The Haute Couture season started with a bang. Of course, courtesy of Daniel Roseberry at Schiaparelli who always has mischief up his sleeve. He presented giant plush tigers and leopard dresses including the animals’ heads that looked more than real. Seen with innocent eyes, it was like a Steiff x Schiaparelli collab. “This was in defense of animals, executed by an Israeli artist who is a wildlife protector,” Roseberry told us the evening after his show at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs where he attended a finissage of the blockbuster Schiaparelli exhibition. The internet thought otherwise and ripped the brand apart for animal cruelty. But it was a fitting start to Haute Couture as the clothes were the subject and not the people in the front row which was the case at last year’s Schiaparelli show where Ye’s short-lived romance with Julia Fox stole the headlines from the clothes.

While Virginie Viard maybe had her best show for the house of Chanel, Maria Grazia Chiuri at Christian Dior proved that she is a master tailor and Mr. Armani now regularly receives standing ovations when taking a bow. At 88, every show he holds is a moment in fashion history which deserves that. We dispatched Julia von der Heide backstage at Giorgio Armani Privé to capture the designer’s famously exacting standards where hair and makeup are as considered as the mosaics on the clothes.

Giorgio Armani Privé

As one of the last living and working legends of the fashion world, Mr. Armani is seeing new heights to his design universe as his subtle elegance and strength to stay on point have become relevant fashion commodities again. What was once deemed boring at his shows is now a virtue. So when he stuck to a dress and color theme of Harlequin, he was right on the money. The Harlequin is characterized by his checkered costume and it led him to a collection which elegantly shimmered and shined against graphic outlines and lots of black. 

The giant pleated, color blocked pants were highlights. And if you see the backstage beauty preparation in our photos here you understand why Mr. Armani has a giant business with L’Oréal for which a whole department of executives are dispatched backstage to ensure that his every wish for lip, eyeliner or hair braid is executed to perfection.

Christian Dior

It’s as if France had a female president. Maria Grazia Chiuri who has championed women’s causes and feminism since her very first show (we remember the “We should all be feminist”-T-shirt) is now joined by a female CEO in Delphine Arnault. After Pierre and Yves, Barry and Calvin or Tom and Domenico we can finally talk about two women as fashion royalty. In the seat as newly minted CEO, Arnault saw a Josephine Baker-inspired Haute Couture collection which oozed in grace and fantastic somber tailoring.

Chanel

We had a revelation here. While Lagerfeld’s Chanel was always different and new but somewhat two dimensional coming off his famous sketch book, Virginie Viard’s more feminine approach is much more three dimensional and 360 degrees. She looks at her women from the front, back and side and with this collection she has also nailed who her new woman is. A neo Parisienne who is strictly playful and free spirited as her short hemlines and lace bustier column dresses and animal motifs pronounced. The easy going and fully sustainable show set was also much more low-key as usual and stood for a new era of approachability at the maison. Letting 1992’s “Don’t You Want Me” rave hit by British artist Felix booming from the soundtrack was audacious and worked. It was a delight to see Anna Ewers closing the show as a bride.