Many people already know how Jane Birkin became the ideological inspiration for the age-old classic from Hermès – Birkin. Oh, this Paris-London flight and the fateful meeting with Jean-Louis Dumas😌
If you have not heard about the backstory of Birkin, then this paragraph is for you:
“According to one legend, Jane, sitting next to the head of the Hermès company on an airplane, complained that she could not find a comfortable bag. And he took it and promised to make one for her, so the coveted Birkin appeared.”
With the Rare Collection, you can have it in your personal collection;)
Recently Birkin passed away but left a significant contribution to fashion history. How much do you know about the actress herself? Today we will walk through the wilds of her life and slightly open the curtain of personality – who is Jane Birkin?
In this article:
Biography
Birkin was born in England in 1946 and began her acting career. However, it gained worldwide popularity in the 60s, becoming one of that era's symbols.
Jane Birkin
She turned twenty at the height of the "swinging sixties" when London suddenly became the capital of the arts. This captivated Jane. She married the composer John Barry, who created the legendary James Bond tune and played in his musical Passion Flower Hotel, but soon left the theater and entered the cinema world.
In 1965, she first appeared on the screen – in Richard Lester's film "Knack", and a year later, she became known to the whole world as the "naked blonde model" from Michelangelo Antonioni's masterpiece "Blowup". In 1967 the film won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
Birkin on the set of "Blow Up"
One day, French director Pierre Grimbla was looking for an actress for a role in his film "Slogan", and Jane left across the English Channel for auditions, not even suspecting that she was leaving England forever. Birkin's partner was the famous musician, singer, and Jane's future husband, Serge Gainsbourg. This gave rise to a stormy romance and one of the brightest duets in the history of French music.
In 1969, they played together in two more films. But the main achievement of the year could be considered a song with a simple title "I love you – but I don't love you either." In 1968, Gainsbourg wrote it as a duet with Bardot, but after the break, Bridget asked never to miss a song with frankly erotic lyrics. Serge obeyed, but a year later, he recorded a new version with Jane. A real scandal erupted in the country.
Birkin and Serge
Since the mid-seventies, Jane has paid more attention to her career as a singer than an actress. However, in 1977 she starred in Claude Zidi's The Beast with Jean-Paul Belmondo, and in 1978 she appeared in the film adaptation of Agatha Christie's novel Death on the Nile.
For those who want to know more about the actress's personal life, her relationship with Gainsbourg, and, more importantly, her outlook on life, naive and touching, is The Monkey Diaries. The name references a soft toy – Monkey, the actress's mascot, with which she did not part and placed in Serge's coffin in 1991.
Jane`s Toy Monkey
On 07/16/2023, at 76, Jane passed into the world as the legendary actress, singer, and icon after whom the Hermès Birkin bag was named – Jane Birkin.
Birkin with Birkin*
* In exchange for using her name, Jane received a bag as a gift. And later, having received small funds, she transferred them to charity.
According to Le Parisien, the woman was found dead at her home in Paris. In September 2021, Birkin suffered a stroke, after which her series of concerts were also canceled.
Jane Birkin Style
Jane Birkin is not only about cinema. She became a fashion icon, changing the very concept of style. Her low-cut bikini look and short black skirt have even been dubbed "Birkin's rock 'n' roll style." Freedom, sexuality, authenticity, and independence of nature – this is Jane.
Let's go through the pieces in the stylish icon's wardrobe!
Every time Jane went somewhere, all the women were closely watching, trying to copy her style of wearing bell bottoms and T-shirts on a naked body. But such immediacy and deliberate indifference to the fashion with which she performed was impossible to repeat. She said more than once:
"I'm not as elegant as French women, but I don't care about that - unlike English women."
Mini with Low Shoes
Birkin combined a short length with comfortable low-soled shoes. In the mid-60s, she brought the fashion for short dresses from London to Paris.
Men's Cloth
Although Jane Birkin used the image of an innocent Lolita, she often wore things masculinely, and some of her stylistic decisions were cutting-edge. For example, in the mid-1990s, Birkin combined voluminous wide coats with American-style sneakers. She also often appeared in her husband's jacket, setting new fashion trends.
Jane and oversized coat
Translucent Blouses
A loose blouse is a must-have item in the wardrobe of a true Parisian, but Birkin was not interested in wearing it just like that. Jane found her way to liven up this bourgeois thing - sometimes unbuttoning the blouse almost to the navel, then tying it very short, coquettishly exposing the stomach.
Basket
Birkin's "calling card" is a wicker basket – the legendary accessory of Jane Birkin, with which she was not parted either during the day during walks or in the evening at invited dinners. The British woman combined it with a voluminous fur coat on the coldest winter days and a basic top complete with jeans in the scorching hot summer. Perhaps this detail has inspired many designers to create bucket bags.
Birkin`s Basket
Stretchy sweater
The magic of Jane Birkin can turn a loose, shapeless sweater into an incredibly mysterious part of the wardrobe. Who doesn't have one now? And in the 70s, it was a real revelation.
Sexuality without a hint of vulgarity and intuitive adherence to one's taste are rare phenomena, so almost 50 years later, Jane Birkin remains a style icon. She does not betray herself: even in the last years of her life, she was accompanied by a smile, carelessly messy hair, and a sense of style.
If you want to imbibe the spirit of Jane Birkin even more, we suggest you watch several films with her participation: Wonderwall (1968), Blowup (1966), and La Piscine (1969).
Jane Birkin etched herself in history as a symbol of freedom, style, and self-expression. Its influence continues to this day. So Birkin is worth Birkin, or vice versa – Birkin deserves Jane;) And what do you think?