And just like that, Fashion Month is over. Louis Vuitton closed out Paris Fashion Week with a bang on Tuesday with a star-studded spring 2023 womenswear ready-to-wear show in the Cour Carrée, one of the main courtyards in The Louvre. Creative director Nicolas Ghesquière invited French artist Philippe Parreno and Hollywood production designer James Chinlund to dream up a futuristic installation in the shape of a larger-than-life red flower, complete with moving lights and stamens shooting up into the sky.
The show opened with brand ambassador HoYeon Jung, who emerged on the catwalk wearing a white pleated set with larger-than-life zippers— according to Ghesquière, they’re the largest ever manufactured — ensuring that we don’t need to pinch our iPhone screens for a closer look at the details.
The zippers weren’t the only oversized element of the offering, which included exaggerated necklines and hips, as well as supersized bows, waist belts, utilitarian pockets, and statement bags. “Femininity is at the heart of the matter and Louis Vuitton joins the conversation: looking at it through emphasis, glorifying its complexity, magnifying it, putting it in the spotlight,” read the official show notes. “It’s a stylistic exercise that re-evaluates the proportions of clothing and its adjuncts, one in which the codes of femininity unsettle scale.”
“The infinitely large and the infinitely small come together on silhouettes, inviting a second look,” continue the show notes. “The Spring/Summer 2023 women’s collection zooms in on the details, highlights them, gives them their due.” In other words: The bigger, the better.
While looks were certainly kitschy, they still felt covetable. A purse that took the form of an old Victorian house is a prime example. Tulle and lace baby doll dresses, elastic trousers, patchwork leather sets, tiger print coats, and crystallized lace tights were playful and still wearable. A grey cocoon coat with a supersized zip and pockets will no doubt take over closets this winter.
Sure, it might not be for everyone, but if Louis Vuitton’s spring 2023 collection proves anything, it’s that Ghesquière isn’t afraid to go big or go home.
