In search of quality and timeless clothing for some, a commercial approach or lack of imagination for others: with dull colors and conservative cuts, women return to a sober style in the spring and summer collections shown in Paris.
Gone are the comfort wear of staying home during the pandemic, but so is the post-Covid boom in flashy clothing. Unlike the men’s collections that were bold on the catwalks, women’s fashion has returned to sobriety.
With an abundance of jackets, Dior’s collection was mostly black and white with some beige outfits. “Everything is practical,” says Dior’s artistic director, Maria Grazia Chiuri, and the fabrics are chosen to make them “timeless” pieces that can be worn “in any season.”
Anthony Vaccarello returned to basics and designed a collection in earthy tones inspired by the safari jacket designed by Yves Saint Laurent in 1967.
The famous American fashion critic Cathy Horren asked on the website “The Cut”, “Where are your colors?” Where are your thoughts? She denounced a “lack of imagination” and called on designers to “stop digging into the archives.”
For his part, international fashion critic Godfrey Denny wrote in the “Fashion Network” that the suits consisting of dark skirts and black dresses at Givenchy suggest “a somewhat funereal atmosphere.”
In colors of grey, off-white and olive green, Victoria Beckham chose “old fabrics used in British country houses” for her collection inspired by the world of classical dance.
Even Dries Van Noten, who specializes in the art of combining printed fabrics in innovative ways, was unusually sober in his collection, as suits in beige or dark blue colors dominated. “I didn’t want the colors to overpower the shapes,” he told AFP.
For her part, Marie-Christine Stutz, founder of the Goucher brand, deliberately chose simplicity for her beige and black collection in order to “highlight the quality of the pieces.”
Pascaline Wilhelm, a fashion and textile consultant, said in response to questions from Agence France-Presse: “The cutting aspect in tailoring is very present. There is an attempt to return to the simple style.”
She added that this matter has requirements because simplicity is about “very beautiful materials, mastery of fabrics and mastery of tailoring and cuts.”
Pascaline Wilhelm believes that the designs that were accompanied by high heels were “less fluffy” than the shoes that were in vogue, but also “less exciting and provocative,” reflecting “the need for elegance.”
After Covid, people returned to work and “fashion houses are thinking about this matter.” “We lived in jogging clothes, and that period is over once and for all,” explains Pierre Grubault, editor-in-chief of fashion and lifestyle at Vanity Fair magazine.
