Paris Haute Couture Week: Day One Highlights
From Schiaparelli to Christian Dior, Bazaar shares some of our favourite looks from Day One here…
As Haute Couture Week Fall Winter 2021/22 commenced in Paris yesterday, the world’s most skilled designers began presenting their latest collections in a combination of both a virtual and physical show format. Whilst some shows opted for digital presentations, such as Schiaparelli, other houses, like Dior, livestreamed their shows as models made their way down the catwalk.Â
If there’s one thing that the past year has taught us, it’s that creativity can’t be supressed by global adversity; it thrives in it. Spending more time at home than ever before has encouraged us to both reflect on, and appreciate the past, whilst simultaneously carving out new ideas for the future.
Each of these notions were evident within the first day of Paris Haute Couture week, with creative directors honouring the significance of their respective Maison’s past, yet equally utilising it to both build on — and innovate —Â a distinctive new legacy. Here at Bazaar, we have high hopes for what the rest of the week has in store…
Ulyana SergeenkoÂ
Ulyana Sergeenko’s collection, unveiled within a short film directed by Renata Litvinova, paid homage to the designer’s heritage, culture and childhood. As the only Russian correspondent member of the Federation of High Fashion in Paris, her ambiguous exhibition wasn’t just eccentric, but triumphant too.Â
Iris Van HerpenÂ
Iris Van Herpen’s ‘Earthgaze’ gown, which was made from hand-cut, blue gradient-dyed circles that had been stitched together meticulously, epitomised the designer’s exploration of freedom in her most recent collection. Collaborating with Domitille Kiger, a world-champion skydiver, the collection paid tribute to the paradoxically turbulent, yet gratifying intricacy, of both creativity and craftsmanship.
Georges HobeikaÂ
Lebanese fashion powerhouse Georges Hobeika, who opened his first atelier in Beirut in 1995, contrasted the simple with the luxurious in yesterday’s show. From organza feathers to silk embroidery, the collection was a modest and sophisticated celebration of the designer’s versatility and artistry.Â
Azzaro CoutureÂ
Creative Director of Azzaro Couture, Olivier Theyskens, took inspiration from the house’s fashion archives to produce a glamorous collection reminiscent of the key pieces that Loris Azzaro constructed in the 1960’s and 1970’s. The sophisticated silhouette of Azzaro Couture’s sequin suit in particular perfectly complimented the nocturnal atmosphere of their exemplary show.Â
Schiaparelli
According to Schiaparelli’s Creative Director Daniel Roseberry, his fourth couture collection was ‘a tribute to romance, to excess, to dreams, because really, is there anything more urgent today than dreaming big?’. From embroidered barrel sleeves and black silk tassels, to a structured tulle skirt, a black crepe gown and a black stretch velvet dress, read more about Schiaparelli’s collection here.
Christian Dior
Surrounded by a hand-embroidered landscape created by French artist Éva Jospin, Dior reclaimed the values of Haute Couture in a mix of art and savoir-faire. Filled with dresses that featured pleats, trains, and hand-woven chains, Maria Grazia Chiuri’s designs celebrated fashion’s spirited return to the rich and intricate beauty of haute couture.Â
Images courtesy of Instagram