Scene setting: A blackened Salon d'Honneur was the venue for this season's Paco Rabanne show, in stark contrast to last season's all-white décor in the Musée d'Art Moderne. Benches were disposed in a multitude of hexagons, with another hexagone inside each of them where standing guests watched the show, creating an unsettling human background. Seen from above, the seating plan must have been reminiscent of Paco Rabanne's trademark 'Cotte de maille', the metallic mesh that made the Spanish designer famous and which Julien Dosséna reprises with gusto season after season. It was an intriguing set for a new era in the brand, after a few months ago a new CEO was named to take things into a new direction.
Mood board: If last season was all about brightness and sportswear, this time nightlife and glam were on the menu. While the brand's signature chainmail silhouettes do have a mechical and space age slant, for S/S 2018 they were drenched with dazzling, discotheque flair, focused on human movement, dancing and frivolity.
Best in show: The brand's new direction was visible from the first look: any hint of street or activewear was gone, and replaced with an ultra glam aesthetic with disco references. A mini dress in metal mesh imitating python gave way to a sheer organza romper, then to a profusion of dresses with strategically placed slits, cutouts and fringes, the kind that makes editors sigh and exclaim: 'if I only had the kind of body that one needs to rock those clothes'.
Paco Rabanne S/S 2018.
-
Each mundane object tells a story at Pace’s tribute to the everydayIn a group exhibition, ‘Monument to the Unimportant’, artists give the seemingly insignificant – from discarded clothes to weeds in cracks – a longer look
-
Discover The Legacy, Hong Kong’s eye-catching new condoThe Legacy, by ACPV Architects Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel, is a striking new condo tower that aims to ‘create a sense of community and solidarity among people’
-
In BDSM biker romance ‘Pillion’, clothes become a medium for ‘fantasy and fetishism’Costume designer Grace Snell breaks down the leather-heavy wardrobe for the Alexander Skarsgård-starring Pillion, which traces a dom/sub relationship between a shy parking attendant and a biker
-
Haute Couture Week A/W 2025: what to expectFive moments to look out for at Haute Couture Week A/W 2025 in Paris (starting Monday 7 July), from Glenn Martens’ debut for Maison Margiela to Demna’s Balenciaga swansong. Plus, ‘new beginnings’ from JW Anderson
-
Donna Trope celebrates the power of the Polaroid in Paris‘Polaroids used to be my rejects, and now they are my holy grail,’ says the beauty photographer, as she shows rarely seen images in a Paris exhibition
-
Palace unites with Rapha to celebrate inaugural Tour de France FemmesMarking the first time women will compete in the historic cycling race since the late 1980s, this new collaboration sees Palace Skateboards and Rapha create uniforms for both on and off the bike – including an ‘outlandish’ pair of Crocs
-
Paris Fashion Week A/W 2022: Chanel to Miu MiuIn this extended report, Wallpaper* updates you live from Paris Fashion Week A/W 2022 shows, with rolling coverage as runway events unfold
-
Scene-stealing runway sets from A/W 2022 menswear showsA Kubrickian space odyssey at Prada; a recreation of the Pont Alexandre III in Paris at Dior; and colourful, artist-created flags at Loewe: explore the best runway sets from the A/W 2022 menswear shows
-
Scene-stealing runway sets from S/S 2022 womenswear showsFrom giant roulette wheels to Olympic diving boards and multi-city synchronized extravaganzas – our pick of the best fashion show sets from S/S 2022 womenswear
-
Louis Vuitton A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women's -
Chanel A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women’s
