In 1932, Turin-born Parisienne Nina Ricci cashed in on 35 years of dressmaking experience when, in partnership with her son Robert, she founded her eponymous house of couture. Under her creative direction, the brand steadily built a favorable reputation in France before finally stepping out with a series of internationally acclaimed collections in the late 1950s, delivered under the supervision of Ricci’s former assistant Jules-François Crahay. Following Crahay’s departure, the easy wearability and aesthetic maturity synonymous with Nina Ricci would be refracted through a stream of creative directors. With such a lengthy existence, Nina Ricci has meant and continues to mean many things to many people today, taking on a playful vibrancy while embracing the sublime tailoring and dramatic silhouettes favored by Madame Ricci herself.