Sportswear met space age in a bravura Paco Rabanne show

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
Mar 2, 2017

Just when you thought that futurism had no future, along comes Julien Dossena with a knock-out collection for Paco Rabanne.
 

Striped-back sportswear met the house’s signature materials - metal mesh and chainmail – in a triumphant moment for the young French designer. With a front row of the world’s most important editors (Anna Wintour sat beside Nicolas Ghesquière); packs of retailers and oodles of influencers, the show made another matter official. Paco Rabanne under Dossena’s leadership is the must-see young designer show in fashion today.
 
Hyper-feminine compared to his more recent Space Oddity collections, the show featured superb bias-cut dresses in slinky silver. Mesh met knitwear in sizzling cocktails; silver surfer tanks were paired with mega-wide trousers. Dossena cuts with a scalpel, so self-assured is his vision. The clothes referenced the founder’s original metallic, space-age vision – many of them making noises as the models walked by. Yet they also looked hyper-contemporary . All anchored by classic brogues – done in hard metallic gold and silver.
 

Moreover, even if worn by an excellent young casting, the fashion could quite easily be worn by any older women.

“I wanted to clean everything up in general. I did not want anti-fashion but I also wanted to add just what was necessary. A mix of noble and normal fabrics, and a sharp pure silhouette,” Dossena told FashionNetwork.com.
 
Backed up by their owners - the Catalan Puig clan – the house opened a key flagship on rue Cambon, underlining their belief in Dossena. Expect a busy fall there at the cash register thanks to this powerful fashion statement.