Balenciaga Drags Optimism Through the Mud
Fake optimism wasn’t present at Balenciaga’s ss23 Paris show, no false hope that shopping and the “beauty of fashion” would save us all.
At a time where inequality keeps rising, waste disposal is taking over our oceans, over 1.3 billion tons of food are thrown out and specials are on the brink of extinction, having a Fashion Month that only contributes to this ongoing death sentence we are creating just seems utterly ridiculous.
This season we saw how the majority of designers are incorporating “sustainability” (in quotations as sustainability is just a small step into creating something clean and green) Balenciaga under Denma presents a critique rather than a solution.
A show set at a mud grave, a metaphor for the collections theme; digging for truth and being down to earth. Denma has expressed through previous collections his ongoing despair towards the situation of the world and the wars fought. Having fled one when he was a child he understands the effects of civilians living in war zones and soldiers dying in the thousands.
Referencing the political nonsense, models walked or rather stumped through the mud in war-like garments including combat jackets. Slowly transitioning to more experimental clothes accompanied by stains, heavy leather, prosthetic babies, piercings, lots of them and what could be described as worn-out oversized everything.
The perfect Balenciaga take on streetwear aesthetic, huge belts, low-rise flow jeans, futuristic glasses, logo underwear, and even ballet flat shoes. All dragged through the mud, a move not common in high-fashion luxury shows.
Denma, often criticized for his take on luxury, took it to the next level. What is luxury? More importantly, at what cost do we get and make luxury? A show that drags luxury, how ironic and blasphemous it is to wear 1,000 euro clothing in dirty water. But again, why can’t that be luxury if that is often the reality.
An anti-establishment collection rounded up by the impressive and real-like use of prosthetics and piercings. Every model was adorned with eyebrow piercings, lip perforations, studs dotting their cheeks and spikes coming out of foreheads. A rebellious, punk, defiant look created by drag queen and special effect master Alexis Stone. Embracing a dark side to the usual soft and light approach for spring. We could easily be seeing the return of emo aesthetics next season as Prada, Dior, Puma and Balenciaga dipped their toes in it.
Courtesy of @ameliagray
The hardcore, apocalyptical demon look set the tone for Demna’s collection that invites the sentiment of standing up and making love, not war.
Photo credits: Vogue, Amelia Gray, @sara.bzoch, @thealexisstone