With Paris Haute Couture Week coming to a close, we’re taking a look at Fall/Winter 2022 collections from Fendi, Iris van Herpen, and Zuhair Murad.
Courtesy of Fendi.
Opting to frame its Roman influences in a global context next to cities like Kyoto and Paris, Fendi created a couture collection that is human and approachable. Beautiful without being overdone, the house’s Fall/Winter 2022 couture designs exuded a luxurious comfort that underscored an attitude of agency. We saw fluid silhouettes—like nonchalant column gowns, swinging pants with floor-brushing hems, boxy blouses, long vests, and skirts that trailed behind the wearer. Texture and fabrications lent themselves to the softness and fluidity of the garments, too, seen through supple leather, details in dripping fringe, rippling silky materials, and delicate beading that gave off the illusion of glistening water. Pieces still on our minds include the mock neck patchwork gown with maple leaf prints and sleeves that fell past the fingertips; a look in a shade of camel comprised of pleated sailor’s pants and a high-low collared overcoat; and a strapless dress in navy with a sheer tulle t-shirt overlay, styled with gloves that covered half of the hands, which were adorned with chandeliers of diamonds.
Courtesy of Iris van Herpen.
Iris van Herpen celebrated its fifteenth anniversary on the occasion of its Fall/Winter 2022 couture presentation, “Meta Morphism.” Equal parts sculpture and fashion, the maison’sstructural signature was imagined through a lens of the digital and a posthuman reality this season, informed by the boom of the metaverse and our society’s ongoing shift toward digital reality. In that vein, the house made its debut in the metaverse through a collaboration with Microsoft that saw a mixed reality presentation inviting viewers to experience both physical and digital realms through Hololens 2 headsets and an augmented reality experience on their mobile phones. The garments themselves—looking at the mythology of Ovid and a space where humans and technology exist in flux—painted visions of ethereal otherworldly beings. Their three-dimensional details suggested structures like bones, armor, and wings, seen on a suite of 16 physical looks like a silk-and-copper body suit with sleeves that appeared in constant motion; a sculptural gown in black with ribbons of white painting the faces of women on its form; and an angelically skeletal look in white, featuring adornments that extended up the neck and across the face.
Courtesy of Zuhair Murad.
Zuhair Murad looked to the skies for Fall/Winter 2022 couture, finding its muse in the mysticism of tarot and astrology. Telling a story in ten chapters through its designs, the collection unfolded in rich colors, luxurious fabrications, and dramatic shapes like plunging necklines, full ballgowns, flowing capes, dramatic wrapped silhouettes, fitted bodysuits, and bold shoulders. Celestial adornments like astrological embroideries, opulent beading, feathers, and statement ruffles completed some of our favorite looks—like a beaded dress with a high neck and cutouts in a midnight hue, bearing symbols like a protective snake and a geometric sun; a gown in silky fuchsia featuring a belted waist, a statement strap, and a sheer underskirt with pink and gold embellishments; and the look that closed the show, a bridal ballgown complete with an embroidered veil and headpiece reminding us of a heavenly halo.
