17 October 2024 |
All-In, Jenny Fax, and other designers to note.
There’s nothing quite like Paris during fashion week. Some might say it’s the grand epitome of fashion month, closing out the multiple-week performance of shows and presentations with the biggest-of-the-big brands. And while the spectacles command the most attention, there are also plenty of lesser-known labels that surprise and shock in the best kind of way. The kind of creative minds that show you things you’d never thought you’d see, or give you exactly what was lacking.
Take, for example, All-In. Presented in a surreally corporate high-rise in the outskirts of Paris during a pitch black night, designer duo Benjamin Barron and Bror August showed a collection inspired by the topsy-turvy twists of the corporate-core in a post Covid world. With injections of ‘80s style, you’ll find piled on giant pearl bracelets, chunky denim jackets remixed with splices, and animated larger-than-life tutus that splayed out between layered t-shirts. Also in the mix were polka dots, wayward polos, and deconstructed sweater vests.
“Watching Working Girl, we noticed that there was something about the character who comes from Staten Island, works her way up the ladder in New York and starts impersonating her boss from the Upper East side,” said Barron backstage. “That kind of attempt at taking on someone else’s identity was the starting break for the collection.” Kingmaker stylist Lotta Volkova helped pile all the pieces together and nail artist Mei Kawajiri applied huge, hulking pearls to the tips of nails for an effect that couldn’t possibly be replicated by anyone else. “It’s layers and layers of garments, so you’re ready for all the different versions that you’re supposed to play out in a day,” added August of the highly distinct look. “Lots of tutus, lots of cuts, but it’s with something more sober as well.”
The genius of the emerging designers of Paris right now has a lot to do with how the pieces are put together. Less manufactured and more personalized seems to be the vibe. At Jenny Fax’s presentation, inside the tiny little cafe called Gigi, the all-girl-gang of models sat in a circle dressed in frilly dresses, bulky shouldered shirts and deeply ironic details like hair with a smattering with chewed pieces of bubble gum and silicone stomachs layered over v-neck tops. Designer Jen-Fang Shueh is from Taiwan but based in Tokyo, and her spring 2025 collection was her first time presenting in Paris. “I want to show all different kinds of characters of women,” Shueh said during the presentation. “I wanted to celebrate women.”
A few blocks away from Jenny Fax’s show, another standout was taking place: the presentation for Grounds at Chez Omar. The Japanese based sneaker brand brought out models wearing wigs as extreme as the platformed, amorphous shoes. The brand has a cult following in Japan and also showed for the first time in Paris, cementing itself as the de facto creator of really weirdly good sneakers.
If anything else, in a world of neutrals and somber all-black, at least one can count on the emerging designers of Paris to stand out in color too. Take Shuting Qiu, which showed for the first time in Paris and showcased a kaleidoscopic rainbow of neons, polka dots, and floral prints with dresses layered over little tops, with little bonnets, big sleeves and layers of accessories. The designer was “deeply inspired by the rich mythological colors of Greek architecture,” according to the show notes, and created the collection after traveling to Cyprus, the mythical birthplace of the goddess Venus.
Likewise, rising label Reverie by Caroline Hú played with color and shapes in a surprising way, wrapping up her models in massive cocoon-like forms that served as walking dreamscapes. Hú was inspired by love and death, stating, “Love is captivating and can express happiness but it can also bring about darkness, greed and loneliness; like the reality of losing an aging loved one or discovering a beautiful landscape that reminds you of someone who is no longer here.”
Of course, weird times call for weird shapes, and we can always count on rising star Hodakova to deliver. Designer Ellen Hodakova just won the LVMH Prize, and it’s easy to see why with her assertive, boundary-breaking shapes including dresses that bulk up obscure half of the models’ faces, or equestrian rooted staples reworked with a subversive edge. Her influence is everywhere: last season when she showed a dress covered in prize ribbons, it seemed like everyone on TikTok instantly started using prize ribbons as an accessory.
Likewise, newcomer Alain Paul of his namesake brand AlainPaul looked to dance for his on-calendar debut, which was full of sheer flowing dresses mixed with structured blazers. Meanwhile, Julie Kegels, alumna of the Antwerp Royal Academy of Fine Arts, showed a second collection full of fashionable versions of the kind of casual surfer coded clothes you rarely see in Paris. Think: silky gold board shorts, baggy anoraks and bikini tops.
Still, some of the most exciting new designers for spring 2025 were looking to the past. Take Fidan Novruzova as an example, who also staged her first ever presentation in Paris this season. Full of sculptural shapes and vintage looking pillbox hats the collection celebrated a single motif: the serviette ring, otherwise known as a napkin ring. As a belt, complete with an actual napkin on it, the design also served as reference for the shirts and trench coats with intentional folds. “The most important thing I want people to take away from this collection is a sense of evolution and connection between past and present,” Novruzova said. “It’s a quiet collision of the 1920s and 2020s, where art deco elements, lines, and atmosphere are woven together. There’s something fascinating about this 100-year cycle between the 1920s and 2020s, and I wanted guests to feel like they were stepping into that space in between and emerging into our salon—where history and modernity intertwine.”
One can always count on the rising designers of Paris to keep things surprisingly new. You’ll never be bored on the fringes of Paris Fashion Week.
