Latest news with #F.Julienne
Fashion United
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Fashion United
Retrospective: Kering celebrates Demna Gvasalia's fashion creations for Balenciaga
The 'Balenciaga by Demna' exhibition was held at Kering. Open until July 9, 2025, it traced Gvasalia's journey as creative director of Balenciaga, from 2015 to 2025. The cross-shaped installation had a religious feel. It began with a photocopy of the first email exchange between Balenciaga and Gvasalia, in which the brand stated it was not interested in his services. Ironically, 'Balenciaga by Demna' showed how the Georgian designer created an original artistic field, differentiating the fashion house from other luxury brands and establishing it as a hyper-contemporary label. Balenciaga by Demna Credits: F. Julienne The exhibition revealed his main source of inspiration was everyday objects, to which he gave a luxurious dimension: passports and boarding passes; dollars; shopping bags; and, most strikingly, a bag of spicy chilli crisps turned into a handbag. Balenciaga by Demna Credits: F. Julienne Balenciaga by Demna Credits: F. Julienne Gvasalia explained the creative process behind each piece (accessory or garment) via an audio system. Regarding the crisps, he recounted arriving at the studio one day without a bag and putting his belongings in the crisp packet, thus sparking an idea for the marketers. Balenciaga by Demna Credits: F. Julienne Another fundamental aspect of his stylistic narrative, which built upon the previous one, was repurposing; a principle likely inherited from his experience at Margiela. A dress made from a compilation of bras; a jacket formed with used leather boots; T-shirts and hoodies assembled to create a dress; and cowboy boots turned into a bag were all inspiring demonstrations of upcycling. Demna by Balenciaga Credits: F. Julienne Demna by Balenciaga Credits: F. Julienne 'Demna by Balenciaga': reconstruction of a contemporary cultural heritage Iconic pieces remained, such as the Speed Trainer (2017). 'This was the first trainer we created at Balenciaga. It has a technical sock-like upper attached to an ultralight sole,' Gvasalia explained in a voiceover. 'I wanted a trainer that you could just slip on without having to tie laces or anything. Just an easy, practical and comfortable shoe. It has since become a product that has completely redefined the way we design shoes and has led to a whole new aesthetic for trainers globally.' Demna by Balenciaga Credits: F. Julienne Another example was the haute couture bell dress in rigid guipure lace. 'It has no visible structural elements, apart from a few invisibly placed threads inside, which allows for a true moulding of the silhouette, inspired by the paintings of Velázquez,' Gvasalia commented. 'The dress was designed and crafted to be as fluid and seamless as possible, then shaped using a technique called 'blocking', a process that took an almost infinite amount of time to achieve.' Balenciaga by Demna Credits: F. Julienne References to sportswear and workwear were present, as were deconstructed suits with broad shoulders. However, there was no allusion to the negative publicity that had surrounded Balenciaga. The visit ended with a 'thank you' from the designer, in French, and visitors received a magazine-style catalogue compiling all the exhibited pieces. Demna by Balenciaga Credits: F. Julienne Demna by Balenciaga Credits: F. Julienne Gvasalia's subsequent role at Kering, as creative director of Gucci, was alluded to through a bag from the Gucci × Balenciaga 'Hacker Project' collaboration (2021). The monogram of the former Italian fashion house bore the inscription: 'This is not a Gucci bag'. What the future 'it' bag for Gucci would be remained to be seen. Balenciaga by Demna Credits: F. Julienne This article was translated to English using an AI tool. FashionUnited uses AI language tools to speed up translating (news) articles and proofread the translations to improve the end result. This saves our human journalists time they can spend doing research and writing original articles. Articles translated with the help of AI are checked and edited by a human desk editor prior to going online. If you have questions or comments about this process email us at info@
Fashion United
28-04-2025
- Business
- Fashion United
Change Now 2025: LVMH engages its partners towards circularity
From Thursday, April 24 to Saturday, April 26, 2025, the Change Now trade fair was held at the Grand Palais in Paris. To mark its report on the first day of the trade fair, FashionUnited chose to focus on the speech by Hélène Valade (LVMH) about strategic partnerships with suppliers and on the presence of a Native American chief, who came to remind everyone of two basic principles. Change Now, with 40,000 participants, 10,000 companies and 140 countries, aims to be the trade fair 'where global leaders and change-makers meet to shape a sustainable world'. Although the 'Fashion' zone was small (28 exhibitors) compared to other sectors (healthcare, energy, food, agriculture, etc.), it nonetheless signalled the involvement of fashion players in the move towards a circular industry. Fashion Section, Change Now 2025 Credits: F. Julienne In terms of fashion, FashionUnited noted the presence of major players in the industry: the Fédération de la Mode Circulaire, which has brought together 300 members since its creation in 2020, and recently published a study with KPMG France, an audit and consulting firm, on the economic and environmental levers for the sector's transformation in Europe. Fédération de la Mode Circulaire stand, Change Now 2025 Credits: F. Julienne Other well-known exhibitors included: Kering via the 'Kering Generation award', the Institut Français de la Mode and L'Atelier des Matières. There were also start-ups such as 'Save your Wardrobe', which offers brands a way to manage product returns, and Prolong, which offers the same principle, but in the form of software rental. Kering stand, Change Now 2025 Credits: F. Julienne Save Your Wardrobe stand, Hasna Kourda, Change Now 2025 Credits: F. Julienne Prolong stand, Change Now 2025 Credits: F. Julienne On the Agora stage, FashionUnited met Hélène Valade, environmental development director at LVMH and chair of the Observatoire de la responsabilité sociétale des entreprises (ORSE), 'an NGO that brings together more than 100 companies and enables work on transformation and collective intelligence', along with Attila Kiss, chief executive officer of Gruppo Florence, an Italian production centre serving luxury brands, controlled by the Permira investment fund (opening photo). 'Licensing business partners' or LVMH's desire to harmonise traceability needs between major luxury players 'In Italy, around 60,000 small businesses work in the luxury supply chain. Collecting information from such fragmented players is complex, but it's the challenge we need to address in terms of sustainability,' explained Kiss. 'We've announced a new action plan, 'Licensing Business Partners', to collect data and support our suppliers in their environmental transition. They waste valuable time answering the same questions from Chanel, Hermès, Dior, etc., This article was translated to English using an AI tool. FashionUnited uses AI language tools to speed up translating (news) articles and proofread the translations to improve the end result. This saves our human journalists time they can spend doing research and writing original articles. Articles translated with the help of AI are checked and edited by a human desk editor prior to going online. If you have questions or comments about this process email us at info@
