Perris

Bernard (1942). French designer. His mother was a dressmaker, which is why at the age of 17 Bernard left to enrol at a fashion school in Paris. By 1962 he was already Guy Laroche’s first assistant, then moving on from Valentino to Heim and Dior. He set up his label in 1969 and applied his own experience of haute couture to ready-to-wear. He has worked in cinema.
&Quad;The opening of a shop in Madison Avenue, New York, led Perris to work with some internationally recognised French names, like Gilles Mendel and Jean Louis Scherrer.
&Quad;Perris’ clothes played a major part in Nagisa Oshima’s movie Max mon amour, in which Charlotte Rampling wears a different outfit for every scene.
&Quad;The garden as a garment. The garden at Perris’ Provencal retreat was photographed by Claire de Virieu for her title Fashion Designers Gardens. Other gardens featured were Giorgio Armani’s at his house in Pantelleria, Yves Saint Laurent’s in Marrakech, and Valentino’s in Tuscany.