Nina Ricci's autumn show began with the bursting of lanterns in the dark Salle Wagram theater.
First out was American model Colin Jones, also known as Col the Doll, strutting extremely down the runway in a black lace bodysuit, gathered striped skirt and lace stockings. Welcome to Harris Reed's vision of Parisian chic.
The British-American designer said he was inspired by a 1962 Richard Avedon photograph of model and actress Suzy Parker sitting inside a car dressed in a Nina Ricci tweed dress with a fur-lined hood, as paparazzi press against the window.
“I really fell in love with this kind of aloof, almost annoying icon that she had,” he said before the show. “In a way, she created the energy for what she wanted Nina to be.”
Reed offered literal translations of the image, adding faux shearling-trimmed hoods to a classic beige trench coat, a velvet jumpsuit with a graphic mock crocodile bow, and another made of tweed with a peplum ruffle.
She relied on feminine looks, though her versions leaned more '80s than '50s: think a plum-colored hourglass coat with a matching pillbox hat, or a polka-dot dress with leg-of-mutton sleeves. , topped off with his signature black saucer hat.
She was, he said, “an elegant French woman through an American lens.”
The designer, known for his fluid aesthetic, ignored the temptation to surf the TikTok bow trend, ditching oversized bows for streamlined versions that looked especially dapper on white shirts worn with his incredible wide-lapel suits.
The lineup could use an edit: the sheer chiffon blouses looked funky and the knitted twin sets lacked polish. And despite the presence of a handful of curvaceous models, including Ashley Graham, the cast was less diverse, fueling the sense that Reed's exuberance has toned down after three seasons in the house.
It would be a shame if Paris took the joy out of such a force of nature, although judging by the screams backstage, the models were having a great time.
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