At a time when the world craves comfort—even and especially when it comes to dressing up—Alexis Mabille strived to deliver ease, fusing movement-friendly fabrics with cinematic influences, structure, and colors, like chartreuse and a coral known as coq-de-roche gleaned from one of his favorite periods, the Second Empire. That he named the collection Voluptas, after the daughter of Psyche and Eros, speaks for itself.
Take, for example, the smoking, which the designer transposed into a white scarf-blouse in chiffon and satin over black crepe trousers, or a long black dress with a stylized heart neckline. “It’s flou, and at the same time built for a power woman,” the designer offered during a showroom visit. The theatrical side of the Second Empire also came through on a long midnight blue sheath embroidered with arabesques in three shades of gold, to enhance the impression of relief. A fully sequined midnight blue trench came in curve-skimming jersey. Elsewhere, the skirt of an evening ensemble featured a batwing sleeve top in changeant gray taffeta over a skirt with a mirage flower print in three layers of crystal-flecked tulle; their gradient shades created a blurry watercolor effect.
The designer also has a longstanding fascination with the American costume designer Adrian. A few negligée-inspired numbers, like one in gold princess crepe with bare shoulders, or a long shirt dress in pleated gold lamé with a mesh yoke, were created with Hollywood’s golden era in mind, for clients inclined to lounge like Garbo. Elsewhere, a long bustier dress in pearlescent fishnet was made of technical material cribbed from the sports world. Some dresses were created entirely without seams, for example a spare, fully sequined dress in gunmetal gray, or a long number in white Lyon lace, stitched together using the cordonnet technique. Simple though many pieces may have appeared, they belie untold hours of work, the designer said. “It’s about achieving harmony, but in the most natural way possible.”
