January's summer 2022 Couture Fashion Week showcased the latest sartorial offerings from 17 labels, just over half the number included in the official calendar due to ongoing Covid restrictions. Dior's Maria-Grazia Chiuri offered an ode to embroidery at Paris's Rodin museum, Jean Paul Gaultier handed the reigns of his empire over to Belgian designer Glenn Martens, while Alexandre Vauthier embraced the Roaring Twenties as an homage to our collective resilience in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. FRANCE 24 takes you to the catwalks.

Fashion

Haute couture, summer 2022: High fashion returns to Paris catwalks

Without a doubt, Louis Vuitton's collection was this year's most hotly anticipated runway show. It was dedicated to the late Virgil Abloh, the label's visionary creative director, who died of cancer in November 2021 at just 41. Covid-19 meant programming was a little lighter than usual, but a host of young labels also managed to put on shows: EgonLab, Georges Wendell and Lukhanyo Mdingi made a particularly good impression, while Kim Jones at Dior Homme put on one of the most beautiful shows of his career. FRANCE 24 takes you to the catwalks at Paris Fashion Week.

Winter menswear 2022-23: An ode to activism, architecture and artistry

The online world is increasingly an integral part of our lives, especially with the arrival of the metaverse. The world of fashion is eagerly eyeing up how the metaverse can be a place where we construct parallel identities, complete with digital wardrobes. But at what price? We get some answers from designer Julien Fournié, psychiatrist Serge Tisseron, as well as Pierre-Nicolas Hurstel, co-founder of Arianee, a platform that helps brands create new digital experiences. 

When fashion meets the metaverse

For decades, Tunisia has been seen as a producer of fashion, but rarely a producer of fashion designers. But that's rapidly changing. For proof, look no further than the 12th edition of Tunis Fashion Week, which this year was held not in the capital, but in the city of Tozeur, on the edge of the desert. We take a closer look at three larger-than-life Tunisian designers: Hedi Ben Mami, Seif Dean Laouiti and Braim Klei.

Tunis Fashion Week: A rallying cry against censorship

The year 2021 didn’t get off to a great start, to say the least. The Covid-19 pandemic had already brought the world as we knew it to a standstill, and this year – once again – Fashion Weeks from London to New York were struck from calendars in the same of social distancing. But nevertheless, fashion has always known how to adapt. A new-found focus on inclusive casting and sustainable processes has been the result. FRANCE 24 takes a look back at some of the year's fashion highlights.

Covid-19 and more: How the fashion world adapted in 2021

The death of Black designer Virgil Abloh at the age of just 41 has served as a reminder that fashion still has a way to go when it comes to diversity. Abloh, an African American, studied civil engineering and architecture, but was increasingly drawn to the world of music and later set up his own streetwear label, Off White. In 2018 he was named head of menswear at Louis Vuitton, becoming the first Black man to become the lead designer of a major French fashion house. For Abloh, fashion was inherently political; a means of furthering the fight against racism. We took a closer look at his legacy.

After death of Virgil Abloh, fight for diversity in fashion continues

French fashion businesses here in France tend to go one of two ways: either they fail, or they thrive, before being bought up by a powerful luxury group. But some companies do manage to resist that fate – weathering economic crises, the challenges of a globalised economy and now the pandemic, all on their own. So how exactly do they do it and what makes them tick? We went to meet independent shoemakers Arche in the Loire Valley and Paris-based Weston to find out. 

Small is beautiful: The French fashion businesses staying independent

For Mariusca La Slameuse and Spirita Nanda, fashion and music go hand in hand. The clothes they wear, just like the music they sing, are fundamental elements of their artistry. Both women live and work in Brazzaville, in the Republic of Congo. They're each famous as solo artists, but today they've joined forces to combat violence against children in the context of blended families. FRANCE 24 went to meet them.

Congolese artists Mariusca La Slameuse and Spirita Nanda team up for a good cause

Today, the fashion industry is increasingly waking up to the importance of acknowledging the full range of human experience in the clothes and messaging it puts out. Inclusion is in fashion and it's taking many exciting forms, from a catwalk show for amputees in Paris to a show by Parisian label Victoria/Tomas that uses the designers' mums as models, via a project that helps migrants pursue careers in textiles in France. FRANCE 24 brings you a round-up.

Ready-to-wear, summer 2022: The many faces of inclusion

When she was only a teenager, Valerie Ka graced catwalks across the African continent as a model and muse. As her political consciousness grew, she became a flagbearer for contemporary African fashion around the world. Today, in a boutique hotel in Paris’s 8th arrondissement, she is overseeing the very first edition of her latest project: Share Africa.

‘It’s a chance to discover another side of African creativity’: Share Africa opens in Paris

After almost two years of empty catwalks, summer 2022's ready-to-wear collections were finally able to be shown in public, and designers rose to the occasion. Yohji Yamamoto's collection was all about the perils of climate change. But the standout feature of this season is an approach to fashion that privileges the female gaze, with Marine Serre, Dior and Isabel Marant all presenting clothes designed to be worn by women and enjoyed by women – rather than having men looking at them!

Ready-to-wear, summer 2022: The era of the female gaze

Florian, Antoine, Noémie and Juliette aren't students, they're interns. That's because at Casa 93, a non-fee-paying school for alternative fashion, there are no students, teachers or grades. It’s an approach that’s already bearing fruit on the outskirts of Paris. The school encourages collaborative working, overseen by industry professionals. The latest cohort of 20 young designers already have something to be proud of: a collaborative collection, accompanied by a film they’ve entitled "Inouï’" ("Unheard of"). We went to check it out.

In praise of difference: Budding French fashion designers unveil collection and film

Fashion is about creating desire and stimulating curiosity, and nowhere is that as apparent as with Cruise collections. Back in the 1920s, Cruise collections were marketed to wealthy clients who escaped the European winter and headed to more tropical climes. Today, a number of labels offer these mid-season collections to satisfy consumers' demand for novelty. We check out those of Chanel, Dior and Moschino. 

2022 Cruise collections, a fashion journey through time and space

Next winter's haute couture offerings are as concerned with protecting our oceans as they are about showcasing the best of ancestral savoir-faire. Lebanese designer Zuhair Murad rubs shoulders with Kerby Jean-Raymond, the first Black American to be invited to present his collection in Paris. Plus, the likes of Christophe Josse and Chanel celebrate the artistic accomplishments of their artisans, while Iris van Herpen embarks on a thrilling collaboration with Domitille Kiger, the French freeflying world champion!

Haute couture, winter 2021: Hoping for a better world

Thread, the primary building block for any piece of clothing, is increasingly inspiring a number of fashion labels. At Dior, Maria-Grazia Chiuri experiments with a new tweed made from cashmere, while Indian designer Vaishali Shadangule creates her own fabrics from scratch as part of her homage to the power of nature. And Parisian designer Clara Daguin explores the intersection between science and mysticism through her beguiling use of fibre optic threads.

Haute couture, winter 2021: Not without my threads!

<p>All the best of the Parisian catwalks and a look behind the scenes at the big names in Haute Couture. Every Friday at 4.15 pm Paris time.</p>

All the best of the Parisian catwalks and a look behind the scenes at the big names in Haute Couture. Every Friday at 4.15 pm Paris time.

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