Balenciaga released its summer 25 collection during Paris Fashion Week. This season’s fashion show “brings me back to the origin of my dreams, paying homage to fashion that expresses attitude.” Creative director Demna said that it all started 35 years ago. “I have a passion for fashion. My first memory comes from my grandmother’s kitchen table. As a child, I liked to sit there and draw some design sketches on cardboard, then cut, pattern, and make clothes, pretending to be a kitchen fashion show.”
The show started with a series of underwear and jumpsuits with appliqués, embroidery and knitted jacquard details, and trompe l’oeil effects, making people think that this season Balenciaga has also joined the mainstream trend of designing home underwear. But soon, this series of underwear was followed by a series of silk dresses with unique silhouettes, as well as “ultra-low-rise” bootcut jeans with pleated hems, paired with short jackets in lightweight fabrics and cocoon structures, in an exaggerated form. Deconstructing everyday pieces reflects Demna’s unique vision. He cuts boot-cut jeans into high boots in a structured way and combines them with a variety of classic clothing to create a unique “fashion madman” look.
Functional clothing that transforms existing clothes and subverts imagination still runs through Balenciaga’s designs. Leather jackets and coats with funnel collars transform into bustier dresses, five-pocket jeans transform into stand-collar workwear cotton suits, and wrap-around backless bras wrap around the body like giant bracelets and are made from extremely lightweight materials. The NANO bag made of multi-layer bonded leather is decorated with paper bag folds and can be folded for storage; the deconstructed bag with detachable handles can cleverly change the carrying method; the minimalist high-top sports bag incorporates the details of basketball shoes The shoes are designed with zippers for easy putting on and taking off; the face-covering baseball cap looks like it completely covers the face, but it actually has cut-outs on the front to protect the line of sight.
The clothing also pays tribute to the brand founder Cristóbal Balenciaga through many ingenious details: the DB SPENCER short jacket with extremely straight shoulder angles is paired with Cristóbal Balenciaga’s iconic buttons; the final black satin dress combines his iconic The Hourglass silhouette blends into semi-fitting lines.
Hollywood superstars include Nicole Kidman, Katy Perry, as well as popular Thai star Krit Amnuaydechkorn (also known as PP Krit), Japanese actress Ayaka Miyoshi, and members of the Korean group THE BOYZ Zhu Yan and others all attended the show.
