The show, titled ‘Born Again,’ was a homage to ‘artistic purity,’ hope, and the great joy of fashion.

The French fashion designer Schiaparelli debuted his Fall Winter 2022/23 Haute Couture Collection at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs during Paris Fashion Week. The museum also debuted “Shocking! The Surreal World of Elsa Schiaparelli,” a retrospective exhibition honoring the founder of the company, on the same day. A few of the ensembles from the exhibit will also be displayed on the runway, according to creative director Daniel Roseberry.

The Collection:

The collection is dramatic devotion to couture, with corseted velvet sheaths, bias dresses held by a thread, asymmetrical silk negligees revealing the breasts over, flowing flowers emerging from a neckline or positioned on the shoulder, exaggerated canopies, scenic hats, and hay capelines. The extravagance of Christian Lacroix’s 1987 debut is recreated by Roseberry.

Roseberry revealed the collection was influenced by “the way Elsa dressed,” which entailed meticulous tailoring. Roseberry also described it as “this type of sensual body-conscious and body-obsessed eveningwear, everything structured around the bustier and the corset.”

Some established floral arrangements were motivated by the book A Passion for Flowers by designer and society icon Carolyne Roehm, a copy of Roseberry’s grandmother’s coffee table when he was a child. These were astounding achievements in stitching when viewed up close; sunflowers, roses, and lavender fronds were made from hand-painted and sequined silk, and even the petals were made of leather that had been molded into the back of spoons.

The neckline of a black velvet jacket cut into a face’s profile and the encrusted Lesage embroidery that she relished in were modest tributes to Elsa Schiaparelli’s own Magical realist inspirations. A pair of earrings dripping bunches of golden grapes and so heavy that they had to be tied with a delicate tiara hair band brought a simple black velvet evening dress that appeared like one of Roseberry’s dramatic design sketches to life into Schiap’s zany universe. Peace doves are being delivered to the collection in 2022.

Everything was a “mix of something that seemed tremendously current and then also outrageously romantic,” as Roseberry predicted. The audience was certainly left euphoric.

According to Daniel Roseberry, “In recent years, though, it’s felt like fashion has tried its hardest to prove it actually isn’t silly. The pressure designers feel to make a statement about the current political situation, our ongoing climatic disaster, the inequalities among people of different races and genders, and an age of war have in fact led to some extraordinary work, not to mention a reengagement of our industry with the broader culture.”

Published by HOLR Magazine