danger shimmer

Saint Laurent FW20
By Jake Hall | Fashion | 26 February 2020

“For Saint Laurent, elegance is mandatory but it also goes with perversity; one without the other would only be plain bourgeoisie or vulgarity.” These were the words of creative director Anthony Vaccarello, who yesterday brought his sexed-up vision of high-fashion luxury to Paris with a star-studded show, staged – as always – under the glittering shadow of the Eiffel Tower.

Vaccarello speaks often of breaking conventional codes, and this season he did so by fusing pussy-bow blouses and tweed jackets with flashes of black and candy-coloured latex. Mixing eighties power-dressing with BDSM kink, this Vaccarello was breaking down tropes of femininity in order to reconstruct via his own blueprint – one that reflected the rebellious liberation of Yves himself. Models wore overcoats which hung open slightly to reveal tightly-laced corsets, whereas lingerie lace tops were teamed with wet-look, skin-tight trousers that glistened in the light and archive prints – houndstooth, panther and polka dot – were given fresh life. As for cocktail dresses, they came in two main categories: jewel-toned silk halter-necks, and liquid black latex with an exaggerated kick hem.

Signature Saint Laurent furs made the occasional reappearance too, in colour palettes which veered from mustard yellow to a powdery blue. These are the visual blueprints that Vaccarello is slowly carving out for himself, all the while staying true to what he believes is the key house mission: “Saint Laurent is all about danger.”

GALLERYCatwalk images from Saint Laurent WFW20





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