If you were looking to Fashion Month for a heady dose of fantasy and escapism, to momentarily rid yourself of the world’s troubles, you might have found yourself confronted by Balenciaga’s Spring Summer 2023 show. Staged in what can only be described as a “giant mud pit”, Demna showed a post-apocalyptic fashion army, lead by Kanye West in combat-style regalia and chunky leather boots. Of course, it pays to expect the unexpected when it comes to Demna-for-Balenciaga. The designer is a masterful chameleon, which is why he can showcase something as delicate and beautiful as his Fall/Winter 2022 Haute Couture outing in July, and something as gritty, raw, and confronting as S/S ‘23 a couple of months later.
Demna called this collection a “companion piece” to his much-lauded F/W ‘22 collection from February, which took place in a cascading space in which models powered through snow and wind. He used that show to make a powerful statement about the war in Ukraine, a cause close to the designer’s heart—he and his family fled war-ravaged Georgia when he was only 10 years old. Now, the snow from that storm has thawed and what’s left is more pain and suffering, but now the terrain is muddy and treacherous, not icy and treacherous. The message was poignant and timely—while the rest of the world may have moved on from the war, those fighting on the ground can’t and won’t.
The fashion itself was suitably utilitarian. Demna’s signature oversized hoodies were styled with combat boots, or eerie handbags in the shape of tattered old teddy bears. Leather moto jackets were worn with matching leather trousers in XXL proportions, worn with equally chunky lace-up trainers. Models wore stick-on eyebrow and lip rings, or super-distressed low-slung denim, or, improbably for the apocalypse, sexy corset tops. There were fabulously unexpected elements thrown in there too—like sequin embellished gold ballet flats or inexplicable twisted furry… scarves? The collection ended with a collection of beautifully crafted evening gowns, some draped artfully across the body, others delicately embroidered with sequins. It was a reminder that even in our darkest moments, we search for beauty and—more often than not—are able to find it. As it turns out, Demna may be something of an optimist after all…
