For the runway debut of her year-old label, Koché, Christelle Kocher turned the lower concourse of Les Halles into her venue and set the showtime for 9:00 p.m. With all the mall shops closed and commuters dispersed—and with no actual runway save for the orderly clustering of guests—the cavernous, brutalist space gave many clues to her brand positioning. Kocher pointed out how the show space was non-elitist yet in the heart of Paris; within five minutes of the Louvre yet adjacent to the city’s busiest public transport station; accessible yet unpredictable. Her casting ranged from Soo Joo Park and Charlotte Free to a girl handpicked off the street to her neighbor in the 20th arrondissement.
But even without a single auxiliary aid, the clothes broadcast how the intersection of couture detailing and streetwear styling could lead to a kinetic, distinctively contemporary collection. Kocher also serves as the artistic director for Maison Lemarié, one of the specialist ateliers (in this case, feathers) owned by Chanel subsidiary Paraffection. Embroideries undertaken by sister ateliers Montex and Lesage embellished sports bras, basketball shorts, T-shirts, and parkas, showing how craftsmanship remains a designer’s ultimate power play. The tank bedecked in feathers and bling, the tracksuit encrusted with tulle, and the bodysuit paved in iridescent paillettes—if these pieces aren’t destined for performers known by their acronym aliases (M.I.A. and FKA twigs, we’re looking at you), then they demand personalities with comparable moxie. Still, it’s too early to tell whether Kocher is trying to degrade flashy or elevate trashy. Likely both. At least that was the impression made by the earrings and rings she created with Goossens, the couture jewelry atelier. They spread across fingers and crawled up ears like mangled marvels.
