Balenciaga is a luxury fashion house founded in 1917 by Spanish designer Cristóbal Balenciaga in San Sebastián, Spain and currently based in Paris. Balenciaga had a reputation as a couturier of uncompromising standards and was referred to as "the master of us all" by Christian Dior. His bubble skirts and odd, feminine, yet "modernistic" silhouettes became the trademarks of the house. Balenciaga closed in 1972 and was reopened under new ownership in 1986. The brand is now owned by the luxury group Kering.