Vuitton draws stars as McCartney brings horses to Paris show
PARIS (AP) – Paris’s Musee d’Orsay, for the duration of Louis Vuitton’s 15-minute show, was transformed into a museum: a buzzing circus of sparkles and cameras where the rich, powerful and famous mingled on Paris’ penultimate day. Gone are fashion weeks. Designer Nicolas Ghesquière put on a sumptuous and passionate vintage-hued ode to French style, enthralled by the onlookers who echoed around the lofty chambers.
Meanwhile, the smell of earthy scents prickled the noses of guests as they entered the venue for Stella McCartney: A Menagerie. Shivering from the cold was soon followed by gasping, when suddenly seven horses galloped through a side door followed by an exuberant operator. The show, incorporating equestrian themes, was a visual and sensory statement from McCartney, a prominent animal rights campaigner.
Here are some highlights from the fall-winter 2023-24 ready-to-wear show on Monday:
musée vuitton
The enthusiasm could be clearly seen among the VIPs as well.
Sophie Turner not only wore the brand, decked out in a silky Vuitton pajama look, she also sang on the brand — chanting “We Love Louis Vuitton” along with front row neighbor Chloë Grace Moretz. Vuitton ambassadors Alicia Vikander and Léa Seydoux chat animatedly. Anna Wintour patted.
Pharrell flashed the camera flashes, wearing a monogrammed coat and hat, still enjoying his time as Louis Vuitton’s men’s designer. Asked by The Associated Press whether he felt at home at Mason since last month’s announcement, Ferrell replied: “It feels like love.”
The show itself told a story. The sounds of daily life played in the soundtrack – whistling cars, birdsong, trains, footsteps and weather. The clothes also felt like everyday life – even if they were extremely overpriced.
It was as if Ghesquière had gone to a glamorous thrift store with vintage-style, often glittery, clothing mixed and matched.
An oversized brown jacket next to a waistcoat worn with a huge student-style woven scarf led to even more oversized circular pants.
Behind the randomness was hiding some incredible fashion design. Surrealist plays abounded. The skirt came with sharp pleats like a knife. The yellow sleeves were so long that it looked as if they had been put in the wrong wash cycle. and an oversized marble knit sheath dress that had leg mutton sleeves with a fully slit top.
McCartney’s softness and hardness
The vibrant designs displayed on the brown sand drew inspiration not only from horses – with equine motifs, petting-inspired wool motifs of horse blankets and marbling patterns resembling horse coats – but also from the world of show jumping.
McCartney used the pomp and pageantry of sport to inspire a collection that harkened to her tailoring background.
A double-breasted jacket had peaked shoulders above the waist with a diagonal dynamic blending masculine and feminine. Takes on regalia and the military include a men’s white lilac tailored show jumping jacket worn against nude flesh.
McCartney said the horses themselves also captured a sense of “a softness and a toughness, man versus woman”, a touchstone of the LVMH-owned fashion house.
The bags used vegan leather alternatives, such as MIRUM, a plant-based technology, AppleSkin, an apple-based material that creates an alligator effect.
It was an optimistic collection—with eye-popping citrine and vermilion sparkles—that never lectured but celebrated living in harmony.
Stella’s Wild, Wild Horses
“Have you ever seen a wild horse or a whisperer at a fashion show?” McCartney asked the stunned fashion press on a crowded balcony above the Mange that still smelled of horse. She said organizers called her “crazy” for attempting to bring wild horses into a show.
Yet McCartney said fall-winter in particular seems like a great time to highlight cruelty-free design with the unique spectacle of wild animals living, breathing and playing together.
“I really wanted to make that connection with my fellow creatures because there’s so much leather and fur and feathers on the runway, especially in the winter,” McCartney told the AP. “I wanted to show that you can do (fashion) in a different way, you don’t have to kill anything and it can (just) be fabulous.”
McCartney said that horses had many personal meanings to him, from photography of his mother Linda and sister Mary to “being British”, referring fondly to the horses that run deep in Britain.
She said that the message of the horses “is that they are alive and the clothes haven’t killed anything, so there is a kind of celebration of living in harmony with each other.”
The horse handler was the star of the show. McCartney said he first saw her at the London Horse Show and was impressed by her work. “They are his wild horses. He doesn’t use any bridle, any saddle and he’s a horse whisperer… they’re his little babies,” she said. “I can’t even get my dog to do that.”
aquajurra bag launch
Jessica Alba leads VIPs into the flower-filled salon of the Hôtel d’Evreux on the famed Place Vendome for the cocktail launch of Aquazzurra’s first bag collection in Florence.
“I feel like it’s jewelry and a bag together. It’s super chic. It definitely had a girl in it,” said Alba, holding one of the new bags with a triangular gold clasp and soft nappa pendant , “View now, buy now.”
Aquajurra brand established in 2012 has made a name for itself in shoe wear. But founder and creative director Edgardo Osorio said he felt it was time to expand.
“We were born in Florence as a shoe brand. … In 2023, we’re launching women’s bags, which felt like a natural extension. The idea is to sell the modern Dolce Vita,” Osorio said. “A new Italian lifestyle. Next are probably men’s shoes. And fragrances.
Items include a “Twist” maxi clutch as well as “Galactic Crystal” and “Love Link” bags.
AZ Factory
The AZ Factory Show still has bitter-sweet hues. The brand was created by designer Albert Elbaz just before his 2021 death from COVID.
Elbaz, still recovering from his ouster as the longtime Lanvin designer, wanted to create a brand that would represent a new way to do luxury – easier on the designers, body positive and more affordable. AZ Factory was just that. Since his death, guest designers have moonlighted for the brand, staying faithful to its ethos, and Elbaz’s sense of home is still felt in
On Monday, ruffles, toggles, belts and ties brought a utilitarian dimension to soft ready-to-wear designs. A sense of relaxation ran the gamut as models walked carefree in low-key platform sandals.
A furry coat with a swirling pink motif and an in-built scarf complete the look, with ankle warmers in the same material covering the model completely. It was funny and touching.
