Although filmed in front of its historic headquarters at 10 Avenue George V, and then photographed with Place Vendôme, the Arc de Triomphe and Haussmann-style facades in the background, Balenciaga’s latest collection doesn’t quite read “Emily in Paris.”
Sure, there’s the reworked Edith Piaf soundtrack, the asphalt sidewalks glossy from rain, and those postcard monuments adding a romantic je ne sais quoi.
Yet the black-clad figures spilling out of the couture house’s hulking wooden doors and later posed on scenic balconies are characters unmistakably created by Demna, who has succeeded in creating an identifiable silhouette for Balenciaga — voluptuous, dramatic and steeped in underground energy.
There’s little that screams “resort” or “spring” in this dark, enveloping collection, although extra-long or padded trenches, billowing overcoats and meaty puffers with stand-away collars might not be such a bad idea for what can be a rainy, blustery season.
Tartan linings and colorful mesh bags with crystal embroideries offered little gusts of cheer, and the finale look — a gown awash in silvery fringe — looked like something Beyoncé might need for her “Renaissance” world tour.
Balenciaga picked a gray, windy day for its frenetic, five-minute film, which had models hurrying to and fro, barking on cell phones and hailing moto-taxis, pausing only to apply lip balm, take a sip of a commuter coffee, or pick up a coin.
According to the house, it was shot in one continuous take, suggesting the downpour in the second half of the film might not have been the work of Mother Nature.
As he did last year with his resort showing at the New York Stock Exchange, Demna put the spotlight on Balenciaga’s new Garde-Robe range, described as its line of “refined wardrobe essentials.”
Consider it a variant of quiet luxury, but drenched in swagger and goth-tinged edginess. While he dialed down the streetwear quotient and obvious branding, Demna otherwise stuck to his stylistic guns.
The designer has an unmistakeable hand, and a consistent appetite for oversize, raw-edged blazers, runny dresses in knife-pleated jersey, face-obscuring hoodies, mask-like sunglasses and demonstrative footwear — this time dress shoes with jutting, curled toe boxes or pant-boots bulging with motocross padding.
If you encounter any of these characters charging down the street toward you, you will likely get the hell out of their way — and perhaps pine for even a smidgen of their industrial-strength cool.
