For S/S 2022, the world’s fashion brands have showcased their first physical runway shows in 18 months – following the easing of pandemic-related restrictions – in a host of spectacular locations. In Paris alone, Hermès caused a stir by taking guests to the private airport of Le Bourget, where a plane touched down on the runway at the show's finale, while Balenciaga took over the grand Théâtre du Châtelet, complete with a red carpet and hoards of screaming fans.
Matthew M Williams also had something spectacular on his mind for his first physical show for Givenchy, after being appointed creative director of the Parisian Maison in June 2020. Last season, the brand presented a panoramic show film, which saw models stomping through water, illuminated by scores of headlights, in the Paris La Défense Arena, the largest indoor performance venue in Europe, on the outskirts of the French capital.
Arena transformed for Givenchy S/S 2022 show
For its S/S 2022 showcase, the brand is returning once again to the Paris La Défense Arena – a sculptural, domed space that was designed by the French architect Christian de Portzamparc and opened in 2017, and can hold up to 40,000 spectators. Here, Williams is set to bathe his guests in the glow of a cinematic sun, by suspending a monumental oculus from the ceiling of the vast space, which will bathe the venue in bright light.
The stark, serene light will transform the space into a brutalism-inspired arena, or an enormous pristine art gallery, setting a suitably compelling scene for Givenchy's S/S 2022 creations to make their entrance.
Another nod to the art-influenced notion behind the set design? Givenchy's S/S 2022 also unveils a collaboration with the American artist Josh Smith, whose emotive, large brushstroke-swathed paintings feature figurative elements, such as skeletons, fish and insects, to impressionistic effect.
INFORMATION
givenchy.com
-
Cocktail hour with Stanley TucciWallpaper* catches up with the consummate epicurean to discuss his culinary no-gos, Tucci-esque travel habits and how to make the perfect martini
-
28 Years Later, is Danny Boyle finding humanity in a dystopian world?Is that a touch of positivity we see in director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland's 28 Years Later?
-
Jenny Saville’s major exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery is raw, powerful and sublimeFifty works, from the course of the artist’s career, are brought together for ‘Jenny Saville: The Anatomy of Painting’ in London
-
What the Wallpaper* editors are looking forward to at Men’s Fashion Week S/S 2026As Men’s Fashion Week S/S 2026 begins in Florence, the Wallpaper* style team select the moments they will be looking out for – from Jonathan Anderson’s anticipated Dior debut to outings from Wales Bonner, Kiko Kostadinov and Prada
-
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
-
‘Don’t forget to get the bread!’ Serge Lutens writes an ode to a singular perfumePublished exclusively by Wallpaper*, Serge Lutens writes an ode to Jeux de Peau, a singular perfume of his creation inspired by a childhood memory of baking bread
-
What did Christian Dior’s favourite ‘invisible’ flower smell like?Dior’s Francis Kurkdijan recreates the scent of a rare lily of the valley species in Le Muguet, the first olfactory chapter of new perfume collection Les Récoltes Majeures
-
Inside Camperlab’s Harry Nuriev-designed Paris store, a dramatic exercise in contrastThe Crosby Studios founder tells Wallpaper* the story behind his new store design for Mallorcan shoe brand Camperlab, which centres on an interplay between ‘crushed concrete’ and gleaming industrial design
-
The Wallpaper* A/W 2025 trend report: raw glamour, waistlines and an animal instinctAs Paris Fashion Week concludes, Wallpaper* fashion features editor Jack Moss unpacks five trends which defined the A/W 2025 season, from ‘raw glamour’ at Prada, sculpted waistlines at Givenchy, to looks made to cocoon and protect
-
How an 18th-century mansion became a Loewe wonderland for Paris Fashion WeekDrawing on the act of scrapbooking, Jonathan Anderson took over the Hôtel de Maisons with a self-reflective A/W 2025 presentation, shown alongside colourful artworks from the brand’s collection
-
Inside Sarah Burton’s debut show for Givenchy: ‘To go forward, you have to go back to the beginning’This morning in Paris, the former Alexander McQueen designer unveiled her anticipated debut as creative director of Givenchy – a musing on contemporary womanhood sparked by the discovery of lost Hubert de Givenchy pattern pieces
