Where did Seasonal Trends on the Runway go?

[IsabelMarantBoy]

Hi everyone! First time making a thread here so I hope this isn't a strange topic to bring up, but after watching runway shows for almost 20 years I thought this might be a good subject to discuss: has anyone else noticed the decline of seasonal trends amongst designer collections?

I feel like looking at old runway seasons (let's say Spring 2007 for example) it felt like there were collections from different designers that referenced seasonal trends. You could see multiple designers referencing Futurism, Victoriana, 1960's/1970's and so forth. It felt like back then, there were through lines of trends and it was easy to tell each season apart.

It almost feels like now, nobody is referencing each other and it all feels so separate. Balenciaga always looks like Balenciaga (oversized streetwear and trench coats), Chanel always looks like Chanel (tweed suits and dresses), Prada always looks like Prada, etc.....

It's very evident when the looks from each season hit the editorials. Back in the day, you could see stylists put together shoots based around the seasonal trends and could pull from multiple collections to create a cohesive shoot. Now when you look at editorials they often feel disjointed and jumbled together rather than having a singular vision/look.

Is it due to the corporatization of fashion? The lack of "good" designers? I'd like to hear other people's opinions and see how they feel about this!

 

[Phuel]

Yes to all the above. And I'll add, even once great talents are dumbing down their abilities to appeal to the masses. This is the dystopian fashion era that is the equivalent to Kurt Vonnegut's world where the superior have to disable their supremacy to accommodate the lesser.

And along with all these corporate brands enforcing their signatures on the usual headcount casting that is indistinguishable from one show to the next (and this extends to the soulless marketing strategy of editing the campaigns to be region-specific: A predominately, if not just outright exclusive campaign of Asian cast for the Asian market; while a very visible, even predominately Black representation for the US/UK for SJ reasons, I suppose (and as Patrisse Cullors casually admitted: White guilt matters LMFAO); and a predominantly White/Black representation for Europe etc. It’s all so cynical. And storytelling seems a dirty word these days, where mega-corporations seem to only want to spend on location and/or huge sets to flex their wealth. Shows-- just like their merch, are so instantly forgettable, so basic, so bland, so boring AF these days.

 

[GoldenPetals]

I think luxury fashion lost its playfulness sometime around the late 2000s/early 2010s. Referencing historical eras is now seen as 'corny' or 'campy'; and referencing culture is seen as 'appropriative'.

I think the 2008 recession was the biggest catalyst for the hyper-streamlining of fashion we see today. The 1% have become more financially conservative, so luxury brands have had to shift to targeting clueless and insecure Middle Class and Working Class shoppers whose finances are more volatile and more subject to changes in the economy. The result is a very risk-averse industry and it's reflected by the creative austerity we see on the runway.

 

[blueorchid]

I'm going to look at this from a different perspective, to say that when looking at fashion "historically" from 21st Century eyes, there's something hilarious and disconcerting to read articles about people (buyers) *losing their minds* over new trends. I'm glad we don't live in that world anymore where people have intense opinions about skirt length. Like, in 1970 the longuette was ~controversial~. A magazine like L'Officiel is so interesting to look at these days because when you look at their collections issues you can definitely tell that there was a mood for some seasons.


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This is the dystopian fashion era that is the equivalent to Kurt Vonnegut's world where the superior have to disable their supremacy to accommodate the lesser.

I'm pretty sure the "lessers" are the ones working in the fashion industry these days at all levels and not the other way around, however.

 

[Creative]

Very interesting topic. I feel it has something to do with the lack of vision of l’air du temps from the designers (who are less talented than before) and with the fact that these days people want to play it safe, because almost all the brands have stocks, there’s lot of money involved, etc.

To me it’s clear l’air du temps at the moment should be 2005, a little bit lady like, fresh, tighter to the body… models being a little bit more alive, less children-looking, the catwalks should change a little bit, the way of walking… It seems so obvious and I feel if things worked like in 2008 we would have had this “look” for at least 2/3 seasons ago.

Phoebe Philo is maybe one of the best things and the worst things that happened to fashion in the last 15 years because she was so influential that sucked the soul out of everybody. Since then there have been no real trends…

I also feel, like PDFS once said, that brands are becoming more like watch/car brands… they want to work on autopilot, not risking anything, giving an old formula to the clients… you could see that at Dior or Chanel, for instance.

I also feel like we see so many things on Instagram, TikTok… that trends come more from those places than the actual runways imo.

White socks appearing in a SDS campaign for Gucci after it was a huge success on social media is an example.

Before you would buy a fashion magazine and that was all the fashion content you’d see. Today that doesn’t exist anymore either.

 

[blueorchid]

@Creative Bringing up car manufacturers is an interesting comparison, because while I couldn't care less about cars, I do know that car enthusiasts DO complain about cars these days being super generic and boring looking.

 

[Alquimista]

Executives picked them up and shoved right where the sun don't smile....just kidding (not really but)

But seriously, trends are still here. But there is a lack of confidence in the propositions, maybe. It's funny for example to see how indecisive we are at the moment with pants. are skinny jeans still in or not? I feel like this blur is the result of the lack of a good, democratic, confident proposition - cause we all know that baggy pants won't be adopted by the majority of people...but people still need to wear clothes. I vote for the bootcut, by the way.

Michele and Demna were the first to present the seasonless feeling in their collections that are ubiquitous now. I still remember when designers presented something almost totally new each season. Tisci's Givenchy, for example. Even Phoebe did that. But now it seems like the collections all merge together, like a tibetan monk throat singing, continuous with barely no disruption. Michele reluctance to change at his last years at Gucci is quite an example of it lol he wanted to keep doing the same thing forever lmfao. Not to mention the dominant aesthetic of fashion now is anathema of individuality or big statements. Quiet luxury is really inimical to creativity. And the alternatives, Michele and Demna are not much better.

As creative says, Phoebe is the most influential name in fashion today. If you think about it, we are still stuck in 2016. Phoebe, Michele and Demna. Same Names, same styles. Loewe is basically Phoebe 2.0. The Row etc.

What I wanted for fashion now is a new name that can be strong enough to dethrone the influence of these mammoths. But it seems like every fashion designer are praying the same Phobe's cathecism. We need a designer that can decode but also create a new l'air du temps.