(AP) PARIS — The atmosphere and anticipation surrounding Balmain's nighttime fashion-music festival spectacular, a star-studded charity event combining the newest clothes, members of the public, and performances, kicked off Paris Fashion Week on Wednesday. That included Cher performing a closing walk.
Here are a few of the spring-summer 2023 shows' high points.
BAL-MANIA AND CHER
Olivier Rousteing demonstrated once more that he is one of the biggest showmen in the world of fashion by staging a festival for Balmain that took place in a huge stadium. Of course, here was where Paris Fashion Week's biggest celebrity moment was decided when Cher and the designer exited the show together. The 76-year-old Oscar winner strutted the boards in a marbled spandex bodysuit, a plunging neck, platform shoes, and the house's renowned peaked shoulders to cheers from the audience. She soon wrote, "Just had the finest time on stage, felt fantastic."
In the pop-up village complete with stands, located in the Jean-Bouin stadium in western Paris, which is more accustomed to hosting rugby matches than spandex suits, Balmain claimed it was honouring the best in food, music, and fashion. The general public could purchase about 10,000 tickets if they made a donation to charity.
BALMAIN WAS A FASHION SHOW, DON'T FORGET THAT
Some visitors might be excused for losing track of the event's main focus—the clothes—amid the razzmatazz. The designs' memorable moments, which combined ready-to-wear and couture, were the result of the Balmain creative teams scavenging in the jungle for natural materials.
Chestnut tree bark was used to make one distinctive bustier, and materials from bogs and meadows were used to make basketweave garments, all of which were softened in water for an ethnic appearance.
Although Rousteing has been outspoken about his adoption and only recently learned that his biological parents were from the Horn of Africa, this show was also an emotional and cultural exploration for him.
Naturally, it's simple to see Africa's influence throughout, according to the designer. My longstanding passion with the beauty, customs, and designs of that area was only heightened by the discovery.
SANDS OF COURREGES
For Courreges, a circular sandy runway had a falling sand column in the middle that resembled the sands of time or the setting of the film "Dune." The show's soundtrack contained off-kilter and slightly unsettling musical cadences that gave it a sanitised, condensed atmosphere.
Nicolas Di Felice, the designer of Courreges, wants to infuse his clothing with atmosphere. The company now promotes a signature mood over a signature style.
A variation on the pristine white shirt marked the start of the spring/summer trends, and a voluminous shirt dress successfully conveyed the mood of simplicity and sport. Models occasionally wore n*ked shoes or had bare feet. Di Felice used the runway to introduce cutting-edge variations on commonplace goods like a denim jacket, denim skirt, or flared pants, such as snipaways, toggles, sheeny space fabrics, and deconstruction. For instance, the sheer fabrics of an athletic vest gave it a kinky twist.
This strategy fits nicely with the iconic brand created in 1961 by André Courrèges and his wife Coqueline, which came to be associated with the Space Age aesthetic.
The art of invitation-making
The ancient invitation method used by the fashion industry doesn't appear to have been significantly affected by the advent of email or the growing environmental consciousness.
Season every season, gas-guzzling couriers drive all over Paris hand-delivering invitations to shows that are more complex and frequently handcrafted.
Top houses compete for the zaniest or most creative idea, which frequently hints at the topic of the upcoming runway collection.
A beautiful red tropical flower that the floral dictionary described as an anthurium arrived through the mail for Loewe's invitation. The base of the flower's stalk was connected to a cutting-edge humidity capsule in order to maintain the bloom alive throughout Fashion Week.
The show card was concealed inside Saint Laurent's stylish black patent leather wallet invitation, which also included a metallic "YSL" on top.
With a characteristically impenetrable collection kept together, it appeared, only by the aesthetic of its looseness, the Belgian fashion master was back on form for spring.
Fashion-forward ensembles in all-black, such as an oversized tuxedo for males worn on the breast or an Asian crossover coat, suddenly erupted into vibrant sequins, pastels, then ruffles and florals in the 64-look collection.
There were other aesthetic plays, including one lace-like black top with rib-like stitching that looked extremely Elizabethan. Along with numerous menswear variations on the womenswear clothing, female models were purposefully chosen for their boyish appearances.
The softness of the garments—the floppy layers of fabric, the draping tassels that caressed the floor of the warehouse venue, and the large proportions of the sleeves, skirts, and billowing pants—seemed to be the only recurring element.
An original, Van Noten was having fun at the time.
Undercover rips it to pieces.
The Undercover line by Jun Takahashi was formal with a modern touch.
This season, the streetwear-inspired Japanese designer went slashing bonkers, lobbing the shoulder off a bright yellow oversize tuxedo, ripping holes in a fancy white shirt, or slashing suit sleeves, slacks, and the lapel on an otherwise classy double breasted jacket.
Japanese anime felt present, as it had in prior seasons. The double top know hairstyles worn by numerous of the models in this collection had a comical feel to them.
Statement The animation theme was enhanced with t-shirts with the words "Love" and "Dream" scrawled on them.
