Haute Couture Fall 2019 is now over. We are left with the memory of some of the most extravagant, complex and unusual looks seen in recent fashion. As the Paris Summer Olympic Games were fast approaching, some couture houses looked to the athleticism and dynamism of sporting activities for inspiration. Maria Grazia Chiuri’s rendition of ancient Greek garments associated with the classical roots of the games and Thom Browne’s theatrical interpretation of sportswear through deconstructed yet exuberant garments to honour the atelier. While Chanel embraced their house codes’ timelessness and enduring strength, Daniel Roseberry’s Schiaparelli and Demna’s Balenciaga significantly focused on architectural and sculptural details to convey a message. Ahead, LUXUO presents the highlights of Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week, from Thom Browne’s ode to master craftsmanship to Balenciaga’s rejection of couture norms.
Dior
The theme of athleticism and sports influences were evident at this season’s haute couture week. The upcoming Paris Summer Olympic Games and Dior’s status as a French Maison under LVMH were the main reasons for this. Maria Grazia Chiuri drew her inspiration from the ancient origins of Olympic games. These dates back to the honouring of ancient Greek God Zeus. Chiuri modernised the distinctive characteristics of ancient Greek uniforms to reflect modernity and freedom.
Models graced the runway with toga-like garments, gladiator sandals and “peplos” — a garment made of a single piece of fabric draped across the body and folded at the waistline, a technique inspired by Christian Dior himself, as seen in Look 1 and 20. The use of jersey fabrics, rather than traditional couture materials such a satin which is typically heavy or robust, shows her intention to interpret sportwear through a couture prism. Jersey fabric allows for greater freedom of movement and is the antithesis to restrictive clothing. It also helps the body adopt fluid shapes to allow better movement. The feminist creative director, who is also a feminist, has been speaking out against the restrictive shapes of couture fashion for years. She prefers to focus on the notions of comfort and lightness. Perhaps Chiuri’s disdain for couture’s theatrics and drama speaks to the changed attitude of women in sports, of which in the past were made to describe the unnecessary nature of donning form-fitting corsets while playing sports. Her emphasis on freedom of movement is a symbol and physical expression of her desire to liberate women from social restraints and empower them through couture.
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Balenciaga
With Demna’s creative direction at Balenciaga, audience expect the unexpected, and that is precisely what was delivered this couture week. While the collection was criticised for not adhering to the standard of what the industry believes as haute couture, Demna’s subversive and unconventional aesthetic was one that garnered much buzz. Tried and true to Demna’s typical creative codes, models graced the runway in oversized T-shirts, sports jerseys, jeans and flannels. Although it may be questioned if this is couture, the everyday clothes were transformed into sculptural looks with streetwear and Goth influences through a couture perspective.
Demna’s edgy flair — while extremely evident — does incorporate hallmarks of Cristóbal Balenciaga’s oeuvre, which were modernised in Demna’s distinctive style with looks featuring cocooning silhouettes constructed from denim, leather and nylon. Additionally, Demna’s thoughts behind his choice of fabrics reflected his desire to normalise everyday fabrics in haute couture and that other materials should be included in the couture vocabulary, as he explained. The purpose of the strategic fabric choice was to encourage fashionistas to rethink how they assign value to their clothing, and to question why one material would be more valuable than another. Demna’s juxtaposing silhouette and material choices not only break couture norms but also sparks debate and discussion of what constitutes as couture. Couture is the art of fashion. It transforms fabrics, and requires a high level of skill and craftsmanship to create sculptural garments. Do the materials and unconventional styles dictate a collection’s place in couture?
Schiaparelli
Schiaparelli couture show is an example of a fashion art. Daniel Roseberry is the Schiaparelli Creative Director and American designer. He cited 1950s silhouettes for his latest collection. The collection titled “The Phoenix” took place in Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild, kindled only with a series of dimly lit chandeliers. The models were dressed in sculptural and architectural clothing, characterized by various textures and exaggerated figures, all of which were cleverly highlighted with strategic lighting.
“The Phoenix”, which saw Roseberry drew inspiration from, a coq-feathered stole house founder Elsa Schiaparelli wore to the opening of the Ambassadeurs restaurant in Paris in 1941. With that in mind, the idea of rebirth is presented in the collection with a less costume-centric approach, focusing on pure artistry and craftsmanship to show the brand’s elasticity. This is evident from the get-go, alluding to rebirth with phoenix imagery, as seen in Look 1, opening with a velvet cape adorned with trompe l’oeil feathered embroidery in three-dimensional chrome.
With this, the designer expressed his desire to shrug off his “meme” fashion reputation by referencing the archetypes of midcentury Haute Couture, showcasing expert techniques like intricate millefeuille layering, placed in circles creating full volume on the arabesque hems of an hourglass dress as seen in Look 10. He also aimed to empower women by using his artistic vision. The designer wanted each piece to stand alone as an original garment, designed to evoke feelings and embrace the body. The designer, who focuses on the architectural, sculptural, and structural aspects of each garment, is essentially a rising Phoenix himself.
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Thom Browne
In celebration of the brand’s 20-year anniversary, American designer Thom Browne presented his couture show in Paris’ Musée des Arts Décoratifs. The designer showed off his creative prowess, master artistry and craftsmanship by surprising the fashion world by deviating from the brand’s usual classic and simple style to striking and overtly theatrical garments. Although the 48 pieces appeared in muted tones, the creative vision came alive in the extravagant shapes, layering, and intricate embellishments.
Browne and his team focused their attention on the tailoring canvas. They used six different weights, some stacked to create volume in millefeuille, embellished with canvas or match buttons. The designer played with the themes of deconstruction and reconstruction to interpret sports influences. Dubbed by the designer himself, “couture is the Olympics of fashion”, classic all-American sports garments were taken up a notch, being reconstructed through a couture lens, creating tailored sports coats, pleated tennis skirts and shorts made with muslin and an added couture flair. Hourglass shapes and a bustier were the most notable, with a half-muscular system in bright red beads as seen in Look 42. The show ended with three jackets in bronze, silver, and gold, all fully embroidered, taking part in a medals ceremony.
The imagery of human anatomy along, sporting influences with the ultimate display of craftsmanship hints at the Browne’s intention of showcasing the “beauty of the hand rather than the machine”. The absence of colour highlights the level of skill and artistry displayed at the atelier. From the intricate embroidery to the lavish layering of muslin, the atelier’s work is a testament to its unwavering commitment.
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Chanel
The 2024 Fall Couture show marked Chanel’s first show since the departure of former creative director Virginie Viard. While the Grand Palais has long been the home of Chanel couture shows from the iconic Karl Lagerfeld era — with it being recently refurbished for the upcoming Olympics — Chanel ensued the help of French director Christophe Honoré to lend his artistic flair to the Paris Opera.
The collection was collectively headed by the skilled in-house team Chanel referred to as the “Fashion Creation Studio”, creating a collection of the house’s classic tweed garments, billowing taffeta capes and exaggerated collars as a nod to opera stars and prima ballerinas. The looks 10 and 14 in the picture above are clear indicators that the collection was a return to classics. They were modernised with color and texture changes, to adhere to Chanel standards. Bows were prominent motifs in the collection. Tweed, capes and bows were also recurring themes. These were embellished by jewels, fringe and frilled detail to give them that high-end flair. Although the collection was lavish and adhered to theatrics to harmonize with the grandeur in the opera, pieces that walked down the runway clearly showed the enduring, unwavering power of the house code. Despite the lack of a creative direction, the Chanel atelier has exhibited the pride of rich heritage and the timelessness of an established house code.
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