Energy, imagination and emotion at Paris haute couture

By Suzy Menkes

Published: TUESDAY, JULY 12, 2005

PARIS: How fine is the line that separates haute couture from high-end fashion? It is as thin as the threads embroidered on Slavic skirts and the tresses wound into braids at Jean Paul Gaultier's show.

Can handwork itself - such as the flowers painted by eight artists on silk dresses at Imitation of Christ - count as "couture"? And how to judge Givenchy's workmanship in the crowded chaos of Riccardo Tisci's debut still-life presentation?

Yet in spite of its vague definition and the shrinking number of houses, last week's brief haute-couture season showed imagination and creative energy.

Gaultier even offered emotion, as Kateryna Yushchenko, the wife of the popular Ukrainian leader, sat with her daughter Sophia and watched the collection of velvet tops, sable trims, exotic peasant blouses and colorful skirts unfold.

"Some were so Ukrainian, they brought tears to my eyes," said Yushchenko as she saw the French designer's trip to Ukraine become a fashion tour de force.

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theme idea - especially one including ethnic costumes - seems more appropriate to ready-to-wear than to couture. But Gaultier did his collection with dash, style and sophisticated detail. From the fitted coats, especially in a paisley pattern, through strict black Parisian suits to Slavic trousers and folkloric skirts, the designer subsumed his ethnic theme into a glamorous winter collection. It may not have had the high sobriety that was typical of the season, but it showed Gaultier beautifully in control. Even the kokoshniks, or peasant headpieces made out of braids, were superbly realized.

Tatiana Sorokko, a former model from Russia, praised Gaultier's light hand and ability to turn Slavic style into couture chic.

"I felt very moved," Sorokko said. "There is a thin line when you do something inspired by ethnic clothes. It can be so cheesy - but Gaultier's take was so refined."

Tisci is a romantic with a dark side, which fits beautifully with the current fashion mood. The Givenchy collection that the Italian designer had put together in the three months since his appointment - as the house's fourth new designer in a row - was elegant and graceful, even if the chaotic flow of people made it difficult to absorb the black clothes set off by snow white, ivory and parchment colors. They came in mink, shearling, pashmina and cotton poplin for a retake on Hubert de Givenchy's signature white blouse.

Tisci's show seemed in harmony with modern times, quiet and gentle, the antithesis of vulgarity and display. Evening clothes included black tulle dresses, pleated tulle in violet and the designer's black and ivory color scheme worn in layers by his muse, Maria Carla Boscono.

"I wanted to do something relaxed, something really severe with a touch of romanticism," Tisci said. "There was so much emotion - I let myself go."

For Tara Subkoff, her Imitation of Christ "haute couture" show in the deserted former school playground was far more complex than a parade of clothes - although they were pretty in their light structures and painted fabrics. Patterned parasols gave a delicate retro touch as the models walked by an old stone wall.

A movie camera recorded them as a show within a show, with the film designed to raise awareness of child sex trafficking in the Far East. If the message was complicated, the effect was charming as a singer re-created Edith Piaf songs for the parade of summer dresses in watercolor effects of turquoise, primrose yellow and coral. And as Subkoff said: "All my friends have painted them, they are all one of a kind and there is no way to re-create them - so I guess that really is couture."

Dominique Sirop is a couturier with a genuine client following. His collection of leather coats, sleek pantsuits, pinstriped blazers and satin dresses were shown on models with ironed-flat hair and a polite stance. Sirop's forte is the cut of his liquid evening dresses, draped on the bias across the body.

Michel Klein is also client-friendly but he creates ready-to-wear, some of which can be treated as one-off pieces, made to order in his shop/atelier at 332 Rue Saint-Honoré. Some pieces had a perfume of Saint Tropez in the 1960s, such as raffia decoration on graphic dresses that, as Klein says, can "be worn with flat shoes." Other inspirations were industrial-size fastenings and the Japanese obi belt built into dresses and jackets.

Michèle and Olivier Chatenet worked with couture toiles to create outfits for which the client can choose the fabric. Some of the clothes morphed into different garments, so that a dress could be upended and turned into a peasant top. Using their favorite metal eyelets as well as pleated effects, E2 , as the label is known, offers outfits that no longer seem like makeovers of vintage designs but have a fashion life of their own.

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