Moodboard: Two days ago, teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg made clear in her UN speech in New York the fears of an entire generation about the future of planet Earth when it comes to climate change. Yesterday, in Paris, Marine Serre actually dared imagine that future. With a show titled ‘Marée Noire' (black tide), she depicted a post-apocalyptic world rife with climate wars, heatwaves and mass extinctions where only a small group of people survive in a wasteland of oil and water. It was a fitting and genuine statement. Another statement; Serre's work is as known for its focus on sustainability as it is for its beyond covetable status.
Scene setting: The weather helped, adding to the ominous theme of the collection: it was a somber, rainy, windy morning at the Stade Suchet – hidden in the depths of the 16è arrondissement – when guests arrived to an open air venue equipped with shiny black umbrellas with a mineral oil-inspired texture the designer had thoughtfully send beforehand. The oil theme was everywhere in the outside garden, where two catwalks covered in draped glossy black cloth had been set over a small water canal framed by overgrown grass. The music was as ominous as the setting, started with a muted thud and progressively evolving into a full-fledged electronic score.
Best in show: The clothes, however, were far from sinister. Although the designer is rarely known to work in black, she opened the show with a series of black utilitarian overalls in moiré and satin, and recycled PVC raincoats. But that quickly evolved into a series of desert-inspired terracotta red structured suits complete with djellaba-like headgear, a series of feminine, pristine white dresses repurposed from old shawls, aprons and nightgowns, finishing with a bunch of draped dresses printed with natural motifs, suggesting, as the show notes said, ‘evolution and hybridisation’. All in all, it was an exquisitely balanced collection. Serre has recently expanded her sustainability efforts from her new 19è arrondissement studio, going from collections 30 per cent made from upcycled materials to 50 per cent, with the rest of her fabrics sourced from French mills.
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Trame Paris’ algorithmically generated and handcrafted furnishings, debuted in TexasDuring Marfa’s Art Blocks Weekend event, gallery and studio Trame Paris launched new collections highlighting the potential of controlled randomness, generated through code but carried out by master craftspeople
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This Canadian guest house is ‘silent but with more to say’El Aleph is a new Canadian guest house by MacKay-Lyons Sweatapple, designed for seclusion and connection with nature, and a Wallpaper* Design Awards 2025 winner
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Distracting decadence: how Silvio Berlusconi’s legacy shaped Italian TVStefano De Luigi's monograph Televisiva examines how Berlusconi’s empire reshaped Italian TV, and subsequently infiltrated the premiership
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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
