It
must be a challenge to come up with original ways of staging fashion shows, but
Dutch-Vietnamese designer Xuan went all out in this regard during Paris couture
week.
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| Xuan: amid the flowers. |
Hers
was a fashion show where the models did not move around, but instead had to
stand still for long minutes, surrounded by flowers or alongside streams of falling
water.
The
aim was for the viewers to do the “walking” -through all the “different worlds of Xuan’s
universe”, as portrayed in the Spring / Summer 2017 couture collection.
“Rather
than watch the spectacle as a seated viewer, we invite guests to traverse three
sites representing the sensorial experiences that informed the designs,”
visitors were informed at the beginning of the show on Jan. 26, the last day of
couture week.
So, when individuals in a tightly packed crowd trudged up the stairs to the upper
rooms of the Dutch cultural institute in Paris, they were greeted with the sight
of a model in a glass “house”, against a backdrop of multi-coloured flowers.
The first thought that might have occurred to many is: “let’s hope she has no
allergies!”
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| The designer at work. |
Two
other models stood in the "house", trying to remain motionless as viewers circled
the structure. Interesting as the concept was, it detracted from the sumptuously made clothing,
as awareness of the models took precedence.
“How
long do they have to stand like that?” one viewer asked.
“About
30 minutes to an hour,” was the response from a staff assistant.
In
another room, a stream of water cascaded from the ceiling, spraying two models
as they stood in this section of the “universe”. The idea here was that “water,
light and sound interplay to create an atmosphere of refreshing melancholy”.
After
the third room, it was hard to say whether this was a “refreshing” way to see
fashion, or just a bizarre attempt to stand out from the pack during fashion
week. While Xuan certainly drew on the artistic side of showcasing clothing, the show had a discomfiting element.
LIU
CHAO
Designer
Liu Chao presented his collection without movement as well, but in his case there
were no live models. His striking dresses were mounted on mannequins, as in a
store window, for a presentation that took place at the gleaming, recently
renovated Ritz hotel on the Place Vendôme.
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| Liu Chao |
“I
can play with all kinds of material,” Chao told a reporter. “If I find
interesting materials, I’ll work with it.”
The Chinese-born, Paris-based stylist explained that the embroidery included precious and semi-precious stones that come
from “all over” the world.
Their integration into
his Spring / Summer 2017 couture collection added an old-world charm to modern styles,
and Chao's training in professional embroidery was apparent. He definitely seems someone to watch, judging from the imaginative creations.
HYUN
MI NIELSEN
The
same may be said of stylist Christine Hyun Mi Nielsen. Visitors to her show were met with a rumpled double bed, on which sat a model dressed in white like the sheet and pillowcases. Later came eerie music and high-stepping movement, as models ambled through rooms
full of standing spectators.
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| Hyun Mi Nielsen |
“I
know, right?” a fellow viewer responded.
Still,
this was a show worth standing up for, as Nielsen combined sass with expertise
for a range of ensembles that she said were inspired by her own experiences,
including sadness at the loss of a job with a major fashion house.
The
designs reflected vulnerability as well as a fighting spirit, with the models
wearing face paint like warriors, and the earth tones of leather and other materials evoking nature as champion.
“I
drew on my own background, and my heritage,” said Nielsen, who has worked
as a studio director for Balenciaga and was Alexander McQueen’s Head of Womenwear
Design in London. She was presenting under her own brand for
the first time in Paris.
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| Galia Lahav |
Other
shows with a “difference” included Galia Lahav’s presentation at the glass-domed
Grand Palais, where the evening couture collection was inspired by the “Victorian
era in England and by its parallel phrase in France, la Belle Epoque”.
The
designs included high collars, puffed sleves, long trains and corsets in a mix
of rich fabrics and varied colours – ivory, black, gold, purples, scarlet. In-house
designers Galia Lahav and Sharon Sever said most of the materials were
hand-dyed to “emphasize the depth” of the century.
“We
have integrated fabric dyeing techniques ... and embossed silicone, alongside
the use of antique, original embroidery, from the 1890’s, made by Lesage,” they
told fashion reporters.
Meanwhile,
Antonio Ortega stood out for mixing things up in a collection fittingly titled “Hybrid”. Along
with oddball evening gowns, he showcased stylish, innovative summer ensembles,
such as a wrap-around orange skirt paired with a silky grey top and a shorts "suit" with bright red piping . Ortega, in
fact, made couture look cool, and without the use of water. - Tasshon
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Antonio Ortega |
