Saint Laurent SS23 – Paris Fashion Week
Martina Isolde Cerruti reviews Anthony Vaccarello's new collection at PFW
Anthony Vaccarello’s past seven years as creative director at Saint Laurent had already established his reputation as the designer who always brings sharp, sophisticated sexiness to the culture. At Paris Fashion week for SS23, and once again set in the sights of the Eiffel tower, he decided to go right at the essence of this vision. No frills, no unnecessary details, just perfect construction and elongated silhouettes that celebrated the body through movement.
Two-weight jersey dresses and long coats exuded feminine power and eroticism from the first to the last look. The overall narrative played out against an eclectic soundtrack and felt like a transposition of past echoes and inspirations creatively realised for the present. In a constant dialogue with the Maison’s archive, Vaccarello brought to the catwalk his interpretation of the founder’s capuche dresses from the Haute Couture SS85 and AW02 collections – the latter being Yves’ last gift to fashion. Here, the draped and hooded outlines found a contemporary edge in Vaccarello’s hands to prove their timeless nature.
The sophisticated engineering and the fluid drape of fabric around the body skilfully reworked these key YSL codes. Fascinations with choreographer Martha Graham’s modern dance solo Lamentation permeated the long lines that referred back to ideas presented last season. To match the mood, the muted colour palette dominated by midnight blacks conversely brought the collection to life. Coupled with structured tailoring, sculptural jewellery and big, squared shoulders that winked at 1980s Claude Montana, cultured effortlessness ran through the entire collection.
As the last look passed, the sense was of an exquisite work of art and a harmonious combination of references created to enhance a women’s sensuality solely through movement. In other words, Saint Laurent SS23 is going to be trés chic, trés puissant et trés Parisienne.
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