Imagine going to Burning Man, but only wearing Hermés. Though it may not be the most practical combination, the house’s creative director of womenswear Nadège Vanhee-Cybulski was inspired by “a rave in the desert” for her SS23 show. Come to think of it, it makes sense. If this is the house that is the zenith of luxury inspiration — just look at the countless TikToks, or “Birkin Toks”, devoted to demystifying the process of buying Hermés leather goods — then this was a show that represents the shifting tides in luxury travel. Nowadays, you’re more likely to find billionaires at wilderness retreats than on the Côte d’Azur. Outdoor experiences offer an escape from urban life, and an opportunity to connect with nature and embrace a more straightforward way of living, and even dressing. The pin-up for this shift in aspiration: Yvon Chouinard, the founder of outdoor brand Patagonia, who just gave away billions worth of shares to an environmental NGO.
As always, it’s easier said than done — but the dream of it prevails. The show opened with supple leather jumpsuits and windbreakers, hardly the kind of well-crafted garments that one would wear to face the elements. But the collection that followed riffed on the theme without getting too technical, for want of a better word. “She came here in the hopes that this impromptu encampment, this return to a life in the heart of nature, would bring her a long-desired plenitude,” read the poetic show notes. “So she cleverly chose her clothes to suit what she expected from this desert dance: garments by turns yellow ochre, ebony, sandy beige, Thar brown. And dawn pink for the morning, to hold the coolness before it escaped.”
After the show, Nadège elaborated: “I wanted to let go and celebrate togetherness, freedom, and you know, abandoning space and time — and just tripping!” She wanted to give the collection the lightness — the kind of euphoric exaltation that comes with, well, you know — and so there were dressed spliced into panels, held together by elasticated cords, marabou feathers fluttering from the flaps of Kelly bags, and shoes with hollow carbon flatforms that made the models look like they were walking on air. This being Hermés, however, it was transposed through the oh-so-chic classicism of supple leathers, probably not the best for real-life hiking or camping. Tent-like technical nylons, mosquito netting-inspired mesh fabrics and 3D-printed silk dresses that closed the show were testament to what really Hermés does best: turning an idea into the highest level of craftsmanship.
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Images courtesy of Spotlight