The step and repeat says: “Perceive me, I pray you.” Schiaparelli speaks this same language: that of spectacle.
(Angella Choe / For The Times)
They draw us in like moths wanting to flex in front of the flame: steps and repetitions, the backdrop of our memories. We pose in front of fake roses at Bougie brunch spots in Fairfax, rap in front of cheap, shiny vinyl roses at party nights in North Hollywood and tequila-sponsored activations at La Cienega, wait hours to be captured in front of a dreamy baby Blue fabric with the words “Born X Raised” on top of Sadie Hawkins each year.
Step and repeat was invented for the sole purpose of being seen: it pushes you towards the gaze. There is something honest about it: the step and repeat says: “Perceive me, I pray you.”
Schiaparelli speaks this same language: that of spectacle. Since the creation of the house in the 1920s, Elsa Schiaparelli made clothes for the strange artistic children of the world of luxury fashion: she shared with the Dadaists and the Surrealists and she was inspired by them. Salvador Dalí designed a lobster that was printed on one of her most iconic dresses. Since creative director Daniel Roseberry took the helm in 2019, the house has been built on this idea of performance, of celebrity, of how clothing can create, like a step and repeat, a sublime moment of being seen by the masses and have been captured for years in our collective memory. (Four words: Kylie Jenner's lion dress.)
Elisa wears Schiaparelli black velvet bustier dress; knurled brass bracelet with the effigy of the House's characteristic ear and lock codes; black patent leather pumps decorated with the House's signature keyhole detail in gold brass; pair of enamel and gold brass earrings in the shape of the characteristic keyhole; Keyhole clutch.
Hayley wears a Schiaparelli Japanese raw denim ensemble decorated with a row of signature jewelry buttons in hammered gold brass; black nappa trompe-l'oeil ankle boots with gold brass toe decorations; the new three-dimensional “Face” bag in red calfskin inlaid with gold brass and enamel jewels that form a trompe-l'oeil face; Pair of mirror, gold brass and enamel earrings inspired by a lock button from the collection and a pierced ear.
Hailey wears Schiaparelli short embroidered black curly wool bolero jacket inspired by a jacket from the Schiaparelli archives worn by Marlène Dietrich; ecru elastic lambskin pleated peplum skirt; pair of keyhole-shaped earrings and hammered gold brass; Two-material boots in stretch leather and white patent leather decorated with the Maison's signature keyhole detail in tonal enamel.
The hyper-glamorous sportiness really feels authentic here,” says Schiaparelli creative director Daniel Roseberry of the Los Angeles style.
(Angella Choe / For The Times)
Schiaparelli has created his fair share of viral moments. The Doja Cats with red crystals embedded, Lady Gagas at the inauguration. But Roseberry insists that she also wants to “make clothes for private people who find themselves in performative elements of life.” (That is, the people in Los Angeles who might find themselves invited to the kind of event where a step and a repeat awaits them.) Earlier this year, Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills opened an exclusive Schiaparelli boutique inspired by the house's atelier on Place Vendôme. Roseberry's spring 2024 ready-to-wear collection included a black jacket adorned with gold Schiaparelli chains, fake cigarettes, and spilled red nail polish. There were white Converse-style sneakers with gold toe caps molded into the caps. A tight gathered white skirt with that lobster in the crotch.
A piece by Schiaparelli tries to translate fantasy into tangible reality. It's for when you need something whose details are so evident, so extraordinary, that they will undoubtedly translate on camera. We talked to Roseberry about why Schiaparelli is something of a kindred spirit for Los Angeles, why a piece in the house just begs to be in front of a step-and-repeat.
Julissa James: How do you feel?
Daniel Roseberry: Good. With jet lag but good. Always, always happy to be on the West Coast.
JJ: How often do you come here?
DR: I come here a couple of times a year. Always to Los Angeles. I have a great group of friends here. And my boyfriend lives here. So I have a real reason to be present in Los Angeles, even outside of work.
JJ: I think there's a sense that people in Los Angeles are obsessed with this idea of hype. I think we are a city of people who compete with each other all the time to be seen. When I think about what you've done with Schiaparelli, it really resonates with that idea.
DR: In my first year at Schiaparelli, I came [to L.A.] with a few toiles and we took a bungalow at the Chateau [Marmont]. We covered the bungalow with my sketches and met consecutively with all the stylists here. That was a pre-COVID initiation into the subculture here: being seen at the highest level. Part of what I wanted to do at Schiaparelli was make clothes for private people who find themselves in performative elements of life. At first, the priority was really the red carpet. We don't advertise, we never pay people to wear the clothes. So the red carpet, as well as the collections, became the main means of communication for us. And then, over four years, ready-to-wear has become another way to communicate with people.
JJ: This idea of celebrity and spectacle also feels very, very connected to what you've done. And that also feels very, very connected to Los Angeles. You've had so many big moments over the years, especially this year. Are there certain moments that stand out in your mind? Doja Cat was one of my favorites.
DR: Which one, Doja red? We also did a different Doja moment, which was wonderful.
JJ: Red doja. Sometimes I see that image when I close my eyes.
Miguel is wearing a two-material Schiaparelli coat with an oversized collar in ecru leather and black straight fur shearling and designs by Daniel Roseberry; gilt brass glasses; vintage black leather boots.
Roseberry insists that she also wants to “make clothes for private people who find themselves in performative elements of life.”
Miguel wears black velvet Schiaparelli tromp-l'oeil mules with gold brass trim on the toe.
(Angella Choe / For The Times)
DR: That's what it's there for. In some ways, I'm more attached to a lot of the COVID-era moments that we've had because they almost took on a sort of historical tone. Lady Gaga [at the inauguration]: I remember when she walked through the doors, a lot of people said that was the first moment of glamor they had seen in a long time. Beyoncé: It was a historic moment at the Grammys when we did the black leather mini dress. Bella Hadid was the first red carpet to return. Those COVID-era moments were very special because we were hungry for beauty. Post-COVID, it's increasingly difficult to find ways to move forward. And Doja red, devil Doja: it's so funny because of Doja's “Paint the Town Red” lyrics. There is synergy.
JJ: I'm very curious to know how much your gaze influences your creative process. When you sit down to draw or design, how much do you think, “Okay, this is going to look like this from this angle…”
DR: It's something huge. I like to work backwards. I love thinking about reviewing a collection before I start working on it; In that I am very goal-oriented. It's a lot about thinking, “How would I like to see this person? I love your job”. It's about playing a lot with eras or playing with moments or with its own iconography. And then it's, “How can we give people something they want?” That's how I feel about collections too. It is about putting yourself in the place of the voyeur, of the gaze, and trying to anticipate and serve him.
JJ: Are there certain pieces in your latest collection that feel specifically in tune with Los Angeles? When I see the red minidress with the gold nipples, it feels very LA.
Kim wears a tailored Schiaparelli flame velvet suit consisting of a fitted collarless buttoned jacket with pockets decorated with nipple buttons and the season's gold brass button combination and a matching buttoned pencil skirt with a slit in the middle; black velvet pumps decorated with the House's signature keyhole detail in gold brass; Pair of mouth-shaped earrings in fluted enamel and gold brass.
(Angella Choe / For The Times)
DR: The hyper-glamorous sportiness really feels authentic here. I always think of those guys who would wear suits with Converse, like Mark Ronson, the [gold] The toe cap sneakers we made remind me of that. I would love to make a collection of dresses alone. If we had a show here and it was just dresses…
JJ: Like us have places to use them. I don't. But the people, the collective.
DR: I'm from Dallas. And Dallas is, I would say, very inspired by Los Angeles in that sense. There is a glamorous fantasy quality to going out.
JJ: Let's talk about the opening of the boutique with Neiman Marcus. It is the first time that the house is in Los Angeles in an official capacity.
DR: I think a lot of people have been waiting to participate in the world we've been building. In the first chapter, it was really about building the authority of the house, the voice, the language, the codes. And now the next chapter is about opening that up and making it happen. If you are on the west or east coast, there are very few places to buy it. Which makes it much more valuable. And that's really what we wanted to do: be the antithesis, the alternative to the ubiquity of the big multi-million dollar brands that can be found everywhere. We offer a different business model, a different growth trajectory and also a different type of product.
“Easy-to-wear clothing has become another way to communicate with people,” Roseberry says.
Steps and repetitions are the backdrop to our memories.
(Angella Choe / For The Times)
All Schiaparelli pieces available exclusively at Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills.
Producer: Rafaela Remy Sánchez
Step by step illustrations Julissa Aaron
Models: Kim Cuevas; Elisa Löhr; Hayley Ashton; Hailey Reynolds; miguel reyna
Make up: Jaime Diaz
Hair: Adrian Arredondo
Photography assistant: Kabir Affons
Styling assistant: Gizelle Burciaga
