For the world’s biggest luxury fashion houses, Resort is the season of fantastical journeys, meant to inspire unbridled wanderlust.
Dior, Resort 2018
Artistic Director Maria Grazia Chiuri conjured up the Wild West in Kim Kardashian’s neighbourhood of Calabasas, Los Angeles, with hot air balloons and a barren desert landscape providing the breathtaking set for her very first Cruise show. The collection borrowed heavily from Monsieur Dior’s 1951 Ovale line — the master couturier had based his prints on the ancient rock paintings discovered in the Lascaux cave. The 2018 update featured the house’s signature Bar jackets, cuddle-me-now ponchos and those sheer, romantic dresses we’ve come to expect from Chiuri since her time at Valentino.
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Chanel, Resort 2018
Only Karl Lagerfeld could take one look at the glorious ruins of Greece and decide that they’re not good enough for his Resort 2018 show. Instead, the designer built his own Temple of Poseidon within the Grand Palais in Paris, where models dressed as Grecian nymphs paraded down the runway in the mandatory toga dresses and gladiator heels. Despite his opulent taste, Lagerfeld did concede the need to marry luxury with high street styling. A jersey drawstring dress here, a T-shirt worn with pleated palazzos there… because even goddesses need a little downtime.
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Louis Vuitton, Resort 2018
Precision. It’s the quality that comes to mind when you think of Louis Vuitton, and nowhere is precision and perfection worshipped more than in Japan. For his Resort 2018 show, Nicolas Ghesquière created a symphony of Japanese cultural icons — Kabuki, Manga, Samurais and local design legend, Kansai Yamamoto. Cue tough girl biker jackets, fur patchwork on coats, cat-eye make-up and the kind of combat boots favoured by Tokyo’s Harajuku girls.
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Gucci, Resort 2018
Viewing a collection by Alessandro Michele is a not unlike a good acid trip: colours explode as prints collide and everything looks brighter and shinier than it should in real life. With the Renaissance on his mind and Florence in his brand’s DNA, Gucci’s Creative Director plumbed the golden period of European art and culture in his unique rock ‘n’ roll style. Overwhelming at first, it’s only when you start separating the elements of this visual onslaught that Michele’s genius becomes apparent.
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