Paris | Pharrell Williams kicks off Fashion Week with a well-dressed show

(Paris) Designer Pharrell Williams for Louis Vuitton opened the Paris Men’s Fashion Week ball on Tuesday evening with a show at the Louvre, much more modest than usual and which confirms the end of the hegemony of streetwear.

A fifth collection called “Remembering the Future” produced in collaboration with his friend Nigo, the artistic director of Kenzo, presented in a setting specially designed for the occasion in the heart of the square courtyard of the famous museum.

Strolling down a circular runway decorated with cubes decorated with Vuitton’s monogram flower – which later turned out to be display cases presenting archives of the two designers – the models appeared in long tweed coats, thick boots, flared pants, in Teddy jackets or with wide Bermuda shorts.

All in autumnal colors, with a touch of candy pink, accompanied by the trunk maker’s bags, including a mini trunk so soft that it folds in the hand.

If the influence of the street remains perceptible, with camouflage prints notably some bombersthis new collection indeed seems to confirm the end of the hegemony of streetwearpraised to the skies by Virgil Abloh, Pharrell Williams’ predecessor at Vuitton.

The creator, famous for his successes Happy or Get Lucky alongside Daft Punk, once again called on the Pont-Neuf orchestra to accompany this show which turned out to be much less spectacular than its parade at the Pont-Neuf, its western parade at the Jardin d’acclimatation and its parade-manifesto at UNESCO.

However, the event once again attracted an audience of stars, including the French basketball player Victor Wembanyama, muse of the brand, and the actors Idris Elba, Bradley Cooper, Omar Sy and Pio Marmaï.

South Korean star J-Hope, from the K-pop group BTS, was also there, attracting many fans to the area around the famous museum, as was visual artist Takashi Murakami, who recently reissued his collection for the trunk maker 20 years after their first collaboration.

Returns expected

Before that, the Japanese brand Auralee presented its new men’s and women’s collections during a mixed fashion show in the afternoon. Loose suits accompanied by a hoodie zipped, long knitted dresses, leather or wool jackets, very short perfectos… The designer Ryota Iwai has once again offered a line of well-thought-out basics with careful details.

In the evening, the French brand Coucou Bebe 75 018, known for its provocative jackets bearing the image of Marine Le Pen, Elisabeth Borne and Jean Castex worn by K-pop and American stars, organized its first show on the sidelines of men’s fashion week.

“A performance”, thought of as an MMA fight by creator Kanoush who was inspired by the work of Russian artist Piotr Pavlenski.

Paris Fashion Week follows in Milan’s footsteps. Because of the waltz of artistic directors in recent months, it promises to be a little less dense than last year, with 37 fashion shows and 30 presentations over six days, from Tuesday to Sunday.

Givenchy and Valentino are notably missing, their new designers preferring to reserve themselves respectively for women’s fashion week in March and haute couture next week.

Another notable absence is that of Loewe, whose artistic director Jonathan Anderson is reportedly leaving, according to several specialist media.

The luxury houses Dior Homme and Hermès, like the Japanese Kenzo, Yohji Yamamoto, Issey Miyake and Mihara Yasuhiro, will be present.

One of the most scrutinized parades will undoubtedly be that of Jacquemus. For his return to the official calendar after five years of absence, the Provençal announced on Instagram “a parade filmed entirely on the iPhone”.

Lanvin will also be back to close this Fashion Week after two years of absence, with the first collection by Peter Copping, appointed artistic director of the oldest French fashion house in June.

Also in attendance will be AMI, Rick Owens, Paul Smith, and, for the first time in Paris, the Californian designer Willy Chavarria, at the head of his own house, and the Frenchman Emeric Tchatchoua, founder of the label streetwear 3. Paradis.