Balenciaga F/W 00.01 Paris

[helmut.newton]

style.com/

 

[helmut.newton]

style.com/

 

[helmut.newton]

style.com/

 

[helmut.newton]

style.com/

 

[helmut.newton]

The genius of Ghesquiere's work is that regardless of what year or what season we are in, his clothes look completely and utterly modern and of the moment.

You could wear these looks today, and you would still look relevant and chic.

I love the simplicity of this collection too; the colours, the shapes, etc.

 

[dior_couture1245]

Firstly, I have to thank hemut.newton! I love seeing these older collections. Rarely do I revisit them, and it's both refreshing and insightful to look back upon them.

In regards to the discussion about Nicholas then and Nicholas now. I don't think one is better than the other. While there was certainly a shift that occurred in Nicholas' work circa 2003-2005 (that's when I would say things began to change slightly), I don't think the change was bad or good. I just think it was natural, or at least, appropriate. I would never really consider Ghesquiere's work minimal, but his earlier work felt at home next to his contemporaries like Helmut Lang, Calvin Klein, etc.

But as fashion moved into an entirely new world, thanks in part to Tom Ford at Gucci/YSL, I can see Nicholas' style evolving into something that feels in sync with the style of the late oughts and the brand new decade (in fact, I would go so far as to say that his new Balenciaga was a key element in defining the look of the latter half of the decade). One could say that his earlier work for the house was more about real clothes that are perfectly designed and executed, and his current work is more conceptual and saturated. And I don't think this is necessarily a negative. Fashion has certainly become more flashy and celebrity oriented, where perfumes and handbags and glossy advertisements unfortunately have become the defining factor of a house's success, and yet he has still managed to stay directional, focused, intelligent and individual, just in a different way than before. I see that he has changed, but I feel as though he has done it for the right reasons...he has adapted to the new world of fashion...he's just such an excellent designer, though, that no matter what he does, and when, he still always comes out on top.

I don't know if that makes any sense whatsoever...

 

[Spike413]

^ It makes sense to me.

It's weird, with Ghesquiere I can look back and totally see the brilliance and simplicity of his older work. It's really hard to miss, actually. But I don't necessarily mourn for the old days because while Balenciaga most definitely has a different spirit than it did when Nicolas was just beginning to make his mark, I don't think the changes that have taken place have been bad or diminished the fact that he's still, to this day, a brilliant designer who is eons ahead of most.

 

[dior_couture1245]

^^Yes! You said what I meant to say so much more precisely!

 

[D A N A]

Those black jackets are to die for !!! So perfectly constructed.

 

[Squizree]

The most interesting and admirable quality about Ghesquire is that he doesn't seem to have "held back" so to speak in terms of creativity and talent. But instead merely adjusted to today's industry circumstances. A lot of designers, like say Alexander Wang, would be incapable of this.

 

[mikeijames]

i think he has so much creative freedom also because that house also debuted a SUPER-COVETABLE it bag while he unleashed all of this brilliance on us. the bags sold like hot cakes at $1k+ a pop and he could plug away at re-establishing the vocabulary of balenciaga.