Julien Fournié, presented his new haute couture spring-summer 2018 collection at L’Oratoire du Louvre in Paris.
A collection inspired by Asian heroines who populate the imagination of the creator. Whether they are anime characters, empresses, wives, dancers, protagonists of Zhang Yimou’s films, Chen Kaïge or novels by Yasunari Kawabata, their restraint signifies their elegance.
In resolutely 1950s, the meticulous needlework of the French couturier mixes with noble plain fabrics, old jacquards adopted, inspired or reinterpreted from the textile heritage of the Far East. In the trompe-l’oeil of dresses that float above the ground, the tracks of the Japanese kimono, the footprints of the Chinese hanfu or the Manchu qi-pao are encrusted in turn.
Haute Couture plays here with the codes to better transcend them by daring the pea on a waist-clamp of Asian tradition, by adorning a « cheongsam » sheath with organ pipes, adding to a basque the reliefs of an obi, by embroidering on a dress some wisteria recreated in the same fabric, true origami geisha way. The palette is forbidden black and favors powdery tones, shades of bamboo and pinkish shine, even the reflection of lacquer. The transparencies of the tulles and lace favor the overlays and deliberately sieves the shine for more modesty.
The silk sheet is essential and sculpts the bodies in cuts near the bust whose armholes are the highlight of the secrets of Haute Couture. The leather interferes here or there to sharpen the waist or taper the leg. Salines pavement with multi-flanges kaleidoscope of leathers in the colors of the season, models are rushing on a steady pace. Makeup, hairstyle, light, music confirm the futuristic nature of this aesthetic.
Far from any ethnic or identity, to constantly reinvent the very spirit of Haute Couture, Julien Fournié rhymes tradition with innovation to express a new cosmopolitan consciousness.
Photos: Julien Fournié & Voltem-Magazine