Dries van Noten has shown in Paris for the first time in two years. Just like Celine, Comme des Garçons and Thom Browne. After two years of digital calendars and just a handful of catwalk shows, the fashion spotlight returned to Paris last week. Japanese and Belgian designers were also there again. It’s also been a long time since so many celebrities have been spotted at men’s fashion week – from Justin Timberlake to David Beckham. Buyers and journalists flocked from all parts of the world – with the exception of China and Russia.
Virgil Abloh has to be patient a little longer
The luxury group Kering held back at this edition of fashion week – Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta and Alexander McQueen were not to be seen. Earlier, Gucci invited some journalists to a vintage boutique in Milan to present an all-around modest capsule collection by artistic director Alessandro Michele and pop star Harry Styles.
The luxury goods group LVMH, on the other hand, held one mega show after the other in Paris. Louis Vuitton erected a gigantic construction on the square in front of the Louvre: an abstract, winding “yellow brick road” leading to the sky. The show, which was opened and closed by not one, but two American marching bands and cheerleaders, harked back to Virgil Abloh’s debut for Vuitton, which was inspired by the classic film ‘The Wizard of Oz’. Superstar Kendrick Lamar rapped about Abloh live from his chair.
The spectacle drowned out the dresses designed by Atelier Vuitton. And despite the budget in the millions, there was no money for bottled water: the audience sat unprotected in the bright, blinding midday sun for almost an hour. It was Vuitton’s umpteenth homage to Abloh. Undoubtedly a heartfelt gesture for a talented designer who died far too young. But it’s also time to let the man rest in peace and start a new chapter.
An artificial garden in a real garden
Dior built an artificial garden with thousands of flowers and wet grass in a tent set in a real garden, at the foot of the chapel of the Val de Grace military hospital. Replica houses lined either side of the runway: Christian Dior’s Granville estate in Normandy and Charleston Farm in Sussex. The property was once owned by Duncan Grant, a painter and member of the Bloomsbury Group who is particularly fond of Dior’s artistic director, Kim Jones.
The whole setting had something outdated about it: in his day, Karl Lagerfeld could still build rockets or transport ice floes from the North Pole to the Grand Palais for Chanel. In 2022, such excess seems irresponsible, despite Dior’s pledge to replant the flowers. In addition, attention was diverted from the clothing here as well. In Lagerfeld’s case, that was a bonus: his later collections for Chanel were rarely something to take credit for. Kim Jones, on the other hand, has nothing to be ashamed of. The collection, in case it wasn’t already obvious, was about gardening. The most fascinating piece: a kind of culotte with integrated leggings, which are available in a dozen variants.
Givenchy built a water catwalk around a huge white cube on the grounds of the stately Ecole Militaire. Matthew Williams doesn’t get much further than his signature steel buckles and no-nonsense sportswear with big logos. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it does suggest a lack of ambition at the legendary luxury house. What else does the Givenchy name stand for?
K-Pop in the Bauhaus
For once, Céline didn’t build her own building in a historic location, instead renting a space in the Palais de Tokyo. The culture temple in an Art Deco building from the 1930s is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Hedi Slimane had already shown a Dior Homme show there and wanted to repeat this experience. The guests in the front row got the most attention, including Lisa from Blackpink and V from BTS. It’s rare to see members of these two Korean pop sensations at the same event, and fan hysteria was correspondingly high. Thousands of screaming youths lined the gates of the building. While Hedi Slimane embarked on a new, exciting direction during the pandemic – inspired by TikTokkers – this time he returned to his familiar, gritty aesthetic of punk with a dash of glam rock. He called the collection “dysfunctional Bauhaus”.
Kenzo and Loewe, two smaller houses from the LVMH portfolio, used existing buildings: a school and an old tennis club. For the Japanese style mediator Nigo, it was the second collection he designed for Kenzo: American through Japanese glasses, with allusions to sailors and high schools from the 1960s. The result was excellent, even if today Kenzo seems more like a hip streetwear brand in the tradition of Bape or Billionaire Boys Club than a real fashion label.
Amélie Poulain als Blickfang
Even with labels that are not part of the LVMH group, the focus was more on the show itself than on the clothes: Ami Paris rented the forecourt of the Sacré Coeur church in Montmartre, and put Carla Bruni, Noah Beck, Catherine Deneuve and Naomi Campbell in the front row and had the show opened by Audrey Tautou, alias Amélie Poulain, from the cult film of the same name, which is largely set in Montmartre. Other models walking the runway: Liya Kebede, Karen Elson, Precious Lee, Cara Delevingne and Kristen McMenamy. The designer Alexandre Mattiussi has found new investors and the money has flowed. After the show, which featured wearable casual wear for both men and women, which ended up being quite ordinary, guests were taken to the after-party in a tourist bus.
Rick Owens had three gigantic fireballs hoisted up by a crane on the terrace of the Palais de Tokyo and dropped into a pond, as if it wasn’t already warm enough. And so he, too, shifted the focus from the clothes to the show. It’s a real shame because she was outstanding, especially some bright neon looks.
Japanese and Belgian fashion labels are back
Anyway, spectacle is good. And fashion has, say, evolved since the 1990s. There is room for everything, especially in Paris, where French luxury coexists perfectly with the international, often young, avant-garde. It was a relief that the Belgians and the Japanese were finally back. The latter group in particular was in full force for the first time since 2020, with shows by Taak, Homme Plissé, Junya Watanabe Man, Comme des Garçons, Maison Mihara Yasuhiro, Kolor and Auralee, among others. Watanabe’s show was a happy climax: the designer used work by Keith Haring, Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat – which has become almost a cliché by now – but mixed them up and also added the Coca-Cola and Netflix logos. With music by the Talking Heads.
And then there were the Belgians. Dries Van Noten had already made a tentative comeback during women’s fashion week with a static presentation in an old mansion. For the men’s collection, on the other hand, there was finally a real show, on the roof of a parking garage in Montmartre, at sunset, with a collection that oscillated between romance and hardcore techno – there were baggy pajamas and references to racing uniforms. One of the most beautiful moments of the week.
Walter Van Beirendonck, who retired earlier this month as director of the Antwerp Fashion Academy, presented a melancholic show at the Théâtre de la Madeleine. He was inspired by Icarus, who flew too close to the sun with his artificial wings and fell into the sea. The show started out rather somber, with lots of black and gold. A second part was more in the technicolor-oriented style typical of Van Beirendonck.
At Y/Project, designer Glenn Martens combined his experimentation with denim, his ongoing collaboration with Gaultier and his signature multi-wear outfits. A very mature show: Martens, who also designs for Diesel and created a couture line for Gaultier last season, has become an established designer – one of the most important of his generation.
Jan Jan Van Essche held a small presentation in his showroom, where you could see the noble materials and techniques he used up close. Very nice: some thick sweaters and hats, for which Van Essche was inspired by the work of Bauhaus artist Annie Albers.
Best of
Paris highlights included the Van Noten and Van Beirendonck shows, but also Hermès, perhaps the only luxury brand that didn’t need a grand entrance to tell its story over the past week. Now perhaps the designer with the longest track record in fashion, menswear designer Véronique Nichanian continues to rejuvenate her aesthetic, this time with gorgeous raincoats made from glassy plastic in bright orange and pink.
Lemaire’s living images in an empty museum hall gave a good glimpse into his timeless wardrobe, which looks a little lighter for next summer. Tel Aviv-based Hed Mayner belongs to the same school of designers who cater to a more art-loving, intellectual crowd: oversized linen tunics, somewhere between acolyte and military.
Thom Browne dressed men in the kind of tweed usually associated with Chanel, but in pastel colours. He combined them with jockstraps, also made of tweed. Fabulous – not for everyone, but at least Browne dares to dream and pushes the boundaries.
The best show in Paris was undoubtedly Briton Craig Green’s, which took place in a minimalist white room. The clothes were spectacular enough on their own. Green likes to hide his designs under impractical, sculptural structures: parachutes, this time including ladders and scaffolding. But the looks themselves were also irresistible this season, in a palette ranging from white to all the colors of the rainbow.
This translated post previously appeared on FashionUnited.nl.
