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This season, Paris Fashion Week was front-loaded with not one, but two debuts: Haider Ackermann for Tom Ford, and Julian Klausner for Dries Van Noten. And both debuts were at brands that, really, are synonymous with their founders. Could there be a Dries Van Noten without Dries? Could there be a Tom Ford without Tom? (Remember, Peter Hawkings, who succeeded Ford, was out after less than a year in the job).
Tailored Appeal
Only Time Will Tell — But For Now, Ackermann And Klausner Are Writing Powerful Openers To A New Chapter For Each Of The Brands They’ve Stepped Up To Lead
Ackerman started off his intimate 8pm show serving dirty martinis — between that, the low lighting and the plush grey sofas for showgoers to lounge on, the mood was set. It was like walking into the VIP backroom at an impossible-to-get-into hotspot filled with a cult fashion crowd: Kate Moss, Pierpaolo Piccioli, Bella Freud and Tom Ford himself, who, sat next to Jared Leto, was dressed for after hours in head-to-toe black (the unoffical dress code for the night, FYI).
Tom Ford, the man, was the starting point for Ackerman when creating the collection. ‘He is nightlife, I am the morning after: this is where our dance begins,’ he wrote in the show notes. The result was the perfect blend of both designers' strengths to shape a new creative language for Tom Ford, the brand.
Double-leather looks, styled with slick back hair, blood red lips, and razor-sharp stilettos were shown beside a black dresses — either floorlength and body skimming, tuxedo-inspired, or slinky and mini with a train at the back. Pops of colour came in the form of sharp-shouldered pastel suiting and slinky evening gowns, which were one-sleeved, or slit right up to the hipbone to reveal a flash of long leg. ‘It’s all about seduction with Mr Tom Ford,’ he told ELLE backstage after the show, adding, ‘I hope I seduced all of you.’ Going by the standing ovation at the close of the show, it’s safe to say: Yes, Haider, you did.
At Dries Van Noten, the evening wear spoke to a different kind of mood — less Studio 54, more night at the opera. In fact, for his big debut, Klausner took guests to Paris’s Opera House Le Palais Garnier for a collection that fused elegance and understated opulence. He described it as a ‘quiet yet powerful dialogue between past and future’, which he dubbed ‘the heart of Dries Van Noten.’ He would know — he has worked at the label since 2018, working alongside Van Noten to develop the brand’s women’s collections until the founder’s exit last Spring.
The show began with lots of tailored pieces, some cinched in at the waist with almost-corset like belts finished with a whipstich detailing also echoed on heels and outerwear, while nods to opera-house interiors like curtain tassels and woven rug detailing were found as embellishments on jackets and dresses, giving the collection a southern mediterranean undertone. It was a texture-rich collection, mixing slinky silks with velvets on halerneck dresses, brocades, weighty wools and intricate beaded embroidery detailing.
CEOs with sex appeal dominated the catwalk at Stella McCartney, who took guests to her pop-up Stella Corp HQ. It started as a day in the office and ended on a night out out, complete pole dancers (yes, you that read correctly: pole dancers closed the show). The collection, aptly titled ‘Laptop to Lapdance’, takes the Stella woman from day job to nightclub: lots double breasted suiting worn over an undone oversized shirt and ‘she means business’ coats over thigh-high patent boots; there were also draped dresses in candy pink, mint green and pastel yellow, shown beside figure-hugging dresses with '80s power shoulders and itty-bitty hemlines.
Cecilie Bahnsen offered an ultra-feminine take on outdoorsy style; she gave her ‘everyday couture’ a gorpcore twist, bringing back her collaboration with The North Face for a second season, and also debuting a new collection for her on-going tie-up with Asics. Technical coats, outdoorsy gilet-style vests and sherpa jackets were paired with ballet-silhouetted skirts, or layered over mini-mini dresses full of volume, adorned with fabric flowers.
And, at Alaia, Pieter Mullier, showcased a woman of the world, who traversed geographies and histories: ‘We tried to thread lines through all cultures: African, Arab, European, even American, and find something new,’ he said backstage. ‘We tried to look at everything in life that is on a woman, and try not to pinpoint the inspiration.’
The show took place in the house’s new atelier space, a setting that only added emphasis to the impeccable craftsmanship of the collection. Sculptural hoods framed faces, while broad-hipped skirts accentuated a female silhouette. Some were given depth with intricate pleating, or made from knitted silk and twisted in such a way to look like cords. Statement coats were shaggy or padded, enveloping the models’ forms. ‘Everything has much more body,’ Mullier said. ‘It’s curving even more, like modern Venuses.’
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Read the original article in ELLE UK.