CATHERINE BABA

Catherine Baba is a figure of jazz-age sophistication and decadent glamour. Based in Paris since the mid-1990s, the Australian Catherine Baba is one of the most eccentric stylists of the capital.
Originally from Australia, she moved from Sidney to Paris in the mid-90s to work as a creative consultant for labels such as Ungaro, Givenchy and Balmain. Nowadays, she remains a styling force to be reckoned with, as she is a freelance stylist and consultant for a number of fashion houses and designers. She has also worked for Dazed and international editions of Vogue.

She is an extraordinary creature, with the allure of both a silent movie star and Guy Bourdin muse. Her flamboyance is underlined by a fashionable sense of drama – Baba counts artists such as Lucas Cranach, Man Ray, Picasso and Warhol as favorites.

“My mother is a dressmaker and my brother used to do the patterns for Brian Rochford swimwear. He had his factory and my mother had her sewing machine and there was always fabric, always….So I really started at a young age going into my mother’s workroom and cutting fabric and making dresses for the dolls….I continued and studied textile and design at school. After high school I knew that the only direction in my life was to go next to Paris and continue studying, and that’s what I did.… When I arrived in Paris it was in ’94 and it was really the burst of the young designer period. Everyone was a designer and Tom Ford had just started at Gucci, so the industry was morphing into different levels than what it was. It was also the birth of the art director as designer.”

Catherine Baba on her interest in fashion for dumbofeather.com

“I just can’t take them off my face, darling!”

Catherine Baba on sunglasses for vogue.com

Known for her bright red lips, sky high stilettos and her legendary oversized glasses, her mixed and matched style seems like it evolved from old Hollywood glamour dating back to the 1930’s and 40’s.

“[It is] very personal. My style is a reflection of everything I love and adore. It hasn’t changed, but perhaps [has] evolved into more couture.”

Catherine Baba on sunglasses for coveteur.com

Considerate as well as a fashion icon, Catherine loves to make bold statements and has developed an unmistakable style which has its own place in the contemporary fashion world. She has a feminine allure, displaying a love of rich fabrics and fantasy clothes that frequently have a surreal twist.

“Sunglasses are like caviar for the face.”

Catherine Baba on sunglasses for anothermag.com

Almost always shaded by oversized sunglasses, her head wrapped in a splendid turban or adorned with an avant-garde hat, she doesn’t give too much away.

Catherine Baba in Vogue Australia

The eccentric fashion stylist, Catherine Baba, cycles through the streets of Paris in super high-heels, kimonos and amazing shades creating her very own unique style. The street-style statement she makes seems so natural, as every element of her outfits appear to have just been thrown together effortlessly.

Watching her prance around the streets of Paris is the ultimate inspiration. We love how she is completely herself; there is no one like her and she doesn’t follow trends or times—she just does her! For more inspiration check out our hadpicked selection of oversized and statement sunglasses.

photos: Adam Katz for le21-eme.com, Philip Oh,