The Download: Paris Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2024

The global fashion community gathered in Paris between 26 February and 5 March 2024 for the last stop in fashion month. Rick Owens and Coperni presented futuristic shows, while Balenciaga and Vetements looked to present-day popular culture as a point of reference (Team Jolie all the way). But at Vivienne Westwood and Rokh, the inspiration was unexpectedly found in the Renaissance.

Westwood’s Autumn/Winter 2024 ready-to-wear presentation was creative director Andreas Kronthaler’s ode to his and the late Dame Vivienne Westwood’s shared love of history. ‘I decided to look at late Renaissance costumes because I went to a Giovanni Battista Moroni exhibition in Milan which reminded me very much of the beginning of working with Vivienne,’ Kronthaler wrote in a statement.

Presented alongside an eclectic performance of yodelling, axe-wielding and a bottom-drumming dance, the collection was centred around Renaissance-inspired codpieces, for male and female models alike, paired with period-bending conical breasts, platform boots and swathes of tartan – Westwood’s signature.

South Korean designer Rokh Hwang looked to both the High Renaissance and Romanticism to inform his work. The former for the ‘classical ideals of human form, focusing on perfection and harmony’ epitomised at the time, and the latter for its emphasis on ‘individualism and emotion, exploring raw human experiences and irrational aspects of existence’.

The resulting combination featured deconstructed trench coats paired with lace corsets and petticoats. One model walked the runway completely engulfed from head to foot in a tapestry representing a Renaissance Mannerist painting of a male angel.

African fashion begins a new chapter in Paris

The only Africa-based brand on the official schedule, MaXhosa Africa, showcased its autumn/winter 2024 collection, My Conviction. Chief creative director Laduma Ngxokolo was making its debut at Paris Fashion Week, bringing a fusion of Xhosa (an ethnic group native to South Africa) tradition and contemporary design to the global stage.

The collection, a tribute to the brand’s 13-year journey, featured revamped elements from past collections, blending authenticity with innovation. ‘I revisited some of the ideas I had in the past and changed them a little bit,’ the designer told Haute Couture News – emphasising the importance of preserving African culture in contemporary fashion.

The event wasn’t just a runway show but a cultural event held at the Residence of the Ambassador of South Africa to France. During the presentation, Ngxokolo narrated South African folklore stories in an attempt to challenge Western perceptions of African fashion and promote the integration of culture into daily wear.

Reflecting on the global potential of African fashion, the designer told WWD: ‘I believe we, the African continent, stand a good chance to play a big part in the global value eco-system of the fashion business.’ With MaXhosa’s unique blend of tradition and modernity, the brand aims to make a lasting impact on the international fashion scene. Keep an eye on our Fashion section for our upcoming analysis of the African fashion market.

New codes of sustainability

Fashion weeks are inevitably a time of excess and Paris was no exception. But if you looked closely enough, nods to new codes of sustainability were emerging.

Balenciaga set the stage before the shows even began, with an unusual invitation in the form of an eBay package. Inside, each guest unwrapped a unique vintage offering from creative director Demna Gvasalia, with an invitation reading: ‘The Winter 24 invitation is a random object found on eBay, the platform used by Demna to search for antique collectibles. These inspire the imagination of personal stories, which gives the objects a new life.’ The invitation acted as a creative endorsement of circularity, something Balenciaga would have done well to further incorporate into its catwalk show.

Meanwhile, Stella McCartney’s winter 2024 collection was presented as a ‘message from Mother Earth’ that it’s ‘about f*cking time’ to make some changes’. The designs drew inspiration from the draped, light dresses McCartney’s late mother, Linda McCartney, wore, as well as referencing the image of the girl boss through power suits with strong shoulders. This season, 90% of the brand’s ready-to-wear collection was crafted from sustainable materials such as Uppeal, one of the plant-based leathers redefining luxury. For more insights on materials, head to our analysis of Material Matters 2023.

Fashion as everyday armour

At Paris Fashion Week, designers turned clothes into everyday armour – or, as we coined on LS:N Global in 2023, Safety Fits. Rain might have been falling from the ceiling at Hermès, but the models were well protected. In her show notes, creative director Nadège Vanhée described the collection, The Rider, as one designed for an urban woman ready to brave the elements – brazenly riding a bike or a horse towards new adventures. Models were donned in head-to-toe leather, thick riding boots and studded dresses with small purses tied to their waist, ready for any chic combat.

Inspired by the quote ‘fashion is the armour to survive the reality of everyday life’, Chitose Abe, founder and creative director of Sacai, also referenced the ‘emotional protection’ that clothing can afford its wearer. For Abe, this took the form of boxy silhouettes, oversized utilitarian jackets with high-necked tops peeking out and huge, inflated pockets.

Meanwhile, Acne’s collection was inspired by Estonian artist Villu Jaanisoo’s ‘mechanical’ treatment of objects. In the almost apocalyptic collection models wore full-length trucker denim dresses, Icelandic shearling coats and leather dresses with in-built armoured breastplates, accessorised with padlocks for earrings and gunmetal necklaces. As analysed in our New York Fashion Week download, utilitarian safety fits were featured in the collection of brands such as Helmut Lang and Tory Burch.