PARIS — Italian fashion house Fendi took to the former Paris bourse headquarters on Thursday for its fall haute couture catwalk show, where designer Kim Jones showed a contemporary lineup of light, sensual gowns for formal occasions.
Models marched steadily down the marble runway of a stark, white space set up in the neoclassical Palais Brongniart while dramatic opera singing played on the soundtrack.
They wore the slender, floor-sweeping silhouettes crafted with elaborate draping techniques and no apparent hems — as if the fabric had been snipped clear of any extra weight.
The show opened with a long, nude-toned dress with a full skirt, covering just one shoulder and wrapped tightly around the bust.
Other monochrome looks followed, mostly in dusty pastels or black, worn with chunky heels, curved like cowboy boots, and delicate clutches held close to the chest.
Adding texture, jacket and trouser ensembles came coated in chunky crystals, while furry pieces like short jackets worn off the shoulders appeared to be weightless, including a sleeveless gown in mint green.
Mr. Jones, who is also creative director for the menswear line of Dior, another LVMH-owned fashion house, took his bow with Delfina Delettrez Fendi, artistic director of jewelry.
The Paris haute couture shows, which ran through July 6, have drawn fashion press and celebrities to the French capital.
Riots that swept through France last week after the deadly police shooting of a teenager added uncertainty to the fashion program, but only a handful of labels canceled events.
ELIE SAAB’S CAPES
Elie Saab doubled down on capes for his autumn haute couture lineup presented in Paris on Wednesday, offering them in a variety of forms that added volume to silhouettes.
Models paraded down an arched corridor of the Louvre’s Musee des Arts Decoratifs in sheer, pastel dresses with elaborate sequin embellishments adorning the bodices, shoulders and skirts. Airy, see-through capes billowed out behind, some worn over the head, attached to the arms.
In contrast were black dresses worn with hooded capes that swept the floor, including one covered in bright red roses.
Following up on the introduction of menswear to his haute couture lineup a year ago, the Lebanese designer also included male models, outfitting them in regal, robe-like capes, black with elaborate gold embroidery.
GIORGIO ARMANI PRIVÉ GLITTERS
Giorgio Armani layered on the shimmer and shine for his fall haute couture collection, sending sparkling pantsuits and ballgowns down a slick runway.
The 88-year-old designer worked a somber color palette for the Giorgio Armani Privé lineup, mostly restricted to red, black, and gold.
He coated red dresses with rows of beads of the same color, while evening jackets were often embellished with floral motifs. Three-dimensional roses of all sizes appeared throughout the collection, accenting necklines and adorning shoulders.
Models walked slowly and deliberately in stilettos with pointed toes, which poked out from under the raw hems of mesh skirts and silk trousers.
Slicked-back hairstyles, slender clutches and prominent earrings completed the looks.
The Italian designer closed the show with a crimson bridal dress, the sparkling white bodice covered in red flowers.
STEPHANE ROLLAND NODS TO MARIA CALLAS
Stephane Rolland took to the Paris Opera house on Tuesday last week for his fall haute couture show honoring Maria Callas, offering a dramatic line-up of voluminous ball gowns
Models glided up the building’s grand marble staircase in floor-sweeping dresses as the audience watched from the balcony above, while the voice of Ms. Callas echoed throughout.
The French designer played with symmetry, with off one shoulder gowns and skirts slit on one side.
Long trains were offset by bare backs, and one dress was slashed across the middle to reveal the model’s midriff.
Cuff necklaces, sculptural earrings, and metallic body ornaments were prominent, including a gold, coral-like piece with tentacles that stretched out of an upward turned collar.
The designer is known for his flamboyant designs, including a white-winged gown worn by Celine Dion for a performance at the 2017 Billboard Music awards in Las Vegas.
RELAXED ELEGANCE AT CHANEL
Chanel creative director Virginie Viard chose a quai on the Right bank of the bustling Seine River for her fall haute couture catwalk show, a setting that added breeziness to a relaxed and elegant lineup.
Models strode across the cobblestones lining the river, parading tweed suits lined with tufts of tulle or embellished with flower motifs in autumn tones as tourists floated by on the city’s famous bateaux mouches (tourist boats), exchanging waves with the audience.
French model Caroline de Maigret opened the show, her brown hair worn loose over her shoulders, in a long tweed overcoat cinched at the waist and gold-tipped heels.
Dressier looks followed, including a shimmery, black dress coated in sequins and an all-gold skirt and jacket ensemble, while more bohemian silhouettes included a loose pink and orange blouse paired with a full skirt in gold and black tweed.
Adding to the nonchalant spirit, one model was accompanied by a sleek, black labrador, while other models carried baskets of flowers.
Closing the show, they walked in pairs and trios, and the jazzy soundtrack gave way to the 1980s duet by Elton John and France Gall, “Donner pour donner.”
THOM BROWNE DEBUTS HAUTE COUTURE
Thom Browne marked his debut on the Paris haute couture calendar on Monday last week with a dramatic display of voluminous fashion in the French capital’s famous opera house.
The American designer drew his audience in through the back door of the baroque monument, up dusty flights of wooden stairs to the runway set — the middle of the stage, with the audience seated on both sides.
The curtain lifted at the start of the show to reveal a full theater — the red velvet seats and gilded balconies occupied by rows of cardboard cutouts of a man in a grey suit and sunglasses.
Models emerged slowly, on towering platform shoes, marching past a flock of fabric-covered pigeons and pausing under an enormous grey, fabric-covered bell hanging above the set.
Some wore headgear in the shape of birds, while others had bandages wrapped around their heads, worn with elaborate grey wigs.
Browne puffed out the volumes of dresses, giving them balloon-like sleeves, and paired tweed ensembles and pleated skirts with long coats embroidered with pigeons or seaside motifs like starfish.
Mr. Browne, who is chairman of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, is best known for his signature grey suit, but he has also built a reputation for showmanship — last fall, for example, he closed a Cinderella-themed show with Mj Rodriguez dancing in a pink Cadillac made of tulle.
DIOR’S CLASSICAL ROME INSPIRATION
For her fall show, Dior designer Maria Grazia Chiuri reined in the volumes often associated with haute couture fashion and sent out a line-up of slender dresses and capes in neutral tones and touches of gold and silver.
“The complexity is not so visible,” Ms. Chiuri told Reuters, pointing to tiny stitches fixing pleats on a dress.
The designer mined styles associated with classical antiquity — she grew up in Rome, surrounded by statues from the era — and, moving away from pinched waists, offered long, column dresses, opera coats and capes.
Embellishments were kept to a minimum, and included pearls and flat braids, while metallic threads added texture to jacquard fabrics.
“I like to transform the traditional jacquard and brocade into something more natural — I like the contradiction between the two materials, I think I can create something new,” she said, noting raw silk was woven into the fabric of a dress and jacket ensemble, alongside metallic thread.
The show, which kicked off Haute Couture Week in Paris, was held at the entrance of the Rodin museum, in a tent lined with artwork by artist Marta Roberti. Towering scenes of animals, plants and naked women in yoga positions sought to evoke goddesses and animals associated with them. — Reuters
