As the fashion week train arrives in our hometown Paris, we take a material journey through the last month of fashion shows in New York, London and Milan. With countless unexpected applications, and fabric innovations, the designers showed little restraint when it came to materials, and we’re sure they won’t hold back in Paris! Enjoy the slideshow above and discover some of our favorites.
The recent passing of Karl Lagerfeld has left us with a gaping hole in the fashion landscape. Lagerfeld was internationally known as the Creative Director for Chanel – he took the reigns in 1983, the year after starting his own name brand, Karl Lagerfeld, although he had already had a formidable career with his work for Fendi and Chloé, since the 60s. Alongside Chanel, he was the creative director for Fendi until his passing.
With decades and decades of work behind him, it is clear that he helped to shape and mold the fashion industry into what we know today.
One of the things that made the Chanel shows so magical, was the other-worldly set design conceived by Lagerfeld. Below, we have put together a selection of some of our favorites, to commemorate his inimitable legacy.
Haute Couture 2006 Spring
A towering spiral staircase that led to the models from nowhere to the runway.
Spring/Summer 2012 Ready to Wear
Like Sebastian in Disney’s Little Mermaid, Lagerfeld too seemed to muse – ‘Life under the sea is better than anything they’ve got up there’ – in an underwater paradise, featuring Florence Welch, from Florence and the Machine, as Botticelli’s Venus.
Fall/Winter 2012-2013 Ready to Wear
Chanel’s crystalline wonderland, like Superman’s Fortress Of Solitude, provided the perfect backdrop, shaped by nature herself.
Fall/Winter 2014-2015 Ready to Wear
One of the most Instagrammed shows of all time – the infamous Chanel supermarché. It ended with a supermarket sweep as editors tried to take the Chanel branded products from the shelves.
Spring/Summer 2015 Ready to Wear
A Parisian boulevard, with a controversial finalé which saw the models state a faux-protest alongside Lagerfeld in support of women’s rights and feminism.
Fall/Winter 2015-2016 Ready to Wear
The Brasserie Gabrielle, an homage to Parisian café culture, had the models taking their seats and drinking coffee from Chanel cups during the show.
Haute Couture 2015 Fall
The casino set the scene, with celebrities including Julianne Moore, Kristen Stewart, Lily-Rose Depp, and Lara Stone wearing one-off Chanel outfits designed by Karl exclusively for them.
Haute Couture 2016 Spring
An ecological approach, with a focus on natural materials, for this peaceful Zen garden setting.
Spring/Summer 2016 Ready to Wear
Chanel Airlines! Some people fly first class, and some people fly Chanel. Luxury reached new heights!
Spring/Summer 2017 Ready to Wear
The Chanel Data Centre, with color-coded wires, server stacks, and robots in tweed – we saw the timeless classics transcend into the future.
Haute Couture Fall 2017
The icon of Paris herself, the Eiffel Tower, watched over the show, towering over the audience, and disappearing into man-made clouds.
Fall/Winter 2017-2018 Ready to Wear
Lagerfeld became fashion’s ultimate Rocketman, with his life-size Chanel rocket ship. For the finalé, the rocket appeared to actually take off – threatening to burst through the Grand Palais’ glass ceiling!
Spring/Summer 2018 Ready to Wear
A replica of Les Gorges du Verdon river canyon from the south of France, replete with waterfall, a light breeze and a rainbow provided by the Grand Palais itself: stunning.
Cruise 2019
The concept of the ‘cruise’ collection was completely redefined, by an actual cruise boat. At the end of the show, Lagerfeld beckoned everyone on board and shared oysters with them in a Chanel branded ballroom.
Spring/Summer 2019 Ready to Wear
Lagerfeld took us to the shore of Chanel’s very own private beach, with actual waves lapping the models’ bare feet. He took his exit on the jetty with the new creative director, Virginie Viard, his then director of Chanel’s Fashion Creation Studio.
This month we experiment with a new 3D support in our material library – Bamboo Pulp. The base support is created using bamboo fibers, that are pressed between two molded metal forms, in an iron. The result is a lightweight and easily reproduced 3D panel, which comes in many different declinations. We experimented with digital printing, glitter projection, flocking, and hand-painting & stripping wrapped around in a bondage fashion. The results were startling, as the panel’s original forms changed with each application… The science of experimentation is truly magical!
Maison & Objet, the self-confessed international authority for home decor, interior design, architecture, and lifestyle culture and trends breezed through Paris again for it’s January edition. With over 3000 exhibitors, it was a fascinating whirlwind of creativity and inspiration!
We focus above on three main trends that struck us in the salon, Recycling, Cardboard & Paper, and Textured Walls, and highlight below some technological developments that caught our eye.
In the Recyclingfield, LLOT LLOV from Germany created a material they called Glacier, in collaboration with cosmetics group Cosnova – a Nail Polish Terrazzo made from discarded nail polish bottles in concrete support. ecoBIRDY, based in Antwerp, collected old children’s toys and recycled them into new design furniture, in an innovative material they call ecothylene® which they have managed to develop to the high safety standards for children – making it both eco-friendly and child-friendly!
In the Cardboard & Paper trend, the work of French artist Marie-Anne Thieffry was an astonishing use of layered cardboard, carved into beautiful spherical lights and figurative busts. Molo Designs from Canada showcased their unique structures in folded paper and cardboard, flexible wall partitions, seating and lights that can be adapted to any space, and reconfigured with ease. A perfect product for the modern city apartment.
Textured Walls were everywhere, giving a new dimension to any interior: we particularly liked Portugal’s Burel Factory, a historical wool manufacturer, who create intricate hand finished wall coverings in finest wool. They are used in hospitality for their acoustic and thermal properties, and they add a touch of luxury to the space. Who could resist couture walls?
We can’t wait for the September edition of Maison et Objet, it is sure to continue to inspire us in ways we can’t even imagine.
Tsunoda Seibee Shoten from Japan creates Bento boxes carved from single blocks of Japanese Cypress wood, that are completely joint free, highlighting the wood’s natural grain. They are unique in their use of glass Nano-Coating which provides stain resistance and durability, whilst meeting the exacting standards of health and safety food regulations, and maintaining the natural beauty of the wood grain. LPJ Studios from Germany work with the leftover yarns and garments from prestigious fashion companies to develop new products. The LPJ Studios Punch Rug caught our eye, using a needle-punch felting technique they take wool based garments and integrate them seamlessly into rug forms that can be wall or flor based. A unique solution for your favorite old sweater!
The Spring 2019 couture collections hit Paris this month, just after the Menswear’s winter 2019 ready-to-wear presentations. Throughout the menswear presentations, gender fluidity continued to be explored, with many brands merging their men’s and women’s collections, and further acceptance of the flipping of sartorial codes. This has also been filtering into the couture collections, that are traditionally more feminine, with brands like Givenchy and Margiela showing men’s couture on the runway.
Always urgent, as they are shown on-season, the Summer 2019 couture collections provide an overview of the materials that are in the forefront of the designer’s minds right now. With an exceptional eye for detail and a focus on the finest of techniques, they were, as always, breathtaking and inspirational: artistry in it’s purest form.
Le phénomène naturel des aurores boréales des côtes norvégiennes est encré dans une mysticité certaine et une poésie supernaturelle, sensiblement compréhensible si l’on a jour rêvé d’observer cette vague colorée flottante dans la noirceur crépusculaire. C’est précisément à cette jonction que se passe la rencontre de la magie et des fleurs, des contes de fées et du réel, ainsi que l’exaltation déroutante de la contemplation de la brume écossaise, ce qui a inspiré nos recherches primaires pour la nouvelle saison 2019.
Si vous êtes intéressés par des échantillons de matières ou être tenu informé des nouveaux développements pour l’année 2019, contactez-nous ICI.
La relation de la mode à l’art est abondamment documentée mais jamais n’a pu atteindre le niveau symbiotique qui règne aujourd’hui. Avec une interdépendance croissante entre art et mode (y compris dans les contextes les plus commerciaux), il n’est plus rare de constater d’étroites collaborations entre les grands acteurs du luxe et de la mode d’une part et les stars de l’art contemporain d’autre part. Au zénith de cette tendance, nous avons récemment vu Jeff Koons habiller de ses oeuvres les vitrines de la célèbre maison Louis Vuitton : un véritable choc des Titans, qui a conforté l’image de ces deux grandes marques au firmament de la planète Luxe.statuses.
Jeff Koons pour Louis Vuitton 2017
Durant la pré-collection automne 2019 de Dior Homme présentée à Tokyo, Kim Jones, le nouveau Directeur Artistique de la marque a invité un de ses créateurs favoris, Hajime Sorayama, il en a résulté la conception d’une sculpture monumentale inspirée des robots sexys de l’artiste. Sorayama a collaboré dans le passé avec plusieurs labels de streetwear,et sa première collaboration dans la sphère du luxe était avec Juun J en 2016, mais à une toute autre échelle. La pièce maîtresse du défilé, la gargantuesque femme-robot, révélée par de multiples lasers annonçant une vision futuriste unique pour la pré-collection automne 2019 de Dior Homme. Aussi, à Tokyo pour la première fois, Valentino a innové dans un espace industriel fait de béton brut pour un défilé mixant les genres. Grâce à ces grandes premières pour la marque, Valentino surprend et décale son identité romantique, technique de contraste davantage associée au monde de l’art. Dans la poursuite idéologique de cet évènement, le magasin Valentino situé dans le quartier de Ginza a été décoré par des artisans et des artistes invités par le Directeur Artistique Pierpaolo Piccioli. Parmi eux, les maîtres origamistes Kyoshei Katsuta et Satoshi Kamiya ont utilisé le célèbre papier rouge Valentino afin de créer une ménagerie d’animaux fantastiques.
Il serait vain de conclure une discussion sur l’art et la mode sans mentionner la collaboration active de Raf Simons avec l’artiste Sterling Ruby, une des relations les plus iconiques à la confluences de ces deux univers. Tout commença par une collaboration textile en 2012 pour Dior Haute Couture, sous la Direction Artistique de Raf Simons. Elle se prolongera bientôt dans une collection complète pour son Label éponyme où il personnalisera toutes les étiquettes des vêtements de la saison. et perdure jusqu’à ce jour dans le cadre de son appointement à la tête des boutiques et flagships de la maison Calvin Klein au niveau mondial.
Raf Simons / Sterling Ruby AW 14
Enfin JW Anderson devient très vite le chou chou de la scène artistique avec ces nombreuses intrusions dans le monde de l’artisanat d’art et en particulier l’introduction en 2017 du “Loewe Craft Prize” qui récompense les céramistes et les artisans au niveau mondial. Pour sa dernière édition limitée : la collection capsule AW 18, Straight to Market, il a collaboré avec le fameux duo Londonien Gilbert et Georges sur un nombre de pièces à part et d’accessoires à l’effigie de leurs tableaux iconiques. Destiné à équiper très prochainement le fashionista comme à l’amateur d’art, il apporte sa pierre à une tendance en plein essor avec des propositions parfaitement portables.
L’exposition “Ombres” d’Andy Warhol dans le diaporama a été présenté par le Dia Fondation au siège social Calvin Klein à New York du 26 octobre au 15 décembre 2018, en concordance avec la rétrospective (Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again) au Whitney Museum of American Art.
Par l’entreprise d’un voyage virtuel dans le monde entier, nous avons rassemblé quelques unes des vitrines les plus créatives et inspirantes. De New York à Tokyo en passant par Oslo et Newcastle, l’inventivité et l’imagination sans bornes étaient au rendez-vous. Voici nos favorites !
