The Runway Report: Paris
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
No matter how hard New York, London, and Milan try, they will never quite have the magic of Paris. The French capital is still very much fashion’s epicenter, and the Paris shows still rule the runways because of their dynamic mix of seasoned couturiers and daring young talent. It’s therefore interesting to note that the Spring/Summer 2005 shows seemed to mark a generational shift. The most exciting collections of the week belonged to relatively new talent (at least compared to Karl Lagerfeld) such as Phoebe Philo at Chloe, Hussein Chalayan, Nicolas Ghesquiere at Balenciaga, Alexander Mc-Queen, Sophia Kokosalaki, and Stefano Pilati at Yves Saint Laurent.
YVES SAINT LAURENT RIVE GAUCHE
No label in recent years has caused as much fashion friction as Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche. During Tom Ford’s reign at the house, French reviewers complained of Gucci rip-offs while the rest of the world simply saw sexy, sellable, and sophisticated clothes on the YSL runway.
Mr. Pilati, YSL’s new designer, has solved this problem by doing what Mr. Ford never did: playing up the iconic imagery of the house’s particular brand of Gallic glamour. That meant sharp and ladylike daywear with hourglass silhouettes, polka dots in a variety of sizes, blouses with exaggerated shoulders, and skirt suit after skirt suit. For evening, Mr. Pilati further explored vintage Saint Laurent territory: sculptural cocktail dresses with artful ruffles and gowns with long, billowing skirts and square, barely there tops. It was a debut that was as chic as it was clever, and it will surely mend all hard feelings between Monsieur Saint Laurent’s die-hard fans and the Gucci group, the label’s current owners.
BALENCIAGA
Nicolas Ghesqiuere at Balenciaga also took a stroll down memory lane. It seems that the young Frenchman has left behind his trademark experimental deconstruction and Princess Leia influences, and instead found a new, and perhaps more challenging, inspiration in the work of his label’s legendary founder. There were definite traces of Cristobal Balenciaga in the elegant, sober, and almost entirely black collection. Beautiful strapless dresses with ruffled skirts had just the right balance of restraint and volume, while smart androgynous looks such as wide, fluid trousers worn with skinny tops and angular jackets had a whiff of bygone Balenciaga customer Marlene Dietrich, yet looked cool and modern.
CELINE
Roberto Menichetti made a fresh start at Celine when he abandoned predecessor Michael Kors’s jetset glamorama for a stricter and more casual sportswear look. Simple and beautifully constructed clothes such as asymmetrically pleated skirts, sharp, boxy jackets, and strappy camisoles had a serious and slightly intellectual flavor. Although some critics felt the mainly charcoal, chocolate, and blue collection bordered on drab, it was nice to see a new departure for a label that had almost become a parody of itself. Hopefully, Mr. Menichetti will feel confident enough next season to serve up a truly marvelous makeover, like the one he masterminded at Burberry at the turn of the millennium.
CHRISTIAN DIOR
At Christian Dior, John Galliano took a sudden style U-turn and abandoned the oversexed fishnets and lingerie looks that he’s been pumping out since circa 1999, instead producing a romantic and very girlish collection. The virginal, nostalgic, prewar skirt suits and light, lacy smocks were sweet and pretty, but left the audience somewhat confused. Yes, change is good, but where was Mr. Galliano? One hopes that next season he will include some of the breathtaking drama and glamour that made him famous.
ALEXANDER MCQUEEN
Alexander McQueen, on the other hand, did not hold back in the drama department, much to everyone’s delight. After an unusually quiet fall season, Mr. Mc-Queen was back for spring with a powerful collection that ran the gamut from Edwardian schoolgirl looks to space-age goddess attire to Kabuki drama, with some haute hippie chic thrown in for good measure. Most of the looks in the collection were reinterpretations of the designer’s earlier work, but with such an extraordinary talent as Mr. McQueen’s, there’s much left to explore even the second time around.
CHLOE
What has emerged as the look of the season – a soft, slightly undone, and sensually fluid silhouette – was perfectly represented at Chloe. The label’s designer, Phoebe Philo, turned out a light, feminine, and extremely desirable collection that was her most polished to date. Draped and subtly pleated dresses sported loose and liquid lines that seemed to float off the models’ bodies. The flouncy looks were offset by straight, sparkling mini-dresses, sharp and shrunken jackets, and sheer button-down shirts. This knockout collection is sure to blow out of Barneys.
CHANEL
The irrepressible Karl Lagerfeld got more headlines for his personal antics than his clothes this season. The designer affectionately known as the Kaiser announced a few weeks ago that all photographers attending the Chanel show must wear black suits and white ties. This was of course not welcomed by the overworked (and famously underdressed) shooters, who threatened to strike unless a compromise was reached. It was. Mr. Lagerfeld promised to provide Dior Homme jackets to suitless snappers and the show went on as scheduled. And we got the answer to why Mr. Lagerfeld had made such a fuss. The show’s opening was a reenactment of the ultra-formal Cannes festival’s red carpet festivities with supermodel stars such as Linda Evangelista, Shalom Harlow, Naomi Campbell, and Nadja Auermann posing in spectacular black gowns while photographers chased them up and down the podium. The scenario was an homage to new Chanel No. 5 spokeswoman Nicole Kidman, who was conspicuously seated in the middle of the front row.
The rest of the show went on normally with Mr. Lagerfeld’s usual masterful mix of light tweed suits, variations of trench coats, stylish black-and-white trouser ensembles, and elegant evening dresses. The glamour was turned up a notch with lavishly layered chiffon gowns, sparkly fin de siecle gowns, and sumptuous black velvet columns. Hollywood will no doubt take notice.