The latest guest Creative Director combines Rabanne and JPG archive cues this season.
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sacai’s Chitose Abe, Diesel and Y/Project’s Glenn Martens, Balmain’s Olivier Rousteing, Haider Ackermann, and now (Paco) Rabanne‘s Julien Dossena — this is Jean Paul Gaultier‘s collaborative universe, and once again the doors to the archive have been opened for Jean Paul Gaultier Couture‘s Fall 2023 collection.
With a tight catwalk shadowed in darkness, models both established — such as Laetitia Casta — and fresh-faced descended onto the runway, debuting Dossena’s dramatic interpretation of Jean Paul Gaultier. It comes together through a singular vein: “I love the ideas of morphing that Jean Paul worked with over the years: a piece that starts out as one thing and then transforms into something else. There’s also the notion of making everyday things fantastical, which I find very poetic. We’ve done embroideries that pick up on trompe l’oeil but also include the idea of movement — it’s a reinterpretation of JPG codes, but using other techniques,” explained Dossena in a recent Vogue interview, in conversation with Gaultier himself and the journalist Tina Isaac-Goizé.
Everyday items they were indeed, but by no means were they meant for everyday consumption. The show commenced with a black suit, trimmed with gold embroidery and crisscrossing lapels, which served as the foundation for details on the following look. Here, a navy pinstriped double-breasted suit was, first, corseted. It then had Madonna-esque cone bra appliqué detailing on the chest (which is of course part of the Jean Paul Gaultier archive, having ly designed the bra), a combined peplum and bustle, and a train of fabric at the rear, echoing the folds of fabric on the suit before it.
Archive details were everywhere, from the headpieces that were paired with lace tops to blazers that looked as if they were taken straight from the 1990s, cut in fur and printed with a cheetah style, matching with a fluffy headpiece. Metal rings and black stones came together to string a dress, reminiscent of the Rabanne mini dresses, skirts, and accessories of last season (and its own archive), while equal amounts of Jean Paul Gaultier drama came to the fore as well.
For example, the soundtrack was omitted, allowing one to hear the audio delivered by the clothing as it clinked and twinkled down the runway. Heels smacked the floor, fabrics caught the light, and this was enhanced by looks that saw the models’ dresses being carried by — or attached to — two other models.
Cone bras came in overt and covert styles, from taking center stage on a silver sequin-bead-thread dress to hiding within the busyness of a lace-trimmed nightgown dress. Overall, it was yet another perfect blend of a Creative Director’s vision meeting Jean Paul Gaultier’s legacy. Take a look at the collection above, and cast your thoughts below.