Reprinted from: poster fashion
Original title: Jane Birkin, "It's impossible to summarize you in one minute and forty seconds. I tried."
"People met in summer with a common broken memory,
And summer must represent a purely imagined end.
We have been looking for it,
Expect it, move towards it,
Just like the horizon promises a sunset. "
Warm and free Jane Birkin also left us, like a storm of surprise. After all, she released her new album Oh! Pardon tu dormais... not long ago, with 13 lyrics all written by herself, and tour posters all over France... But goodbye is coming.
Not only Jane Birkin, but we have seen off too many irreplaceable people recently. In the years that were shining and shaped by them, we saw and touched many dreams and poems, but now, memories are gradually fading.
Milan Kundera wrote: "There is a long way to go, and there will always be a return. Please keep all our moments of sadness, start with the end, and continue to move towards the warmth and freedom we seek."
As a style icon and fashion legend pursued by generations, Jane Birkin's independent self inspired countless people and became a symbol of women in an era.
Jane Birkin's parents
Jane Birkin Mom Judy Campbell
Even in such a legend, Jane Birkin has experienced a long period of inferiority and cowardice. Born in London in December 1946, Jane Birkin is the daughter of British actress Judy Campbell and British Royal Navy Commander David Birkin.
Jane Birkin once said in an interview: "When I was young, I was very timid, and I never thought I was considered beautiful. This may be because I have a very dazzling mother, who has black hair, and my sister also looks like a pre Raphaelite painting. I always thought my mother thought my sister was more beautiful than me, because they look very similar. Even my brother is more beautiful than me: he will wear a scarf on his head, looking exactly like his mother. And I, like my father, was even laughed at half male and half female by my classmates because of my small chest. "
Jane Birkin and Mother Judy Campbell
"When Mom came to pick us up at school like a movie star, people's attention was focused on her. She drove a lavender triumphal convertible, wore sunglasses, had her hair permed, and wore bright lipstick. Everyone would look around and look at this charming person. At that time, I would shrink into a corner. I just want an ordinary mother in brown shoes. "
When she was a teenager, Jane Birkin began to buy cosmetics in Woolworths in order to change herself. She applied double mascara and eye shadow. When an elderly male neighbor noticed her, she was very excited.
At the age of 17, Jane Birkin first appeared on the stage, and then appeared in the musical Passion Lotus Hotel directed by conductor and composer John Barry;
At the age of 18, Jane Birkin married the composer John Barry, but this did not change Jane Birkin's understanding of herself, She said fashion helped her She wore a miniskirt, cut her blonde hair, and hid behind a mask of makeup.
"I think I was very suitable for the British style beauty of the 1960s." At that time, she would put an eyeliner under her pillow when she slept. If her husband woke up in the middle of the night, he could paint it, so that she would not think she had piggy eyes. The marriage did not last long, and the two soon broke up.
Later, Jane Birkin went to Paris to shoot the movie "Slogan" and met the talented person Serge Gainsbourg who changed her life. The two quickly fell in love and began a 13 year relationship, which became one of the most romantic and passionate love stories in the history of French pop culture.
And that's when "I finally felt safe about my appearance and realized that I had my own charm."
Jane Birkin spent most of her time looking like a fashion figure until she went to France. Serge Gainsbourg told Jane Birkin that she was the kind of beauty in his mind, and took her to the Louvre to see the paintings of medieval artists. He said that he always painted girls like her in art school.
"That was the first time I looked like myself" 。
When the two cooperated on the song "Jet 'aime moi non plus", Serge helped Jane remove her makeup and trim her hair. There was no eye makeup, no lip line, and no gloss, which made Jane Birkin feel good - no effort.
"Even at that time, I never thought I was particularly beautiful, but I knew that I was the kind of beauty Serge thought.".
The song they collaborated on was banned by the BBC because of its sexy panting and groaning, and was strongly condemned by the Vatican, but it also further enhanced Jane Birkin's popularity.
Swimming Pool
The Massacre on the Nile
Jane Birkin, who gradually became famous, later starred in more than 70 films and cooperated with the most respected directors in France, including Alain Resnais Allen Renee, Jean Luc Godard Jean Luc Godard, Agn è s Varda Agnes Valda Jacques Rivette, Jacques Rivette and other classic films belonging to her include Swimming Pool, Massacre on the Nile, Uncontrolled Beauty, 101 Nights, and Jane Birkin step by step into the highlight of her life.
Because of Serge Gainsbourg's drinking problem, the two separated in 1981, but they still maintained a good relationship after the breakup and continued to cooperate on art projects.
Pirates
After breaking up, Jane got together with the director Jacques Doillon and won the French Caesar Award for her performance in the film Pirates directed by Jacques Doillon（ Equivalent to French Oscar ）Nomination, which makes Jane feel that she has started another life - all the things to show off are gone.
She also stopped making up, and she did the same in the film, playing wonderful roles with her bare face. People talked to her about her work as an actor or singer, which made her feel free.
Jane's dressing style also changed during this period. She cut off her signature hair and put on low-key, casual neutral clothes - shirts, suits, jeans, overalls became her travel necessities.
In 2007, Jane Birkin launched her first film, Treasure Box, which premiered at Cannes Film Festival the same year.
In addition to the film, Jane is also a singer. Her achievements in the music field are also incomparable. She has released nearly 30 albums and hundreds of songs. In 2004, she won the French National Knight of Merit for her album "Arabesques".
Zou Xiaoying, a music critic, wrote that "no matter how famous she is in the fashion and film circles (like those written by various marketing numbers), her identity as a singer is always unshakable. I will not simply attribute it to the gift of Serge Gainsbourg, There are many celebrities in the history of pop music. Jane Birkin has such intuitive talent. She is a natural beauty and an artist. ”
Her last album, Oh! Pardon tu dormais..., is also her most private and most relevant work to her personal life. The emotion of the album is about love and loss. It is full of soaring string music, harmonious guitar and Jane's quiet voice. It is integrated with my heartbreaking memories and thoughts of the deceased photographer's eldest daughter Kate Barry, as well as the scars of war, feelings of love, self anxiety, etc., but finally accepted.
This work may also be a way for us to finally experience and remember Jane.
Jane has a unique pursuit and expression of fashion since childhood. In addition to her achievements in movies and music, Jane Birkin has a particularly profound influence on the fashion industry, and is an eternal muse.
Ms. Rima Abdul Malak, Minister of Culture of France, said that she was an unfashionable fashion symbol of the whole era;
The Washington Post wrote: Without people like Jane Birkin, the fashion industry could not exist. She reminded us that, Style is not a boring pursuit that makes everyone look the same It is such a person who has amazing courage and can't help expressing himself that has left us rich and profound fashion heritage;
In the official statement of Hermes, we share the same fashion sensitivity with Jane Birkin. In the process of cooperation, we gradually understand each other. We find and appreciate Jane Birkin's soft and elegant temperament. As an artist, she is loyal, open, and has a natural curiosity about the world and others. "
The well-known dress of Jane Birkin is probably the symbol of her "French girl style" - white blouse, jeans, woven basket, with scattered brown long hair, messy bangs, blue eyes, thin figure, enthusiastic laughter, and lovely teeth, which is the "French fashion" in the hearts of countless people, The heroism of Jane Birkin and her bold style of breaking the moral shackles have also injected more soul into her fashion style.
Even when she appears in public, Jane is also different from the exquisite and gorgeous dress of the stars in the 1960s and 1970s. Whether it is a basket, high waist bell bottoms, mini skirt, or the famous crochet skirt, she has always been a special but charming fixed figure on the red carpet and the stage. It may be because of her "special" that people have a desire for curiosity and imitation.
In 1968, Jane Birkin participated in the publicity of Wonderwall ⬆️， Not a "female star" at all.
In 1969, Paris wore a white crochet skirt when participating in Gala de l 'Union des artists ⬆️， This is one of her most famous looks.
This photo was taken in London ⬆️， Jane is wearing a pair of high waist bell bottoms with worn hem, a clean white shirt and strapping high-heeled shoes, and a symbolic wicker basket in her hand.
1974 Cannes Film Festival ⬆️， Also present with the signature wicker basket, designed by Yves Saint Laurent.
At another red carpet event, she decorated her velvet dress with pearl necklaces and basket bags.
Curious about this 🧺 What brand is it? Bonjour coco It comes from a small Portuguese fishing village where Jane bought wicker baskets for the first time, and even directly named ins Janebirkinbasket. His basket is considered the purest Jane Birkin version.
After the 1980s, Jane Birkin began to try another more neutral style - she cut off her long hair and wore more relaxed and handsome clothes. As a fashion muse, Jane's neutral dress has won wide resonance in the fashion world. French brand A P.C。 Jean Touitou, the founder of Her randomness is extremely precise 。
But in the 1980s, the cooperation between Jane Birkin and Hermes - Birkin bag (platinum bag) was even more sensational. So far, it is one of the most recognized and coveted bags in the world, with hundreds of thousands of dollars auctioned for rare varieties.
This timeless design originated from a chance encounter between Jane Birkin and then President Jean Louis Dumas on a flight to London in 1981.
Jane recalled during the interview, "I'm not sure what kind of bag I was carrying - my husband Jacques Doillon backed up and crushed my carry on basket the day before yesterday. He never thought of the consequences of this. When everything in my bag fell out during the flight, the man sitting next to me said to me: 'You should use a bag with an inner bag'. I said, 'If Hermes produces a bag with an inner bag one day, I will buy it'. Then the man said to me, 'I am Hermes, and I will add an inner bag to your bag.' " This man was Jean Louis Dumas, CEO of Hermes at that time. "I said, why don't you make a bag about four times the size of Kelly's bag?" She then recalled, and then drew a sketch on the vomit bag on the back of the aircraft seat.
Dumas kept his promise and launched the Birkin bag in 1984. A legendary cowhide handbag with two handles, a flip top design, a side lock, and four metal feet at the bottom came out.
Although she is named after her, Jane doesn't care much about Birkin bags. It is said that she has four bags in total before and after. When not in use, they are all auctioned off for charity. In addition, Jane Birkin uses Birkin bags in a very "rude" way, often stuffed with various items, pasted stickers of her own favorite, or hung beads. Her point is "If the handbag can't be kicked around at will, it won't have much fun. If I want to, I will even put the cat in it."
Later, she also criticized Hermes for using crocodile skin to make bags, sent a lawyer's letter to Hermes, asking them to stop naming Birkin bags in their own names, and advocated women's wardrobes to stay away from animal leather products. Hermes also responded quickly, saying that it would no longer use inhuman means to make Birkin packages. The two parties reached an agreement to continue using Birkin's name.
In addition, Jane has been firmly fighting for the rights of women and LGBT, and continues to contribute to public welfare, such as helping the Red Cross, helping homeless people, and so on.
Whenever she becomes an idol to be worshipped and respected, it is not just her enviable talents and achievements.
The last public appearance of Jane Birkin was the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, which was attended by her daughter Charlotte Gainsbourg and her first documentary Jane par Charlotte.
Jane par Charlotte is a documentary filmed by Charlotte since 2018. In her own words, it is a love confession letter to her mother. When they talked about the ultimate topic of life - 'death' in the film, Jane said: "I hope this day will come later, but it will come after all."
This day has come, but will life end at death?
"You are enjoying yourself, you are dying, and you are reborn forever.
Your voice, your unresolved sensitivity,
Your words, your disturbing honesty,
Your sneakers and smile,
You are a deadly little girl,
You are half a tough tramp,
Half of them are royal nobles,
It is impossible to summarize you in one minute and forty seconds,
I tried. "
This chapter ends with the speech of the youngest daughter Lou Doillon to Jane Birkin at the Victoires de la Musice Award Ceremony in February 2021.
Always miss you, Jane Birkin And thank you for bringing us style wealth.
