Olivier Rousteing presented a collection of fruits inspired by Monsieur Balmain’s love for gardening. Plucking from his own heritage, Rousteing said he started with a bunch of grapes – evoking the most famous product of his hometown, Bordeaux.

Drawn from the vineyards, gothic architecture, culture and climate of Bordeaux, Balmain’s FW24 collection riffed on a sense of classical refinement – told through Rousteing’s signature vibrancy and craft. Architectural lines guided slick, tailored looks, and the region’s propensity for rain informed a selection of trenchcoats, reimagined in sculptural shapes that criss-crossed the body and evolved into gowns, skirts and suiting. As the skies cleared, a French summer brought with it prints and embellished portraits of fruit and flora in bloom, cast across slim floor-length looks and dresses that almost peeled off the body above black sculptural fabrications. Rousteing mentioned in the show notes how some of his favourite memories are of “late-season picnics with family and friends” – and what’s a French picnic without escargot? Oh, there they are, their patterned spiral shells translated across coiled stitching, a golden metal breastplate, and intricate coquille-inspired buttons, jewels and ornaments.