Since there is still so much emotion around the dismissal of Alber Elbaz from Lanvin last year, it is perhaps fairer to draw back and assess what the Fall collection, which was designed by a team, was, and what it wasn’t. What it was: a collection of shiny, stiff brocades cut into Dynasty-era high-eighties suits and asymmetrically peplummed tops, interspersed with lace blouses and satin dresses. A palette of peach, seafoam green, and mauve, ending with a black jacket with multicolored jeweled lapels. What it wasn’t: anything recognizably influenced by Elbaz, from the setting to the sequence.
At the beginning, the jewelry—metallic chokers and dangly earrings—showed some spirit. But otherwise, the clothes seemed to bear little evidence of the sensitive cut, expert fit, and general flourish which Lanvin clothes communicated when Elbaz was in charge. To go forward, the company will need to change more than the venue and the lighting, as it did this season. If it is going to command space in the highly competitive fashion arena, it needs distinctive leadership and soul. Without either, it is hard to see how Lanvin’s high-fashion products can be distinguished from so many labels which populate the general swath of the mid-market.
