conceive it.”Manuel Pertegaz
When Paris called
In 1957, after the sudden death of Christian Dior, Pertegaz’s name was put forward to succeed the master at the head of the Paris maison.
He chose to stay faithful to his own house — his name, his atelier, his vision. A decision that defined his character forever.
The first perfume
In 1965 he created “Pertegaz”, the first fragrance signed by a Spanish couturier of international standing.
Its campaign — a gloved hand cradling the flacon — remains an icon of Spanish elegance.
The Lady with the Umbrella
At the opening ceremony of the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, the “Lady with the Umbrella” greeted the world dressed by Pertegaz.
A moment when Spanish haute couture was seen by millions.
A royal wedding gown
In 2004 he designed the wedding gown of Her Royal Highness the Princess of Asturias — the commission that crowned a life devoted to couture.
A life in print
His work fills two monographs — “Pertegaz, Universo de la Moda” and “Pertegaz” — alongside retrospectives at the Reina Sofía and the Palau Robert.
A body of work studied as part of the history of Spanish fashion.
Honours
- 1953 Harvard’s “Oscar of Couture”
- 1966 Gold Medal of the City of Mexico
- 1999 Gold Medal for Merit in the Fine Arts · Antoni Gaudí Medal
- 2004 The Golden Needle (Aguja de Oro)
- 2009 First National Fashion Design Prize
The legacy, made jewel
The cut, the detail, the hand: the same precision of haute couture shapes the pieces that carry his name today. Author-designed jewellery, made to accompany you and to last.
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