INSTEP Magzine


foreign report Eastern promise Asian influences at Paris Couture Week point to where the new buyers are By Jess Cartner-Morley

Haute couture likes to perpetuate a notion of itself as a fantasy world, steeped in centuries of tradition and archly impervious to changing times. Its customs are deliberately archaic: dresses are chosen in salons and paid for via a discreet nod from one's husband, without recourse to such modern vulgarities as shops or credit cards. Until very recently, zips were banned from haute couture, basically because they were considered a bit common. But it is a bit of a charade, this ivory-tower routine: couture is a business, just like any other branch of fashion. And, as fashion always does, it reflects the cultural and economic circumstance of the times. Couture is changing, and fast. For instance, sales at most houses are still a closely guarded secret, but it is widely believed that the couture label with the most customers is neither Chanel nor Christian Diorbut the lesser-known Lebanese designer Elie Saab, whose front row on Monday	Armani reached our to the maharajas of India (above) whereas the shimsy Gaultier covered up his creations with layers of chiffon to appeal to a Middle Eastern and relatively modest market (right).
was packed with glamorous Saudi princesses. When asked about his client base for couture, Giorgio Armani mentioned France and America, but emphasised that "the Middle Eastern clients are very important clients to us, these days, as are the Russians". After all, when a modern European princess-in-waiting like Kate Middleton buys her birthday frocks from Topshop, couture cannot expect to survive by continuing to rely on the patronage of the traditional pool of aristocrats with pretty surnames.

It is striking, this season, that this shift in global economics is reflected not only in who sits in the front row, but in what is worn on the catwalk, as the different aesthetic sensibilities of the new client base make themselves felt. At Elie Saab, fitted beaded skirts were worn beneath a layer of gauze, or body-hugging shapes overlaid with a floating layer of lace. This is a solution to the vexing question of how-to-be-modest-but-fabulous that, clearly, pleases Saab's many customers. A similar aesthetic was evident at the very pretty, elegant Valentino, where breezy chiffon "coats" floated over tight dresses. Too fine to serve any practical function, their purpose can only be to pay lip service to covering up. It was also noticeable that all the Valentino models wore nude-coloured tights rather than the bare legs that are usual on the catwalk. Armani took inspiration for his collection from Indian maharajahs. But it was interesting that much of the look tallied with contemporary forms of modesty-conscious female dress: the models' hair was covered up by jewelled turbans, while silk skirts – an Armani stalwart – were this season worn over slim trousers, in an echo of the shalwar kameez. Christian Dior, on the other hand, turned very Japanese this season. This could be interpreted as a strategic move. Japan is, after all, a hugely important market: Giorgio Armani's other major opening this year, aside from the boutique he unveiled this week on Avenue Montaigne – Paris's premier fashion thoroughfare – is an Armani flagship in Tokyo, which at 13 floors will be the tallest building in the Ginza, the city's fashion district, and will house the first ever Armani spa. Some Dior outfits drew together aristocratic touches from different cultures: a plum satin ballgown, appliqued with thousands of tiny silk cherry blossoms, was worn with an exquisite geisha headpiece made from three delicate fans, and a wide choker reminiscent of the ceremonial necklaces worn by African tribeswomen, but made from pearls instead of beads. However, John Galliano has always drawn inspiration from all over the world and from many different eras, and it is probably pushing it to attribute outfits as deliriously fantastical as these – for instance, a stiff cream cape hand-painted with foot-high Hokusai waves, with a pleated ruff that completely obscures the wearer's head – to anything other than Galliano being either a creative genius or mad as a box of frogs, depending on your point of view. There is a second dynamic evident in couture, especially at the January shows, timed as they so conveniently are to coincide with the Oscar nominations. Couture is the starlet's choice. And, undoubtedly, there were some showstoppers this week. Chanel's long gowns were some of the best, pretty yet sophisticated in ice blue or dusty lilac, the long slim shapes lent movement by skirts that dissolved at the knee into delicate ribbons or trailed dramatic fishtail hems behind them. Lacroix was delicious as well: a soft blue organza dress with delicate crystal belt and a skirt gathered with a row of chiffon flowers was adorable, while the tiny bustier flouncing into drawstring crinoline skirts in floral taffeta would guarantee a jaw-dropping entrance. Givenchy featured very dramatic long fishtail gowns in matt black or navy elastic satin, which would look marvellous against a red carpet. Jean-Paul Gaultier produced a beautiful and daring collection that took inspiration from images of the Virgin Mary from different periods. A gown the pale blue of a high Renaissance sky had a chiffon train printed with Botticelliesque cherubs; a dress in deep, gothic stained-glass tints featured a halo-wearing infant printed on the cape, as if the model carried the baby on her hip. Incredible stuff – but if any actress has the guts to wear that in front of the critical eyes of middle America next month, I'll eat my hat along with my popcorn. The reality is that celebrities are now so powerful in the fashion world that an A-list star no longer has to choose from what designers offer her, but can take ideas from the catwalk and tweak them to her own (or her stylist's) specification. As a result, the trend in red-carpet fashion in recent years has been towards blander and blander dresses. In all likelihood, come Oscar night we will be treated to another saccharine parade of inoffensive, almost identical long, slim gowns in a rainbow of shades from very pale gold to slightly darker gold and perhaps, if anyone's feeling really, really daring, slightly pinky gold. Yawn. --Courtesy:The Guardian