Balenciaga S/S 2026 Paris

[tctra]

The Ghost of Alexander Wang comes to haunt

 

[lanvinray]

It's giving Valentino with crop top & shades 😴 I expected more I guess

 

[CCFAIRY]

Balenciaga is definitely Pierpaolo’s last job, I think Balenciaga would not be a profitable brand anymore. Stores will be closing, unable to buy covers.

 

[TaylorBinque]

the mini dresses gives me Wang flash back in the worst possible way. I just can't with him. I was hoping for at least better accessories. He's already limited in the clothes department.

 

[Xone]

He needs to get more into Balenciaga more...it feels like a little bit of everything...i liked some looks some jackets and some dresses...hated the flip-flops.

That feathered hat looks like Prada two seasons ago...

But yes some looks seems too generic for this...hopefully for march will be better...

 

[Delleone]

When PPP started waxing lyrical about how radical the sack dress was in 1957, almost half a century ago, and showed us the clip of a woman turning heads and being ridiculed on the streets of Paris I got excited, but also slightly concerned. What would be his version of that?

The same, it so happens. And herein lies my beef.

Demna attempted to answer that very question, one could argue, to greater success. As did Nicholas Ghesquière. Early days.

This was a beautiful parade but nothing really changed my eye. And for me that’s what Balenciaga stands for — a stylistic, aesthetic and cultural shift.

Switch it up, PPP. Give us more.

(Soundtrack up there with Bottega V for best of the season though, me thinks.)

 

[FashioNarrating]

Well, that was really, reeeally mid, particularly for Balenciaga. PPP seems literally stuck between throwing it back (I saw meek attempts at referencing anything from Cristóbal's couture shapes to Ghesquière's earlier, simpler work), trying to keep some of the clientele that Demna gathered (the glasses and the flip-flops look like a quick attempt to make it "hip") and recollecting whatever he did at Valentino. I would appreciate if he went full old-school grandeur and presented a collection of extravagantly elegant volumes on models walking Dovima-style and sporting French twists; this way, it's not here nor there, it's less striking than Wang's debut and it's also nothing new for Pierpaolo, who already did most of this at another big house.
My least favorite debut so far this season, I'm afraid - and I didn't even like most of them that much.

 

[tourbillions]

Maybe PPP is what ballenciaga needs to clean the pallet. He will be the sabato of balenciaga until they bring demna back to balenciaga since apparently he is so amazing for in the eyes of tthe kering suits.

 

[disco54]

There is scope here but its lacking sexiness

 

[mepps]

I love PPP, but this was a bit boring imo. Not bad tho, except for the flip flops, which are awful.

 

[SophiaVB]

I've never been a fan of PPP but there's some stuff I would buy/wear here and I stopped paying attention to Balenciaga long ago. Also, admittedly, I don't think I have ever seen Meghan Markle look better lol. Wonder who is styling her.

 

[AFWQ]

Some possible references (asked by @jeremydante)


Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo) | Balenciaga Spring Summer 2008 (Ghesquière)


Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo) | Balenciaga 50s Baby Dress (Cristóbal Balenciaga)


Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo) | Balenciaga 1958 - look nº.164 (Cristóbal Balenciaga)

Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo) | Balenciaga Fall Winter 1955 (Cristóbal Balenciaga)
sources from twitter: flyrebel, LaModeUnknown, YouAreMyBezoar

 

[AFWQ]

Adding a few more things which I think could possibly help understand better colletion and it's inspirations:

“I saw this video of someone wearing the Sack Dress in 1957 in the street in Paris, and the passers-by reacting to this woman—not always in a good way. The Sack Dress was outrageous, really outrageous. You see this woman just wearing a dress made with two seams only, and other women walking in the street with the jacket tight to the body, with a corset and big skirt. You see how disruptive it was, how intentional was the gesture of liberating women from strictures.” - Pierpaolo to vogue.com

Moodboard from Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo


The meaning of Balenciaga is a methodology. The process of creation as ideology,
as identity, an expression of humanity and human invention. The début collection
by Pierpaolo Piccioli as Creative Director of Balenciaga commemorates this
essential component of the Maison, and of the work of Cristobal Balenciaga,
bringing it into the present. Not homage, but recalibration.

Balenciaga’s creative practice placed humanity at the core of his approach.
Aesthetic austerity, even severity, belies a physical lightness – a weightlessness,
clothes conceived for and around a dynamic body. A crucial exchange exists
between body and cloth, a shifting interrelationship. In precise gesture to his
reasoning, here garments explore the space between fabric and form, the air
between as a third dimension, a vital component of their construction.

Traces of the past are redefined for a future. Mnemonics of Cristobal Balenciaga’s
œuvre trigger instinctive reaction. Recollection rather than tribute, shadows of
Balenciaga’s architectonic shapes are embedded in the actuality of today - bold
and disruptive volumes applied to clothes that define our modern wardrobe.
Leather jackets, chinos, t-shirts, knits, accessories. A vocabulary of
contemporaneity, entirely transformed through approach.

Construction is paramount. Transformation of pieces is achieved through cut and
proportion – through human endeavour. Sculptural silhouette is achieved not
through internal structure, but through the cut of material, its own inherent
intentionality - fabric, colour and shape as a singular gesture of determination.
Knitwear translates archival fabrics through new materialities. The house’s
signature gazar fabric is reinvented. Embroideries of flower and feather elements
executed in self-fabric become an architectural rather than decorative proposition,
another means to fundamentally redefine the body through a purity of cut.

Within the show space, a resurrected Parisian salon is scented with Getaria, the
Balenciaga fragrance named after the birthplace of Cristobal Balenciaga. It
envelops the room, invisible yet constantly present.

source: vogue.com, balenciaga.com

 

[jeanclaude]

Adding a few more things which I think could possibly help understand better colletion and it's inspirations:


View attachment 1420907

Moodboard from Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo
View attachment 1420908

The meaning of Balenciaga is a methodology. The process of creation as ideology,
as identity, an expression of humanity and human invention. The début collection
by Pierpaolo Piccioli as Creative Director of Balenciaga commemorates this
essential component of the Maison, and of the work of Cristobal Balenciaga,
bringing it into the present. Not homage, but recalibration.

Balenciaga’s creative practice placed humanity at the core of his approach.
Aesthetic austerity, even severity, belies a physical lightness – a weightlessness,
clothes conceived for and around a dynamic body. A crucial exchange exists
between body and cloth, a shifting interrelationship. In precise gesture to his
reasoning, here garments explore the space between fabric and form, the air
between as a third dimension, a vital component of their construction.

Traces of the past are redefined for a future. Mnemonics of Cristobal Balenciaga’s
œuvre trigger instinctive reaction. Recollection rather than tribute, shadows of
Balenciaga’s architectonic shapes are embedded in the actuality of today - bold
and disruptive volumes applied to clothes that define our modern wardrobe.
Leather jackets, chinos, t-shirts, knits, accessories. A vocabulary of
contemporaneity, entirely transformed through approach.

Construction is paramount. Transformation of pieces is achieved through cut and
proportion – through human endeavour. Sculptural silhouette is achieved not
through internal structure, but through the cut of material, its own inherent
intentionality - fabric, colour and shape as a singular gesture of determination.
Knitwear translates archival fabrics through new materialities. The house’s
signature gazar fabric is reinvented. Embroideries of flower and feather elements
executed in self-fabric become an architectural rather than decorative proposition,
another means to fundamentally redefine the body through a purity of cut.

Within the show space, a resurrected Parisian salon is scented with Getaria, the
Balenciaga fragrance named after the birthplace of Cristobal Balenciaga. It
envelops the room, invisible yet constantly present.

source: vogue.com, balenciaga.com

There´s more work in the moodboard and his explanation, than in the collection.

 

[dieinmytabis]

comparing the moodboard to the actual show is a huge letdown. a lot of the looks did not need those alien-like sunglasses, reference to demna or not. pierpaolo also loves a dress with pockets. some of the last dresses were quite stunning, but the collection as a whole was pretty mundane. he will do better (i would hope) as the next season comes.

 

[Caffeine]

I'm cackling at the fashion bros watching this ladies who lunch *** collection lol but now imagine how Piccioli is going to scare them away with his menswear. Demna is loving it.

Idk the clothes have less volume, less oversize. Not devoid of it but it's controlled. Maybe Demna wasted all their fabric. I see nice pants, horrible shorts, beautiful dresses , beautiful gows, the dramatic skirts. Only thing missing was big platform shoes. The gloves for Valentino are here too. He is...limited. His best proposition are the dresses.

Important edit: but hey no more tasteless campaigns zombie models trash bags!!!! Let's celebrate that.

Good choice of music.

I watched the entire show just now. The music felt so right. I loved it. It all came together.
After more than 10 years, Balenciaga is back.

 

[Caffeine]

Some possible references (asked by @jeremydante)

View attachment 1420863View attachment 1420865
Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo) | Balenciaga Spring Summer 2008 (Ghesquière)

View attachment 1420867View attachment 1420868
Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo) | Balenciaga 50s Baby Dress (Cristóbal Balenciaga)

View attachment 1420870View attachment 1420871
Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo) | Balenciaga 1958 - look nº.164 (Cristóbal Balenciaga)
View attachment 1420903View attachment 1420904
Balenciaga Spring Summer 2026 (Pierpaolo) | Balenciaga Fall Winter 1955 (Cristóbal Balenciaga)
sources from twitter: flyrebel, LaModeUnknown, YouAreMyBezoar

He got the proportions right, unlike Dior.
But I guess it is a low bar (no pun intended).

 

[mteb123]

Didn’t like this at all!! But didn’t think I would anyway!! I still don’t think he’s the right fit for this brand he may excel in the evening section but everything else will be a no!! Like someone said it reminds me of Wang’s Balenciaga didn’t like that either!!