While they’re often associated with punk and grunge (think Kurt Cobain and L7), pink locks also have a long history as a signifier of feminine beauty. In 1937, the legendary European hair stylist Leo of Vienna told the Associated Press that pink hair was perfect for formal events “because women, at evening, should always look flower-like.” Maybe it’s that balance of tough and soft, wild and romantic, that makes cotton candy-colored hair a recurring guest on the runways. Inspired by how ethereal Fernanda Ly — Nicolas Ghesquière’s model of the moment — looked at his recent Louis Vuitton Resort 2016 extravaganza in Palm Springs, we rounded up some of our favorite pink hair appearances, from Chloe Norgaard at Rodarte to Kate Moss in 90s Versace.
Fernanda Ly at Louis Vuitton Resort 16
The word “trippy” pops up repeatedly across reviews of Louis Vuitton’s Resort 2016 collection. Nicolas Ghesquière kept the mood surreal with a blur of time periods: hippie vibes mixed with Victorian silhouettes, for an overall effect of a very Palm Springs blend of retrofuturism. Fernanda Ly’s combination of straight, sorbet locks and laser-cut leather dress exactly captured the show’s aesthetic: it was medieval, it was spacey, and it was also a little punk.
Linn Arvidsson and Marjan Jonkman at Gucci Fall/Winter 15
Alessandro Michele’s first women’s ready-to-wear collection for Gucci this past February had the #frow on the edge of their seats, and the designer didn’t disappoint. Weaving 70s throwbacks in with the fashion house’s more traditional Italian tailoring, he softened buttoned-up looks with grunge-inspired pink hair. “Alessandro really loved Courtney Love’s look when she was in Hole and had two-toned hair,” explained stylist Paul Hanlon. Hanlon dyed Linn Arvidsson and Marjan Jonkman’s tips with Crazy Color and then washed it out for a faded effect.
Chloe Norgaard at Rodarte Fall/Winter 14
Chloe Norgaard is known for the wild and ever-changing color combinations of her hair. So she was the obvious choice when the Mulleavy sisters wanted to play around with romantic hues for their fall/winter 2014 collection. Norgaard told Vogue that she, the designers and hairstylist Odile Gilbert decided on the color together, and that she then dyed her hair herself, with help from Gilbert, over the course of two days.
Cara Delevingne at Chanel Resort 13
Karl Lagerfeld wasn’t shy about channeling Marie Antoinette for Chanel resort 13 – he held the show in the opulent gardens of Versailles. Eighteenth-century notes mingled with futuristic elements, though, for a modern girl’s take. Each model’s look was finished with a macaron-colored wig, cut into a sharp bob that revealed a dark low ponytail underneath. Cara’s choppy style perfectly captured the aesthetic mash-up of Parisian court ladies and contemporary punk kids.
Jean Paul Gaultier Couture Spring/Summer 12
Jean Paul Gaultier presented his spring 2012 couture offering a mere six months after Amy Winehouse’s untimely death. His collection perfectly captured her artfully disheveled take on vampy 60s style — in a way that might have been too costumey if it were anyone but Gaultier. To complement Winehouse staples like pencil skirts and sexed-up polo shirts, the models wore towering beehives, most notably in shades of blue and pink.
Charlotte Free at Jeremy Scott Spring/Summer 12
Few designers do pop, irreverence and quirk like Jeremy Scott. And you could use those same adjectives for Charlotte Free. They are a match made in fashion heaven. For his “Hollywood goes to the farm” spring/summer 2012 collection, Scott sent Free down the runway in a cactus-print dress, complete with a pink gun-holster belt to match her pink pin-up pigtails.
Comme des Garçons Fall/Winter 09
For the fall/winter 09 Comme collection, models were either swathed in frothy layers of tulle, or clad in clever trompe l’oeil looks. Kawakubo’s explanation of the aesthetic was “wonderland,” and all the ensembles were topped off by up-dos sprayed hot pink. The uniformity of the models’ dos helped perpetuate the other-worldly feel.
Kate Moss at Versace Spring/Summer 99
Megastar Moss was a fixture on the Versace runways of the mid-90s, and the label has never had a problem letting her steal the show — Donatella has gushed about Kate’s naturally iconic nature. For the spring/summer 99 collection, the supermodel stood out with long straight locks dyed a deep shade of hot pink. She looked every bit like the bombshell of the incoming twenty-first century that she was: glamorous yet tough. The show is often discussed as the marker of Moss’s transition from waif to siren.
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Text Courtney Iseman