It would probably be a bit too much of a hype to rank the young Brazilian designer Pedro Lourenco as the new Cristobal Balenciaga, but there are undeniably...
It would probably be a bit too much of a hype to rank the young Brazilian designer Pedro Lourenco as the new Cristobal Balenciaga, but there are undeniably influences harking back to the famous couturier. The geometric lines, straight cuts, panelling of different materials next to each other’s is one thing that evokes similarities. There is a coat, rounded at the shoulders, that tries to create a visible volume between the body and the outer layer of clothing. The cropped sleeves form a tube, freeing up some space between the yellow leather trim and the fitted black gloves underneath. But Lourenco certainly has his own ideas on how to develop a silhouette. "The volume is about the Gorilla" he said, also referring to the use of fur as "that the Gorilla has no hair in the centre of the body, but on the back". In two looks narrow trousers were paired with a light fur top suggesting a horizontal grid as dominant motif. "I wanted to have this feeling that the fur is attached to the body" the designer continued and also mentioned Marlene Dietrich as influence, the scene where she emerges from a Gorilla suit in the Josef von Sternberg movie Blonde Venus. That all might sound a bit much, but as Paris fashion finds itself in a state of grief and gloom at the moment, it is really uplifting to come across a new talent with fresh ideas and a positive vision for the future.
Vivienne Westwood went from Baroque to Boudoir in a show that took the name of the gold label very literally. The runway itself, as well as brocade coats and high platform boots were gleaming in the warm metallic colour. And the pretty bride with wide extended hips got a shower of gold flakes at the end of a playful performance
Text by George Ghon
