Fashion week venues S/S 2013: womenswear collections

Floral print with a projected lion on the screen

Kenzo: In the dark, smoky interiors of Paris' La Maison du Judo, models walked along a narrow catwalk lined with floral prints, while the collection's inspiration images - from jungle views to abstract prints - were projected on a giant digital screen in the middle of the catwalk ring. Photography: Greg Kessler. Words: Rosa Bertoli

(Image credit: Greg Kessler)

By Jack Moss

last updated 10 October 2022

in Features

Kenzo animal print bags on benches — **Kenzo:** On each seat was a box printed in the same jungle-themed patterns as the set and filled with snacks from Momofuku Milk Bar.

*Photography: Greg Kessler*

Pillars either side of the runway — **Miu Miu:** With the help of its long time collaborator AMO, Miu Miu staged an 'architectural investigation' of the August Perret-designed Palace D'Iena. Using the ground floor hall space, the Rotterdam-based office installed a series of three-dimensional seating devices that allowed for multiple views of the centralised catwalk

Wooden blocks used as benches with a wooden runway — **Miu Miu:** With the help of its long time collaborator AMO, Miu Miu staged an 'architectural investigation' of the August Perret-designed Palace D'Iena. Using the ground floor hall space, the Rotterdam-based office installed a series of three-dimensional seating devices that allowed for multiple views of the centralised catwalk

Four escalators with models stnading on them — **Louis Vuitton:** Marc Jacobs' latest collection for the brand focused on its iconic Damier print, which artist Daniel Buren also drew on for the show set at the Palais Royal. The models descended four sets of escalators in pairs, before stepping onto a wide, lime green shiny checkerboard catwalk

White and yellow room, with yellow cushions — **Louis Vuitton:** Marc Jacobs' latest collection for the brand focused on its iconic Damier print, which artist Daniel Buren also drew on for the show set at the Palais Royal. The models descended four sets of escalators in pairs, before stepping onto a wide, lime green shiny checkerboard catwalk

white windmills in a room — **Chanel:** The Grand Palais once again served as the dramatic venue for Chanel. With the focus of the show being on 'energy', models walked on blue hi-tech solar panels, while gigantic white wind turbines blew a summer breeze throughout the space

Backdrop of the runway is mountains and snow — **Rick Owens:** A cascade of giant soapsuds formed the backdrop of Rick Owen's 'work in progress' catwalk, gradually gathering into a fluffy mountain of foam by the time the show reached its finale. *Photography: Valerio Mezzanotti /* *www.nowfashion.com*

Backdrop of the runway is mountains — **Rick Owens:** A cascade of giant soapsuds formed the backdrop of Rick Owen's 'work in progress' catwalk, gradually gathering into a fluffy mountain of foam by the time the show reached its finale. *Photography: Valerio Mezzanotti /* *www.nowfashion.com*

Many models walking the runway in front of a mountain backdrop — **Rick Owens:** A cascade of giant soapsuds formed the backdrop of Rick Owen's 'work in progress' catwalk, gradually gathering into a fluffy mountain of foam by the time the show reached its finale. *Photography: Valerio Mezzanotti /* *www.nowfashion.com*

White room, with light pink curtains and black chairs — **Christian Dior:** Raf Simons worked with Bureau Betak to design the set for his first pret-a-porter show at Christian Dior, playing with contrasting tones and textures. Glossy black chairs sat alongside pastel pink, canary yellow and baby blue curtains, which gently wafted over the windows and passageways cut into the white walls of the space

Models on runway with water — **Moncler Gamme Rouge:** For Spring, Moncler's catwalk aptly took the form of a swimming pool, surrounded by wooden decking. A set of swings and trampolines recreated the playful, summery atmospheres of Italian Lidos

Catwalk with pool in the middle — **Moncler Gamme Rouge:** For Spring, Moncler's catwalk aptly took the form of a swimming pool, surrounded by wooden decking. A set of swings and trampolines recreated the playful, summery atmospheres of Italian Lidos

Models walking on catwalk with a pool in the middle — **Moncler Gamme Rouge:** For Spring, Moncler's catwalk aptly took the form of a swimming pool, surrounded by wooden decking. A set of swings and trampolines recreated the playful, summery atmospheres of Italian Lidos

Silver hanging balls from the ceiling over catwalk — **Fendi:** The Fondazione Arnaldo Pomodoro in Milan served as the show space for Fendi. The playfully surreal set's walls were lined with geometric stripes, while large silver balloons hung above the catwalk

Large metal lights, lighting the room — **Prada:** The Italian brand once again tasked AMO to transform its via Fogazzaro headquarters in Milan. The Rotterdam-based studio created a graphic structure of black columns, using the same material for the suspended rectangle of lights and the catwalk rails

room with a scaffolding structure — **Roland Mouret:** Thierry Dreyfus and his Eyesight Production team transformed the Hotel Westin's Salon Impérial with a striking scaffolding structure of stroboscopic light tubes, which played with the space's 19th century features

*Photography: Mathias Wendzinski*

Roland Mouret: Thierry Dreyfus and his Eyesight Production team transformed the Hotel Westin's Salon Impérial with a striking scaffolding structure of stroboscopic light tubes, which played with the space's 19th century features

swirly pattern lights on the runway — **Alexander McQueen:** Sarah Burton's bee-inspired collection was brought to life on set by seamlessly integrated moving imagery and sound. Models walked on a honeycomb-patterned catwalk, while a screen behind them played a film by John Maybury. The English filmmaker's second collaboration with the brand was created in a extremely wide-screen format to emulate the staging of Kabuki theatre at Kabuki-Za in Tokyo. He drew images from nature in response to particular embroideries and fabrics in Burton's collection, creating a giant mood board effect. This came accompanied by a sound track of tunes interlaced with abstract bee noises, conjured by John Gosling

Fire on the backdrop and models wearing big red dresses — **Alexander McQueen:** Sarah Burton's bee-inspired collection was brought to life on set by seamlessly integrated moving imagery and sound. Models walked on a honeycomb-patterned catwalk, while a screen behind them played a film by John Maybury. The English filmmaker's second collaboration with the brand was created in a extremely wide-screen format to emulate the staging of Kabuki theatre at Kabuki-Za in Tokyo. He drew images from nature in response to particular embroideries and fabrics in Burton's collection, creating a giant mood board effect. This came accompanied by a sound track of tunes interlaced with abstract bee noises, conjured by John Gosling

Industrial railings providing light for the runway — **Paul Smith:** Over at Central Saint Martins' brand new Granary Building near London's Kings Cross, Paul Smith's Miller Kavari-produced show featured minimal black benches and a white catwalk, making the most of the space's striking interiors

Photo of lighting rails — **Paul Smith:** Over at Central Saint Martins' brand new Granary Building near London's Kings Cross, Paul Smith's Miller Kavari-produced show featured minimal black benches and a white catwalk, making the most of the space's striking interiors

room covered in floor to ceiling sheets of white plastic — **Maison Martin Margiela:** The conceptual label's Spring show was held in a literal bubble. The ornate interior of the Hotel Salomon de Rothschild was virtually unrecognisable after it was shrouded from floor to ceiling in sheets of white plastic. Light artist Thierry Dreyfus created a surreal atmosphere by flooding the room with bright sunlight, using huge cinematic lights outside the windows

floor to ceiling sheets of plastic — **Maison Martin Margiela:** The conceptual label's Spring show was held in a literal bubble. The ornate interior of the Hotel Salomon de Rothschild was virtually unrecognisable after it was shrouded from floor to ceiling in sheets of white plastic. Light artist Thierry Dreyfus created a surreal atmosphere by flooding the room with bright sunlight, using huge cinematic lights outside the windows

Foreign & Commonwealth office in London used as a catwalk — **Vivienne Westwood Red Label:** As part of the designer's celebration of British talent (she was chosen as a representative for the Great Britain Worldwide initiative) Vivienne Westwood held her Red Label show in the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in London. The marbled floor of the building's stunning interior was used as the catwalk

Foreign & Commonwealth Office in London's ceiling — **Vivienne Westwood Red Label:** As part of the designer's celebration of British talent (she was chosen as a representative for the Great Britain Worldwide initiative) Vivienne Westwood held her Red Label show in the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in London. The marbled floor of the building's stunning interior was used as the catwalk

staggered seating on either side of the runway — **Chloé:** Daylight pierced through the crystal roof of the Espace Ephemere in the Jardins des Tuileries, casting a fresh glow over this OBO-produced show. The wooden runway came in the house's signature shade of 'beige-rosé'

white cube benches and large mosaic effect on the wall — **Rochas:** Thierry Dreyfus created a white show space for the Rochas' show in Paris' Grand Palais, lined with white cube benches. A large translucent mosaic formed the catwalk's backdrop

Black stairs and runway — **Neil Barrett:** In the brand's small-scale presentation in Paris' Salle Erard, models stepped out from behind a theatrical set printed with images from the catwalk itself

Black benches and muted lighting — **Hermès:** At the Galerie Nationale Jeu De Paume, Hermès charged Etienne Russo and his Villa Eugenie team with creating an intimate and minimal setting for the show, consisting of black benches and muted lighting accents

Large red cube in the middle of the room as centre piece — **Givenchy:** The centrepiece of the show in the Lycée Carnot's majestic Hall Guy Môquet was an oversized mahogany organ, framed by a red cube. The modern, transportable instrument was invented by French engineer Henri Bouffard, who also provided the live musical accompaniment to the show

Large red cube in the middle of the room — **Givenchy:** The centrepiece of the show in the Lycée Carnot's majestic Hall Guy Môquet was an oversized mahogany organ, framed by a red cube. The modern, transportable instrument was invented by French engineer Henri Bouffard, who also provided the live musical accompaniment to the show

Large white space with seating on 3 sides — **Jil Sander:** Thierry Dreyfus transformed the via Beltrami space beyond recognition by raising the floor and lowering the ceiling with stark white panels, each bearing a subtle concave/convex distortion in the centre. The minimal space followed the brand's partiality for simplicity, with lighting once again being key to the space

White room with black lighting racks — **Jil Sander:** Thierry Dreyfus transformed the via Beltrami space beyond recognition by raising the floor and lowering the ceiling with stark white panels, each bearing a subtle concave/convex distortion in the centre. The minimal space followed the brand's partiality for simplicity, with lighting once again being key to the space

Green trees and foliage — **Akris:** Albert Kriemler's collection for Akris' 90th anniversary was heavily influenced by Brazilian landscape artist Roberto Burle Marx, whose curvaceous designs featured as prints on clothing and accessories. In Palais de Chaillot, the models emerged from a tropical garden created by artist Laurence Mendioni

White futuristic room — The futuristic Topshop show space over in London, with its spaceship-like catwalk, was the location for J.W. Anderson, as well as a number of other brands this season, such as Louise Gray and Mary Katrantzou

Futuristic exterior of a building — The futuristic Topshop show space over in London, with its spaceship-like catwalk, was the location for J.W. Anderson, as well as a number of other brands this season, such as Louise Gray and Mary Katrantzou

Cross grain wood seating and runway — **Valentino:** Blush pink seats framed Valentino's runway in Jardin des Tuileries at Espace Ephemere Tuileres. The catwalk was lined by a pavement of cross-grain wood tiles

translucent plastic chairs along the catwalk — **Max Mara:** Rows of Philippe Starck's Victoria Ghost chairs for Kartell lined each side of the u-shaped catwalk, with the camel-coloured screen bearing the fashion house's logo serving as backdrop

A downtown new york looking large space with metal seating — **Trussardi:** The wide via Savona space in Milan was transformed into a Manhattan rooftop. Referencing the collection's urban influences, images of downtown New York were projected on the entrance walls and at the back of the catwalk, which was furnished to resemble a rooftop summer party, complete with graffiti, a barbecue and lounge areas

Space in Milan was transformed into a Manhattan rooftop with graffiti — **Trussardi:** The wide via Savona space in Milan was transformed into a Manhattan rooftop. Referencing the collection's urban influences, images of downtown New York were projected on the entrance walls and at the back of the catwalk, which was furnished to resemble a rooftop summer party, complete with graffiti, a barbecue and lounge areas

Jack Moss is the Fashion Features Editor at Wallpaper*, joining the team in 2022. Having previously been the digital features editor at AnOther and digital editor at 10 and 10 Men magazines, he has also contributed to titles including i-D, Dazed, 10 Magazine, Mr Porter’s The Journal and more, while also featuring in Dazed: 32 Years Confused: The Covers, published by Rizzoli. He is particularly interested in the moments when fashion intersects with other creative disciplines – notably art and design – as well as championing a new generation of international talent and reporting from international fashion weeks. Across his career, he has interviewed the fashion industry’s leading figures, including Rick Owens, Pieter Mulier, Jonathan Anderson, Grace Wales Bonner, Christian Lacroix, Kate Moss and Manolo Blahnik.

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