On a day of heavy rain, protest marches and traffic, Paris witnessed three shows by designers determined to think outside the box when it came to their brand DNA: Vivienne Westwood, Hermès and Elie Saab.
Vivienne Westwood: historical hipster
It turns out that the spirit of Vivienne Westwood is very much alive and well at the house of Vivienne Westwood, which hosted a huge hipster history collection on Saturday lunchtime in Paris.
A brave, gothic and wonderful statement, with Sam Smith starring in two passages: first as a wild lord of a Scottish baronetcy with tartan knickers, imposing platforms and a huge cane; then as a widow with a dark beard and a large, cropped black wool coat demanding respect.
Presented inside Cèsure, a labyrinthine art center built in a ramshackle former school at the bottom of the fifth arrondissement. A trio of performance artists begins the action with one of them imitating early morning birdsong and ends by yodeling, playing the violin, and chopping logs with an axe.
Her husband and successor, Andreas Kronthaler, was inspired by her first collection with Vivienne 29. Remembering a cut-out leather design he made back then that played with Giambattista Moroni's painting of a tailor cutting fabric.
“We always talk about history and historical figures and I came back to that this season, even when I wanted to move on,” Andreas explained in the packed backstage after the show.
Which she did in wicked governess dresses; large noble gray Tudor parkas; and lighter, thinner plaid capri jackets.
Hermès: nothing quiet, nothing luxury
It felt more like a rock concert or a heavy metal festival than a traditional vision of quiet luxury at Hermès this season, in a radical and timely departure by the luxury house.
Made essentially in monochrome, cut strictly and often with an emphasis on the body, the entire look marked half a decade of the Hermès girl, and it's not bad either.
A monochrome environment at Hermès in a very dark color palette: black, anthracite, toffee, chocolate and taupe.
Organized inside an imposing custom-made tent inside the Garde Républicaine cavalry barracks, a completely black box with a central strip where rain simulated falling throughout the show. Very much a winter collection made primarily of leather and dense toile, built for the urban jungle and not a country house or castle.
There are no star models, just very polished rich girls who look like models and walk quickly. They had their hair slicked back as if they were headed to a meeting with a rock star, and they carried a backstage pass in their back pocket.
Many leather biker looks are often finished with riding boots and are sometimes paired with a cool new jodhpur and leggings set. All driven by British indie rock, not exactly your typical Hermès Lady Spotify mix.
I have to hand it to Hermès Women's Creative Director Nadège Vanhee-Cybulski; She's not afraid to take some calculated risks. Yes, Hermès is all about quiet luxury, but not quiet style, thanks to Nadège.
Elie Saab: Elvis Saab
Elie traveled West this season with a taste of Wild West culture from a designer who is the reigning king of creators in the Eastern Mediterranean.
She referenced Elvis Presley with a variety of fringed looks; Western boots and references to the King's ornate white suits.
Even, as is Saab style, with a careful dosage of the concept in this collection staged in the Tokyo Palace, on the banks of the Seine.
Sheriff Saab presented cowboy-style sheriff jackets, coats and shirts in silk and crepe, adorned with fringes and paired with impeccably cut pants or ruffled miniskirts and quilted cowboy-style knee-high boots.
She even showed off her first denim on a runway embroidered with New Mexico motifs before changing into shimmering silk shantung dresses for the evening in the color of the season: Roman Imperial Purple.
Backed by a soundtrack featuring Dimitris Kalfas' Marine 9 remix, it was great to see Saab break new ground, before leading his ovation to huge applause.
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