Mood board: Fashion’s role in female empowerment is a constant topic of discussion during fashion month, as brands work to present strength and power without resorting to gimmicks or marketing tricks. Paco Rabanne has a long history of liberation. In the late sixties, the label’s metal disc-emblazoned dresses were a symbol of space age discovery. ‘Super refined even fragile, but a fragility that gives you strength,’ was how creative director Julien Dossena described the feminine power he wished to convey for A/W 2020. He presented a sorority of chainmail-clad women, resembling Joan of Arc knights, belly dancing temptresses or masked mystical priestesses. The other armour in their arsenal? Dossena zipped between the past and present, conveying a ‘collision of times’, with puritanical suiting, twinkling bodysuits resembling medieval armour, lacquered leather military coats, ceremonial smocks and tasseled knitwear in swathing monastic shapes. Silhouettes associated with male power were usurped, and imagined more sensually for women. ‘Femininity is an attitude that’s also violent,’ he added backstage, ‘and women need to express that.’
Scene setting: Dossena switched Rabanne’s usual Grand Palais setting, in favour of the impressive arch-lined medieval palace Conciergerie. It was here that Marie Antoinette was imprisoned before she was sent to the guillotine. Models walked through its enormous history-lined hall in a monastic procession to operatic church music.
Finishing touches: The sixties and seventies is a constant source of inspiration for Dossena, who last season looked to flower power and psychedelia. For autumn, he paired his strong, ceremonial silhouettes with sky high platforms.
Paco Rabanne A/W 2020
Paco Rabanne A/W 2020
Paco Rabanne A/W 2020
Paco Rabanne A/W 2020
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Piaget’s new Sixtie watches recall a glamorous history at Watches and Wonders 2025Piaget draws on historical codes with the trapeze-shaped Sixtie watch collection, revealed at Watches and Wonders 2025
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A contemporary Swiss chalet combines tradition and modernity, all with a breathtaking viewA modern take on the classic chalet in Switzerland, designed by Montalba Architects, mixes local craft with classic midcentury pieces in a refined design inside and out
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Cartier dials up the glamour at Watches and Wonders 2025Cartier revamps much-loved watch collections, from Privé and Panthère to Tank and Tressage, upping the sparkle at the watch fair in Geneva
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Palace unites with Rapha to celebrate inaugural Tour de France FemmesMarking the first time women will compete in the historic cycling race since the late 1980s, this new collaboration sees Palace Skateboards and Rapha create uniforms for both on and off the bike – including an ‘outlandish’ pair of Crocs
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Paris Fashion Week A/W 2022: Chanel to Miu MiuIn this extended report, Wallpaper* updates you live from Paris Fashion Week A/W 2022 shows, with rolling coverage as runway events unfold
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Scene-stealing runway sets from S/S 2022 womenswear showsFrom giant roulette wheels to Olympic diving boards and multi-city synchronized extravaganzas – our pick of the best fashion show sets from S/S 2022 womenswear
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Louis Vuitton A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women's -
Chanel A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women’s -
Y/Project A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women's -
Sacai A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women's -
Alexander McQueen A/W 2020 Paris Fashion Week Women’s
