Paris Fashion Week 2014: Earth to Jean Paul Gaultier, do you read?
PARIS -- Jean Paul Gaultier likes himself a Hollywood-worthy production all right. And that’s exactly what he gave guests at his fall 2014 fashion show on Saturday night.
The venue was the sleek-and-modern 1972 Oscar Niemeyer-designed French Communist Party Headquarters. The glowing green dome in front beckoned us inside to board Gaultier’s latest wild ride, a cosmic tour of...Johnny Rotten’s London?
If the two themes seem like they are out of orbit, it’s because they were. Perhaps if there had been a David Bowie through line to tether them, but alas, there was not.
Which is not to say there weren’t notable pieces in either camp.
“Gravity†star Sandra Bullock might approve of a silvery, quilted satin zip-front skirt and matching top, and a leather biker jacket with a filmy organza outer layer studded with celestial-looking crystals. But plasticky PVC pants and a fur space suit? Not so much.
And in the Anglomania camp, Union Jack-motif sweaters and skirts, and tartan jackets and pants with zipper details had a certain spirit, if not much originality.
The collection was modeled by a diverse cast of characters (mohawked fellows, cherubic children, and silver-haired divas) in what has become a somewhat cliched display of fashion inclusiveness on the runways.
It all landed a bit flat, leading one to wonder why Gaultier must bother with a campy, costumey theme each season? Maybe it would be better to focus less on theatrics, and more on making clothes that meaningfully relate to the universe of fashion today.
ALSO:
More Paris Fashion Week coverage
Alexander Wang finds his groove at Balenciaga
Paris Fashion Week 2014: At Acne Studios, relaxed but polished
