When the show started the photographers almost immediately began to howl in protest. The models disregarded them completely, turning their heads nonchalantly left or right. Occasionally they would look ahead, but their regard was always focused far off on a distant horizon, uninterested in what is right in front of them but rather with a view to what is yet to come.
After the show Christophe Lemaire explained why his models looked everywhere but where they were supposed to as a way of visually expressing the kind of woman who wears his clothing. She is someone who is curious about the world, an intellectual that counts on her wardrobe to be just as practical and functional as it is beautiful in its simplicity of spirit.
« We wanted the model to have self-confidence, » said Lemaire. « Make herself the heroine of her own story. But she is not wearing a costume. She is anchored in reality. It’s not about inventing a character who is not who she is. »
So what does a woman who is determined to be the lead in her own life’s story wear? Well she has a certain love for the Renaissance, and will fill her closet with poets-sleeve tops and sweaters, slight puritanical roomy dresses, a wide variety of beautifully tailored pants that forgave just enough, and practical block-heeled shoes designed to sturdily support their owner’s stride through each act of their life with confidence.
The collection that Lemaire and Sarah-Linh Tran created told a substantial story. It is one women are going to want to play a part in.