(Paris) Ancient goddesses by Dior, surrealist outfits for Schiaparelli or aquatic ones at Iris Van Herpen opened Parisian haute couture week on Monday, in a context of tension and riots which led Celine to cancel a show on Sunday evening.
The Dior woman is extremely minimalist inspired by antique statues and lightened to provide more comfort.
A long white woolen dress with a matching cape opens the parade at the Rodin Museum in a decor designed by the Italian artist Marta Roberti, who combines in her drawings animals, goddesses, self-portraits and fragments of wild landscapes.
The silhouette is vertical, the line clean and the colors refined: white, black, beige, gold and silver.
“It was subtraction work. I wanted to remove the sheath, the lining, these elements that characterize constructed couture outfits, “says AFP Maria Grazia Chiuri, artistic director of Dior’s women’s collections.
Daily changing room
In addition to the essential dresses, the collection offers several separate pieces, allowing them to be mixed and built “a whole personalized wardrobe”, she underlines.
These include shorts that can be seen under transparent golden capes embroidered with pearls or white blouses.
“There is no roadmap in haute couture,” assures the stylist, adding that a white blouse is not “considered a key piece” in this field.
An approach that brings a pragmatic dimension to haute couture, associated with the red carpet or museum pieces.
Stunning drapes and volumes, outfits in black and white, gold and silver: Daniel Roseberry, Schiaparelli’s American stylist, has also reinterpreted “everyday women’s wardrobe” in a surreal way in front of rapper Cardi B, Anna Wintour or actresses Gwendoline Christie and Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, at the Petit Palais.
White blouse, pants, black turtleneck or down jackets: hard to guess in these pieces that can be combined “spontaneously” those reserved for the office or for everyday life. That’s how we’re daring this season, after this winter’s fashion show which sparked controversy with its dresses adorned with fake animal heads.
For her part, the designer Iris Van Herpen presented her collection with aquatic and futuristic inspirations outdoors, in front of the singer Camila Cabello (Havana) and actress Maisie Williams (Game Of Thrones).
At the Dutch, the silhouettes float like aquatic beings, all in transparency, like this pleated dress, in a deep and iridescent blue reminiscent of the fins of a fish. The hair is pulled back into a tight bun, adorned with silver caps, similar to sharp tiaras.
The models are half-women, half-mermaids, perched on wedge heels.
The parade ends with a long black dress, decorated with white patterns similar to peacock feathers.
More than ever a red carpet star, the designer dressed Beyoncé for part of her Renaissance tour. An exhibition will be dedicated to him from the end of November in Paris.
The first day of this week, which highlights made-to-measure and craftsmanship, is also marked by the arrival of two newcomers: the American Thom Browne and the Frenchman Charles de Vilmorin.
At 26, Charles de Vilmorin presents his first couture show for his own brand after having briefly been artistic director for Rochas.
Her previous couture collections, one in pop colors and psychedelic prints and the other entirely black, had been unveiled in videos during the health crisis.
“I’m super happy to have lived through all this and to do my first show,” he told AFP, in his apartment-workshop last week finalizing the collection.