By Weronika Maleszewska
Livestreams beginning to sound old-fashioned? Don’t worry – designers have got your back. Fashion brands are starting to use more and more original and ‘potentially impossible’ ways to display their products. And we’re loving it.
Unfortunate times favour fashion fans, putting everyone on one level. And there are no exceptions here. As long as you are not one of the chosen, rare breeds with VIP entrance (sorry, Anna), we have fantastic news for you.
The hierarchy determined by an assigned seat in a given row can safely be forgotten now. Shows are becoming art itself and we, as recipients, are taking on the appearance of novelty-hungry fashion connoisseurs, positioned on one level, counting down the days to the promised releases.
Believe it or not, there is still much to wait for. Great minds think alike. Although designers probably did not pass each other on the streets of the world’s fashion capitals during Fashion Weeks, a community of experiences has prevailed.
Gucci has no season
Let’s follow the footsteps of the leading Kering-brands and their massive, unofficial initiative of independence in Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks.
Gucci, for example, has gone entirely season-less.
Being one of the leading brands under Kering’s umbrella, Gucci has announced its ‘Ouverture Of Something That Never Ended’ consisting of seven short films co-directed by Gus Van Sant and Alessandro Michele. To be honest, it would be hard to find more a more flexible form of entertainment than a good series, especially in today’s world, in which Netflix premieres have taken the status of ‘those recorded in the calendar’.
Screenshot from the Balenciaga: Age of Tomorrow game experience
Photo courtesy of Bottega Venetta
“It feels like the industry titans are starting to dip out of crowded, digital schedules,” says Caroline Tibbers, a Central St Martins fashion designs student.
They are certainly starting to go more in-depth with brands’ own DNA and identity, as they are listening more carefully to their own voice (well, self-acceptance and growth shouldn’t be just during lockdown). Standing face to face with today’s reality, the industry questions the viability of continuing the age-old Fashion-Week rule.
Bottega Veneta abandons social media
New year, new us. The slogan appealed to fans of the Italian fashion house Bottega Veneta like never before, resulting in the deletion of their Instagram.
But even before the company’s shocking social media abandonment, Bottega seemed to be slowly withdrawing from the chaos on the fashion weekday scene.
Its attempt to present the SS21 collection (already in October) at Sadler’s Wells might, at first glance, have seemed a somewhat shy gesture on the part of a fashion house.
Well, let’s just say nothing could be further from the truth.
Venetas’s creative director, Daniel Lee, told VogueRunway: “I think the strength of what we’ve done so far really has been focused on the product and really focused on the physical objects that we’ve made.”
Lee, an eternal opponent of digital solutions, decided to focus on product identity by maximising the minimalist scenery. Remaining faithful to his own convictions, he proves that in the world of fashion, as well as in nature, there is a balance.
Balenciaga – best time ever
Speaking of balance, Balenciaga, on the contrary, seems to be having its best time. Demna Gvasalia – ahead both in time (we received the AW21 collection already in December) and in terms of content – came up with a proposal that was a breakthrough solution: a video game.
With their exploration of futuristic fashion solutions within the AW21 collection, Balenciaga definitely managed to break the bank. ‘Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow’ allows, in an undoubtedly revolutionary style, the public to familiarise itself with the brand’s collection, giving control to us, the customers. Or gamers? Well, I guess now we are both.
Another fanciful way of presenting a veritable feast of delicious fashion imagery can be found in Vogue’s March release. Again, it is a game – but in a lookbook form. The creative team, with enlisted director Alana O’Herlihy, decided to dedicate it to their cover star, Gigi Hadid. The aim is to recall the most iconic fashion moments, as well as implement the latest trends with this electronic version of Gigi.
As befits Vogue, the game fits perfectly into the latest fashion trends, being the equivalent of an old-fashioned lookbook, proposing solutions such as total CELINE looks, or reminding us of an iconic pink dress by Noir Kei Ninomiya.
The on-screen reality turned out to be a factor in going a step further, evolving the boundaries, and getting out of the scheduled comfort zone. Companies started to think a little wider, asking themselves the question, ‘What if the seasonal novelties we offer aren’t the only attraction of the show?’
It seems like designers are rediscovering the meaning of the word fashion, rightly combining it with art. Fashion keeps on escaping monotony, in favour of a more time-consuming but definitely sharper tool – creativity.
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