Haute Couture Spring 2017
[av_heading tag='h3' padding='10' heading='Haute Couture Printemps-Été 2017' color='custom-color-heading' style='blockquote modern-quote modern-centered' custom_font='#7bb0e7' size='' subheading_active='subheading_below' subheading_size='15' custom_class='']Fairytales and Princesses, Ballgowns and Masquerades, and the Incredible Lightness of Being - The couture collections invited us into a dreamworld, offering refuge from a darkened reality.[/av_heading][av_slideshow_full size='no scaling' stretch='' animation='slide' autoplay='false' interval='5' control_layout='av-control-default' src='' attachment='' attachment_size='' position='top left' repeat='no-repeat' attach='scroll'][av_slide_full slide_type='video' id='' video='https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UMwftLlrQQ' mobile_image='' video_format='' video_ratio='' title='' custom_title_size='' custom_content_size='' caption_pos='caption_right caption_right_framed caption_framed' link_apply='' link='lightbox' link_target='' button_label='' button_color='light' link1='manually,http://' link_target1='' button_label2='' button_color2='light' link2='manually,http://' link_target2='' font_color='' custom_title='' custom_content='' overlay_opacity='0.1' overlay_color='' overlay_pattern='' overlay_custom_pattern='' video_controls='' video_mute='' video_loop='' video_autoplay='' overlay_enable=''][/av_slide_full][/av_slideshow_full][av_one_half first min_height='' vertical_alignment='' space='' custom_margin='' margin='0px' padding='0px' border='' border_color='' radius='0px' background_color='' src='' background_position='top left' background_repeat='no-repeat'][av_textblock size='' font_color='' color='']
Valentino
“The purpose of art is to make dreams.” This wise Flaubert quote was uttered by Pierpaolo Piccioli in reference to a truly magical couture show. Of course, it may be cliché that haute couture is intended for dreamers or naive to think someone else is in control over one's own dreams but why question it further and scrutinize and just appreciate a brilliant collection which took the breath away from it’s audience- at the Hotel Salomon de Rothschild or on social media.Piccioli stripped away distractions such as excess make up and a loud venue and instead drew the eyes to focus solely on the dresses parading down the proud salon. To think the history of the room... if walls could talk! Like a crisp spring breeze blowing through the open french doors bringing freshness into a stale room, the models glided gracefully across the parquette. Dresses seemed to turn from solid to liquid before our eyes - pure fluidity thanks to precise tailoring. Pleats worthy of comparison to Fortuny ran down the torso to the ground grazing across the open toed sandal shoes. The Grecian influence expanded across the columned silhouettes, motifs of Aries and Jupiter, and inspirations of Pandora. Delicate embroidered flowers embraced the collections raw femininity and the call for natural beauty.A personification of the incredible lightness of being, the collection exhibited purity and awe a welcome reminder of hope and beautiful simplicity. The collection of the season.
Maison Margiela
Unlike the classless intention to grab the latest headline and be the most "liked" thing on the interwebs, John Galliano is prioritising and preserving the timelessness of couture - for the love of clothes! The collection was born on the concept of reality and its shifting paradigm due to its volatile relationship to technology. Ah, one thought reality is a universal idea -unless you are a philosophy major/minor or following a journey of Socrates. But at the core, reality is no longer was it is anymore. For example, that Instagram feed of the perfect girl with the perfect boyfriend with the perfect french bull dog and perfect home in Hollywood hills is for you a standard of success. A perfect life which makes your own seem inferior. However, in her reality she is incredibly depressed, lonely, confused and self- conscious. A reality which is edited to look like a superior truth. Or another example, a proven fact or scientific evidence can now be claimed to be a falsehood or an alternative fact? Without legitimacy, what is real anymore - understood or portrayed? Technology has changed what reality is and has influenced individual interpretations of truth - which is very dangerous.Unlike what we see in the "real world" Galliano refused to hide behind a Mayfair filter and the lies. The Maison Margiela Artisanal collection was raw in technique and real in form. He is focused on the timelessness of couture something to last for ages, the finest of craft and no need to shift perception. This is what you got. The closest to a selfie moment were the multiple face motifs, with the crescendo being the face emerging from a smoky tulle rising from a long, tailored white coat. The artist behind this face is Benjamin Shine who emphasises the delicacy and movement. The collaboration took our breath away at face-value. "And that's the truth Ruth!"
Giambattista Valli
In true Valli style, a connoisseur of couture and a magician when it comes to to tulle and mousseline, the audience was delighted to yet again see perfect ripe gowns floating through grand halls. His light poetic romanticism can only be adored - consistency loved by his true fans. This couture collection followed a journey and was born out of the spirit of travel. Not travel in the sense of packing your duffle bag and heading on the EuroRail for a month of hostel visits.. obviously. But of travelling with trunks full of precious garments ready for an adventure in the Mughal Garden. Affluent adventures not experienced by someone with their nose in the air, but someone who still appreciates the “small” things - a rose in full bloom, the song a chipper Parakeet, the cooling breeze through the palm trees brushing against exposed legs. A woman eager to explore a foreign land and not bothered by a few creases in her silk dress which was slightly crushed in her suitcase. Creases at a couture runway are very unexpected but it adds that human perfect imperfection to magical clothes. This wardrobe was for a woman of class, a woman of vision. This woman Valli was directly referring to was Franca Sozzani who is missed by all in the industry and who knew her. I refer to the words by Angelo Flaccavento, writer for the business of fashion:
“The whole system is going to miss a visionary, indeed: Sozzani passed away at a time when corporate powers are violently taking over creativity. In a way, the event marked the end of an era and the opening of even more blatantly commerce-driven, utterly unispired and non-inspiring times.”
Her spirit continues to inspire and will live on, here directly in this collection with headbands and an attitude full of finesse. A life without beauty, wonder and vision is not one worth living and for those desperately searching for a sign of light at the end of a dark tunnel - the full fledged Ballgown is back - a distant promise of hope!
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Chanel
Unlike previous couture collections which sported opulent themes for settings, some more subtle than others, such as the inside of the Chanel ateliers, zen pavilion or Monte Carlo casino, this season Lagerfeld literally reflected his visions through the use of spiralling mirrors, which took inspiration from Chanel’s renowned staircase. The lack of a concrete pinned down theme meant no quirky corresponding accessories and humorous puns, but an acute focus on a strong couture wardrobe for both day and night - with of course a magnificent bride. The bride Lily Rose Depp wore a pastel pink, ruffled ball gown. As she made her way down the runway she looked over to her mother Vanessa Paradis and gave her mom a genuine smile - a smile a daughter gives her mother when she is happy, proud, thankful and maybe slightly nervous. A very sweet, candid moment giving a sparkle of youth to a relatively mature collection. The opening was filled with sharp tailored Chanel suits synched with a belt. Conservative ensembles for everyday workwear and intended for wives of politicians striving a resemblance to Jackie Kennedy. The power suits referencing the 80s were meant for bringing power to women, but I’m not sure if today's women protesting at the Women's March would be keen in wearing delicate pastel tweed ensembles. The evening wear sparkled and shined, with feathers of Ostrich and Marabou once again proving the the brilliance of Lesage workmanship. The masterwork was not "in your face" and that is what made it even more exceptional. With each sparkle you remember that it was hand embroidered. The lightness of the feathers gave an image of models truly floating away. The inspiration behind the collection was Spoon Woman by Chanel’s friend Alberto Giacometti. Thea 1926 bronze statue emphasized the curves of women and the female form. Hence the Chanel silhouette was synched and celebrated a figure unfortunately not much seen on the runway - a design flattering to the shape of woman. A very feminist collection one could say.
Dior
In light of current events, Shakespeare’s beloved character Puck is not mistaken when saying “Lord, what fools these mortals be!” Entering into a midsummer night’s dream, presumable a “Wood Outside of Athens”, was too the setting of Maria Grazia Chiuri’s first couture show for the house of Dior. Her first RTW collection for Dior was met with mixed opinions and confusion on the direction of the house, and after this show I was personally left with more questions than answers. The beginning of the show was black and heavy. Victorian black full of sadness and mystery. The opening sequence featured reworking the bar jacket and transforming it to be more light due to fluid textures and shapes. Mystery was provided with hooded capes and beautiful masks by Stephen Jones adding a welcome splash of Venetian carnival. Would the collection have worked though without these masks? This heavy and dark interpretation with references true to the spirit of Dior was then eclipsed by bright and airy dresses we have all come to know at Chiuri's legacy at Valentino. She evoked a spirit of playfulness and innocence from childhood games, such as playing dress up in the woods. This latter division was magical and full of forest creatures fauna and flora. On hindsight this unnatural, blunt division seemed to cause a friction between the aesthetic of Maria Grazia and of Christian Dior. Of course Dior was only at the helm of his maison for 10 years but one wonders if the style each creative director adds should also be referenced and should a designer have autonomy to take control of his or her own aesthetic? The symbiosis does not feel like synergy yet with 2 different looks, thus causing confusing and a muddled image of the brand. Overall, there were moments of great beauty worthy of any adventure such as the Dior masked ball. A shame that such grand occasions are now mostly sponsored by big corporations. Perhaps we have used up all of our fairy dust after all.
Viktor and Rolf
According to my studies within sustainability and fashion, one of the biggest problems is that “sustainability isn't sexy.” Well, last year Karl Lagerfeld presented an eco-couture collection and now Viktor and Rolf celebrated “up-cycling.” Up-cycling within fashion has been around since the 1980’s kudos to Martin Margiela and is when past clothes are reworked to create a new style.The design duo referenced the Japanese pottery “Kintsugi” which highlights the concept of beauty in imperfection where pottery shards are glued together and cracks emphasised with bold color- creating a visually pleasing mosaic. Some of the clothes pieced together were from the 1940s and had new life breathed into them, ready for the high society of 2017. The collection was dubbed “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”, but unlike the Green Day classic, the overall effect was not emo-heart throb, it was playful and plastered genuine smiles towards the ingenuity. Even when everything seems to be broken you can find the beauty, the optimism, and piece the shatters together to create something even more inspiring. Reincarnation indeed.Header Image: Photo: Alessandro Garofalo / Indigital.tv Retrieved from Vogue.com[/av_textblock][/av_one_half][av_image src='http://www.modernmelange.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/AG17852.jpg' attachment='4153' attachment_size='full' align='center' animation='no-animation' styling='' hover='' link='' target='' caption='yes' font_size='' appearance='' overlay_opacity='0.4' overlay_color='#000000' overlay_text_color='#ffffff'][/av_image]
