What do Hubert Lenoir, Kim Kardashian, Charles III and Pope Francis? They all already frolled out a red carpet. Reserved for guests of honor, this ceremonial and appearance carpet is a must for the decor of galas and large ceremonies. But where does this tradition come from? Why are we still rolling out the red carpet? Second and third texts in a series of four.
Sequins, garish colors, frills and high heels: on the red carpets of major galas in Quebec, stars are increasingly daring to wear flashy outfits worthy of the fashion catwalks. A way to encourage local designers, but also to get people talking about them by securing a place in the media.
“Where did you find your outfit? “Which designer does it come from?” These questions have become commonplace on red carpets. And that of ADISQ, at the beginning of November, was no exception to the rule.
If some artists roll their eyes when they hear them, others are quick to respond. “My costume comes from Atelier 1200, a Montreal company. I’ve been collaborating with them for two years, explains the singer Corneille. Me, I like to advertise to creators from here. I care a lot. »
Lisa LeBlanc also didn’t miss the opportunity, during her walk through the red carpet, to praise the “extraordinary work” of her friend Geneviève Bouchard, who had made her sparkling purple and gold outfit.
“It’s part of the game, to wear things you wouldn’t wear otherwise,” adds Pierre Lapointe. That’s what it’s for, a red carpet. […] It has become an exercise in fashion. For the ADISQ gala, the artist was dressed in glossy black from head to toe, large glasses and shoes adorned with white teeth. An outfit signed by the Belgian Walter Van Beirendonck, “one of the most daring designers of the last 30 years”, he specifies.
If Quebec red carpets are not as glamour as those of the Oscars, the Met Gala or the Cannes Film Festival, the singer has noticed in recent years that artists here are increasingly calling on creators for this type of event. “Why not take advantage of our forum to give them more visibility? »
Helping designers
“Seeing one of my creations worn on a red carpet was a turning point in my young career,” says fashion designer Tristan Réhel, who graduated from UQAM’s École Supérieure de Mode a year ago. just two years.
In 2021, rapper Marie-Gold — who followed her work on social media — ordered her a custom dress for the ADISQ red carpet. “She didn’t even have a ticket for the gala. The idea was to do our own red carpet next door and get noticed. It worked,” he says.
It must be said that the singer’s dress had something to attract attention and make people jealous. A flamboyant, voluminous purple dress with a long “princess train”. On it was written “Baveuse City 2022”, in reference to the album that Marie-Gold was about to launch.
“In fashion, it’s always a matter of compromise between budget and visibility. Is the budget that you are offered – often low – worth it for the visibility it will bring you? I think this time we were both winners. »
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Several personalities fell in love with the dress of the designer, who was offered contracts with big stars. Host and producer Julie Snyder invited him to the set of her show The week of the 4 Julies and ordered a custom dress for the occasion. Singer Ingrid St-Pierre also wears one of her creations on the cover of her recent album.
“Red carpets are THE biggest showcase for fashion designers,” says Philippe Denis, lecturer at UQAM’s School of Fashion. “It is more valuable for your creation to be worn by a well-known person in a high-profile event than on an unknown model in a fashion magazine. The star, by wearing your creation, endorses your vision and your values. It gives you a share of legitimacy and makes your talent shine. »
Artist publicity stunt
Obviously, the collaboration between Tristan Réhel and Marie-Gold was also a winner for the rapper: her photo ended up everywhere in the media, which allowed her to talk about her new album in addition to winning at the last minute tickets for the ADISQ gala and to walk the real red carpet.
Pierre Lapointe has been doing it for years to make a sartorial stunt to get people talking. “I realized that I was paying a fortune to advertise my shows in the newspapers, whereas when I arrived at ADISQ with a set that makes talk, for the price of my set, I’m everywhere for four or five days and we talk about my tour. A bit of an artist wise will play that card. »
Hollywood stars have understood this as well. Consider the dress made of meat worn by singer Lady Gaga at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards or Jennifer Lopez’s green Versace dress at the Grammy Awards in 2000, at the start of her career.
Image drifts
This importance given to the image of stars does not come without drawbacks, however, especially in the United States, notes VK Preston, professor of history at Concordia University. Because when we play with extravagance, the limit between the beautiful and the ugly, between the misstep and the flash, is very thin. Some stars sink into it like flowers on the carpet.
After the big red carpet evenings, the lists of the most beautiful and the worst dresses flourish in the media, with often cruel criticisms in support. “It’s an opportunity to comment quite violently on the appearance of the artists. We scrutinize them with a pitiless gaze. »
According to M.me Preston, the red carpet is like a test for performers to determine who has public approval to break the rules. We could illustrate it here by a certain outcry at home: when Safia Nolin took the ADISQ stage in 2016 wearing a t-shirt bearing the image of Gerry Boulet.
“The red carpet is also a time when the stars can be “put in their place” by a part of the public, depending on their age, their weight, their appearance. And the conclusions of this social judgment are inconsistent. It is not uncommon, for example, to find the same outfit on the lists of the worst and the most beautiful dresses, specifies the professor.
“But, in Quebec, there is not an army on Twitter waiting for them to judge and to say how shitty they look in their jeans [à quel point ils ont l’air déguenillés dans leurs jeans], she adds. It’s more interesting as an artistic model and as a way of treating our artists. Having a smaller economy, which doesn’t revolve around events like red carpets, is better for focusing on artistic work. »