(Paris) With his exuberant and flowery show in Paris, Balmain star stylist Olivier Rousteing showed that he overcame the theft of 50 pieces from his collection, an unprecedented affair in the fashion world.
Flowers, color, shine, flashy shoes: the designer, now wearing dreadlocks, showed off on Wednesday evening, making people forget the theft that he himself had announced on Instagram in mid-September in its 10 million subscribers.
“Flowers for spring, innovative…”: quipped Olivier Rousteing a few days before the show, lifting the veil on the collection.
Flowers were indeed omnipresent: in patterns, sculpted or embroidered on mini-dresses or adorning colorful heeled shoes.
A total red look composed of a vinyl effect dress sprinkled with roses with shoes decorated with a gigantic rose was the flagship silhouette of the collection.
We find Olivier Rousteing’s sculpting and sexy line in sets with a graphic, low-cut jacket and mini-skirt in this fashion show which took place at the Chaillot theater, with a view of the Eiffel Tower.
His team worked “day and night” to make this parade happen.
In mid-September, the van carrying pieces from his collection was attacked between the airport and the Paris headquarters of the house, by armed people who fled.
An investigation has been opened, but nothing is known about the nature and fate of the stolen parts.
Keen to “enable more people to experience those special moments that the fashion world traditionally reserves for a very lucky few,” Balmain partnered with TikTok for the network to broadcast the show.
Two TikTok creators also uploaded footage from behind the scenes “before, during and after the show.” The AFP text was deprived of access, “for lack of space”.
At 38 years old, including twelve as artistic director of Balmain, Olivier Rousteing was able to transform the fashion show of this French luxury house, known in a restricted circle, into an unmissable event for fashionistas.
Parades to the sound of hip-hop, distributions under the sign of diversity or collaboration with the Swedish giant H
Unlike most designers who cultivate discretion, he is himself a star, who claims glamorous aesthetics for a strong and free woman.
The popularity of Olivier Rousteing, one of the rare black or mixed-race creators in the world of luxury, took a turn after the broadcast in 2019 of the documentary Wonder Boy (viewable on Netflix), in which he splits the armor and recounts his quest for his natural mother.
Born under X, of Ethiopian and Somali origin, he was adopted by a Bordeaux family and has since overcome several challenges.
In 2021, he confided on Instagram that he had been seriously burned a year earlier in the explosion of his chimney. He says he hid it out of “shame”, in an environment where “obsession with perfection” reigns.
The text is accompanied by a shocking photo: his torso, his arms and the top of his head are covered in strips of gauze, with burn marks on his face.
A way to break a taboo. “I realized that the power of social media is to only reveal what you want to show,” he wrote at the time.
