The gods of French fashion looked down kindly on Hermès tonight. Nadège Vanhee-Cybulski had decided to stage a show in the semi-open air, in a garden. Praise be, the freezing weather which has had a lock on Paris since last week suddenly lifted, and for an hour it looked like spring. Then there was a wait—thankfully there were heated seats and Hermès blankets for comfort—because the idea was to present the collection in twilight. As dusk fell, the garden filled with mist, an Hermès-orange light glowed in the background, and the models began crunching their way along a dark red gravel path. For the first time in Vanhee-Cybulski’s tenure at the house, Hermès was going for atmospherics and drama.
Something tough and sexy this way came—at least, at first. The aesthetics of the black leather as filtered through the prism of haute Parisian culture can’t help but signal images of Helmut Newton power-women. That’s what came across as Vanhee-Cybulski sent out total looks. The opening coat, with its boned waist and silver fob-chained closure, and a whole-leather high-necked shift dress evoked that ’80s world.
But as with everything Hermès, it was the detail that really mattered. Where there were studs, they were pyramid-shaped, after the classic Hermès watch. That theme continued later with the print on silk dresses.
Still, the main point of this venue was surely to emphasize the fresh-air, country-pursuits side of Hermès’s character. That was effectively shown via the horse-blanket-themed section; a poncho, and then a ribbed sweater with a yellow stripe—unforgettably worn with a large diamond neckpiece. Vanhee-Cybulski’s narrow, disciplined-silhouette cigarette pants with a hint of the jodhpur, pencil skirts, and slim dresses continued, providing a base for some impressive outerwear. It spanned the gamut from buttery leather trenches to cropped luxury-utiliarian jackets. There were two outstanding pieces among these. One, a fur shaved to give the impression of corduroy, had leather pyramidal buttons. The other, perfectly in step with the layered-coat trend, was a supersophisticated Hermès version of a duffel coat, nonchalantly thrown over a quilted liner. As a confirmation of the brand’s pole position in lifestyle fashion, it was a job well done.
