Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Fashion Week has just come to an end, and in just four days, nearly 30 brands have brought new collections that symbolize their own craftsmanship and innovative spirit, demonstrating the unshakable position of haute couture in the fashion field.
After seeing the new works of major brands, we were pleasantly surprised to find that in addition to the usual exquisite luxury, designers are no longer comfortable in their comfort zone, but introduce grander themes and more personal perspectives into the creation of haute couture, adding more situational, interesting and critical sense to the design, making haute couture a fashion expression with both appearance and connotation. From intergalactic elements to the depths of the ocean, from fantasy beasts to gorgeous clowns to princesses on the run, here are six inspirations not to be missed this season's Couture Week.
The show plunged into the bottomless night sky, and a meteor-like glow cut through the deep silence, and the Fendi Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection began. In the blink of an eye, this season is already Kim Jones' fifth haute couture collection for Fendi, and it is clear that he is using "unchanged" to create style and identity for the brand in the haute couture field. Starting from the spring/summer 2022 haute couture collection, Jones has deliberately simplified the design, and after three seasons of continuous attempts, continues to eliminate unnecessary colors and lines, and achieves a minimalist effect with a minimalist process.
"I wanted to make light designs because haute couture always seemed quite stodgy and heavy to me," as if waiting for a shooting star to pass before our eyes, Fendi's haute couture collection this season also exudes a dazzling but fleeting mystery, which is intentional by Jones, with elaborate embroidery that creates a trompe l'oeil of metallic paint on the dress, coupled with a Greek goddess-like silhouette inspired by the '90s slip dress, injecting a solemn ritual sense into haute couture.
Fendi's Spring/Summer 2023 haute couture collection
"I wanted a sense of ethereal. Elegant and young. "Even the large amount of embroidery, pleats and fabric drapes is silent under the exquisite craftsmanship of the haute couture workshop, such as the silver-gray lace, which is actually laser cut on leather, but visually soft as a fragile fabric," I wanted to use really advanced haute couture technology. ”
Fendi's Spring/Summer 2023 haute couture collection
The imprint of heritage and continuity is clearly visible at the end of the runway, where we can see the shadow of the silk dresses that Karl Lagerfeld designed for Fendi in the past, while the three-dimensional lace flowers and printed velvet fabrics that appeared in the previous season also add a subtle and subtle beauty to the entire collection. "Literally and figuratively, the collection is like an inner world that gradually unfolds outward, as if intimate lingerie has been transformed into an elegant evening dress." For Kim Jones, years of experience in menswear design have made him familiar with low-key and ostentatious scales, and at a time when haute couture is ubiquitous in putting complex craftsmanship on the table, the Fendi haute couture collection looks beyond the modern woman who sees couture as a way of everyday life.
Fendi's Spring/Summer 2023 haute couture collection
During Haute Couture Week, the phrase "You can always trust Armani" floods social media, a nod to Giorgio Armani and a look forward to each season of haute couture.
Giorgio Armani Privé Spring/Summer 2023 collection
Mr. Armani's heart is always in awe when creating and presenting haute couture, "The role of haute couture today will certainly be questioned, but I believe it can also be an important way to preserve a wealth of knowledge and technology, a truly unique skill." And on this season's runway, he found ways to make his craft even more inspiring, bringing a witty theme – a clown figure from Harlequin, incorporating diamond textures into the costume design and runway setting to convey a light, pleasant feeling. Of course, we are going through a very difficult time, and the sparkling scene may not be quite in line with the current situation, but I also think that sometimes fashion can play an important role in lifting the spirit. ”
Giorgio Armani Privé Spring/Summer 2023 collection
In addition to the ubiquitous powder-blue diamond-patterned jumpsuits, shawls and maxi dresses, Mr. Armani's proud slim coats have reached new heights of craftsmanship, from neat weaving, geometrically textured crystal embroidery to three-dimensional beads that simulate knitted patterns, all of which present unprecedented sophistication and luxury, complementing the dripping jacket silhouette.
Giorgio Armani Privé Spring/Summer 2023 collection
Giorgio Armani Privé has always been a winning weapon on the red carpet of major film festivals, coincidentally, just a few hours before the official launch of this season, the new Oscar nominations have just been announced, and in the front row of the show, we also saw Michelle Yeoh, who was nominated for "Instantaneous Universe", is this a signal, or is her arrival also choosing a robe for next month's red carpet?
Giorgio Armani Privé Spring/Summer 2023 collection
Iris van Herpen Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
We should be thankful that at a time when the haute couture schedule is shrinking, there are haute couture designers like Iris van Herpen who constantly surprise us. Perhaps according to the Haute Couture and Fashion Federation, van Herpen's work may not match the criteria of traditional craftsmanship, custom workshops, output scale, etc., but she has indeed persevered in personal innovation into a style through more than ten years of hard work, pointing to the future and the natural world, from the sky to the earth, and this time, she chose to let haute couture dive into the water.
Iris van Herpen Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
Van Herpen never saw the runway and digital launch as opposites, instead her decision came from an inner urge to express herself. This season collaborated with French artist Julie Gautier to produce a launch video called Carte Blanche. "I don't feel like I can really embody the emotional aspect of the concept on the catwalk. In part, this series is an ode to women's activism in some parts of the country, and we need to support these women's movements on a global scale," she explains, "I chose to let the garment dive underwater, it needed a different power to make a stronger voice." ”
Iris van Herpen Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
With the help of Julie Gautier, six new haute couture sets were brought into the Y40 pool in Italy, 138 feet deep, making it the deepest artificial pool in the world today, transparent robes made of organic silk and recycled polyester fibers undulated like bizarre jellyfish in the water, the flow of water is both the power of the garment's extended flow and the resistance to the free movement of women's limbs, "Fashion is a very personal way to talk about our identity, Our culture and our values. As a designer, I feel it's important to show people a broader perspective. ”
Iris van Herpen Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
Designer Haider Ackermann for the work
Jean Paul Gaultier Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture
The model adjusts the outfit
How to make each season's cooperation trigger strong expectations in the fashion industry? The secret of Jean Paul Gaultier's results lies in his keen eye for the most noteworthy and creative designers in the fashion world to join his haute couture "team". From Chitose Abe, Glenn Martens, Olivier Rousteing, and now Haider Ackermann, his every choice surprises everyone. Haider Ackermann has been in the spotlight since announcing his upcoming guest designer for the season last October, and we've been wondering what he's doing outside the red carpet away from Tilda Swinton and Timothée Chalamet, and this haute couture show is his first new release in three years of pandemic.
Jean Paul Gaultier Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
Living up to expectations, Jean Paul Gaultier's can't help but smile offstage shows how successful Ackermann's haute couture creations are. "It's like a love affair between me and the ladies in the studio." It can be said that from the first set of looks, you can feel his dedication to this love, the blade-like precision tailoring has never been absent, his stand collar suits, long coats and silhouette jackets appear in turn, and at the same time, it also has the essence of Gaultier's style - tapered corset and bright colors, highly saturated navy blue runs through the details of the design, and the collision of various special-shaped materials and structures reveals sci-fi colors in the gorgeousness. This may be a must-have in the wardrobes of the next generation of society's elite.
Jean Paul Gaultier Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
On the other hand, even if the cutting and color matching skills are dazzling, when we look back at Ackermann himself, his understated humility is even more valuable in the sharp, even murderous looks around him: "I have no sense of humor at all!" I have my seriousness, Jean Paul has his generosity and joy – we are two different worlds. But at the same time, we have a lot in common. Because we all love women, we adore women and respect them. And this heartfelt emotion is also the reason why this season's cooperation can reach new heights again.
Jean Paul Gaultier Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
Schiaparelli Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
There is no doubt that the "leopard" on Shalom Harlow's chest, the "wolf" on Naomi Campbell's shoulders, and the "lion" on Irina Shayk's dress created the first hot topic of this season's Paris Haute Couture Week and attracted condemnation from animal protection organizations. In fact, if we can dissect these superficial representations and go deep into the source of the inspiration of these beasts, we may not make a hasty binary evaluation. The so-called leopard, wolf and lion all come from Dante's Divine Comedy in the 14th century, and the "Hell" in his trilogy is regarded as the inspiration for the design, each of the animals mentioned above points to the narrative in the text, which Dante considers to be symbols of desire, pride and greed, and the brass hood that follows in the show corresponds to the friendly giant Dante meets in hell, and the image of good and evil is intertwined, reflecting Daniel Roseberry's inner entanglement and doubt.
Schiaparelli Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
As one of the most watched designers of the moment, Roseberry's every move invisibly sets the agenda for high couture, and the accompanying creative twists and turns are obvious: "This collection is a tribute to my skepticism," he wrote in his runway notes. "I wanted to move away from the technology I was familiar with and understood and instead opt for 'dark wood', where everything was scary, but all new." Revisit the role of mother-of-pearl, gem inlays and fragmented jewelry in haute couture collections, even adding them to superb metal smelting techniques to make it a complete "jewelry armor suit".
Schiaparelli Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
"I like the idea that when people come to a show, they don't know what they're going to see." Inspired by the brand's classic Schiaparelli Shocking! perfume bottle, the structured waist is like an hourglass, yet dripping with watertight details. At the end of the runway notes, Roseberry writes, "One cannot exist apart from others. It reminds us that there is no heaven without hell; There is no sadness without joy; Without the torment of doubt, there is no ecstasy of creation. What I pray for myself is that I will always remember that in my most difficult days, when inspiration just wouldn't come, I remember that it was impossible to ascend to heaven without first experiencing the journey of fire, and the fear that came with it. Let me embrace it forever. "From Inferno, it remains to be seen whether Roseberry's future will continue with Purgatory and Paradise in the trilogy.
Schiaparelli Spring/Summer 2023 Haute Couture Collection
Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren have been exploring a "very new haute couture", and cake dress-themed creations have appeared in their collections several times, but on the haute couture runway this season, these seemingly no longer surprising big gowns have been able to play with them.
Viktor & Rolf Spring/Summer 2023 haute couture collection
The placement of these works by Horsting and Snoeren in the portfolio of any prospective graduate student will evoke a sense of absurdity that "I was afraid that my teacher would call me out." But on the Viktor & Rolf runway, we had long assumed that these clockwise dresses must be some kind of irony, "a ridiculous interpretation of the haute couture dress stereotype." ”
Viktor & Rolf Spring/Summer 2023 haute couture collection
Horsting and Snoeren sharply grasp the current misconception of haute couture design and aesthetics, celebrities around the world who show a certain "sense of superiority" by wearing these seemingly gorgeous but redundant dresses, and the hollow and boring core further levitates these carefully crafted perfect images in the air, and the world on both ends of the mobile phone screen becomes more and more fragmented, Snoeren said: "There is a disconnect between what we see and the physical characteristics of the product." "On the other hand, we're used to giving categorical judgments between screen zooms and sizes about a dress (or even a hot event) that we've never touched, but think of it another way: does sophistication equal endless rhinestone embroidery? Does couture have a hard aesthetic standard? The influx of information seems to give us more criteria for judgment, but it actually makes the cocoon of information more and more unbreakable. Fortunately, established haute couture brands such as Viktor & Rolf and more are trying to transform.
Viktor & Rolf Spring/Summer 2023 haute couture collection
The 4-day Haute Couture Week every season is far from summarizing the craftsmanship and conceptual innovation inherited over the centuries, and while enjoying the creation of beauty, we must also admit that more and more haute couture brands are working hard towards the future to "not walk gently into that good night", although the show is over, but the workshop is still advancing, let's see you next season!
Giorgio Armani Privé Spring/Summer 2023 collection
Written by: Shanlai
Edited by Yang Yi
Art: Xiao B