It’s been hot, fast and intense.
Fashion, especially Haute Couture, is for me what Rimbaud was for Patti Smith, that Troy’s horse that transports me to a different dimension and makes me forget of the routine, a one-way ticket to my own heaven. I go through the shows online like Celine Dion does in person.
The beauty is so breathtaking that the fast sequence and the accelerated paste make them the equivalent of a good espresso: enough to give you the sprint for the day, but too little not to want to indulge throughout the day at every occasion in which someone shares their own makeshift video during the défilé.
I was reading about Jean Cocteau inThe Paris Review , the essay described him as “living in a world of accelerated images” because of his “vivacity of intelligence” - “a rapidity of intelligence accounted for the multiplication, juxtaposition, proliferation, and mixing of experience and its exterior face, behavior—as well as for what was often called a certain superficiality or légèreté.”
“He who sees further renders less of what he sees, however much he renders”
I indulge in that légèreté and watch again, and look at the details, and zoom and look at the entire sequence of the runway after having read the notes and reviews. It’s my Netflix & chill.
A note: all opinions are mine, unless otherwise noted; MIU MIU is not couture, but Miuccia is relevant at all times and the collection was shown the same week; FENDI Alta Moda isn’t appointed by la Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture
Givenchy by Clare Waight Keller was the epitome of Haute Couture, according to my taste, I will not concede, so you may want to consider trying to convince me otherwise a waste of time. With the words of Vanessa Friedman:
The collection was about as cool as couture gets in its elaborate insouciance and it had an energy that has been largely missing in a week where safe and stately has been the rule.
PS: “the week” being the 4th of July and also the one when the US Women Soccer team beat the UK.
Chanel, the first Haute Couture by Virginie Viard, Karl’s undiscussed successor, in the library, what better subtle dedication?
This season was another first, Daniel Roseberry for Schiaparelli, who went fearless, smoking cigarettes and all, took his distance from his predecessor. I mean: look at the first look.
Alexandre Vauthier, a first for me, showed us how to wear couture pour le jour, in Paris.
Photo from vogue.com
Fendi was a tribute to Karl Lagerfeld, 54 looks, one for each of the 54 years he co-designed the alta moda with the Fendi house because while revolutionizing the design of fur, pushing boundaries he also brought the company to become the powerhouse it is now.
Armani Prive’ always means that reassuring feeling that il re Giorgio is still there, it’s home, it’s a point of reference.
Pierpaolo Piccioli at Valentino keeps scoring standing ovations because he found the secret, it’s like that friend you see after 20 years and still looks the same, that makes you at ease with her warm smile, he cracked the code: Fashion is a dream that permeates the collective imaginary, it is different for everyone, but it tingles the senses, it pleases the eye, it empowers the wearer, mood boosting and uplifting the spirits. He makes Haute Couture, a rigorously structured art, so tangible and reachable that we all feel we can wear it. The explosive creativity, the buoyancy of colors, the surprising combination of clashing nuances, the intricacies that required thousands of hours of la Maison petites mains
“The only way to make couture alive today is to embrace different women’s identities and cultures”
John Galliano is always been a favorite, rebel, he was given a second chance after falling pray to the oppressive system. I guess he reminds me of the period when my passion for fashion blossomed, a true designer, trained in sartorial, inspired by the times that are long gone, lover of opera and classical music, still a pure rebel. For Maison Margiela he explored
desire without reason, my intentions are impulsive and anarchic
Miu Miu Resort was presented at the racetracks, le Hippodrome, a sport that for la Signora is conservative, elitist. Miuccia Prada has always been influenced by the political situation, and this wave of conservatism “affects me” she says, as per Nicole Phelps, High waisted shorts, double breasted blazers, tea dresses with a collar that is called Chelsea, which we have seen worn by Lady Diana in the ‘80s and in Vauthier’s collection (scroll up). Volumes and proportions are exaggerated, from platforms to socks to hats., and contrasting like extra shoulder pads blazers and miniskirts.
A note: all opinions are mine, unless otherwise noted; MIU MIU is not couture, but Miuccia is relevant at all times, the collection carries elements that will sign our lives or the next months; FENDI isn’t appointed by la Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, nevertheless …