Demna Gvasalia’s debut collection for Balenciaga saw the artistic director make his mark on the French brand. He opened the fall-winter 2016 show with a series of plaid looks featuring structured shapes and boxy shoulders–Gvasalia paid homage to Cristóbal Balenciaga’s noted tailoring and architectural shapes. Then, there were sporty jackets in colorful hues, large and opened at the shoulders for an elegant silhouette.
You could say that the designer focused on wardrobe essentials for his first outing—a leather jacket, denim jacket, mid-length skirt, trench coat, dress shirt–all made an appearance in shrunken and enlarged proportions. When it comes to dresses, the designer sent out a number of designs which looked like several pieces sewn together and paired with candy cane striped stockings for a rag doll look. The final styles went back to tailoring with fur and leather coats; the models wore the outerwear with oversized tote bags featuring bold stripes.
