From Chanel to Dior to Valentino: five of the best shows from haute couture week in Paris

The heatwave sweeping through Europe had ended by the time haute couture week began on Sunday in Paris, but the city was sizzling with catwalk shows, jewellery presentations and fashionable events attended by international celebrities and big spenders from around the world.

Here are some highlights from the most glamorous week of the year on the fashion calendar.

House Proud

30 Avenue Montaigne has been Dior’s legendary address since the days of its founder, Christian Dior. The magnificent hôtel particulier, which also houses the brand’s couture atelier, is set to undergo a long renovation later this year, which is why Dior’s creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri decided to hold an intimate presentation in its hallowed salons.

The show opened with a white peplum printed with a poignant question: Are Clothes Modern? While slogans have become one of Chiuri’s signatures, this show thankfully moved on from that with a range of outfits in a sombre palette that stood out for their simplicity and showed the power of something as simple as a black velvet cloak.

Famous Faces

Armani was one of the first designers to court celebrities. He famously opened an office in Los Angeles long before high-end brands started dressing starlets and has always championed Hollywood glamour. You can count on him for a star-studded front row.

At his autumn/winter 2019 show for Armani Privé, his couture line, he had a stellar line-up of guests including Nicole Kidman, who was accompanied by her real-life husband, Keith Urban, and her TV husband, Alexander Skarsgard, who plays her significant other in hit TV series Big Little Lies. Spider-Man: Far from Home star Zendaya also graced the front row and took in the show, which stayed true to Armani’s love for sleek tailoring and smart evening wear.

Technology bound

Dutch designer Iris van Herpen may not be a household name, but her shows never fail to mesmerise. She’s the perfect example that all you need to wow an audience is a great idea and unparalleled creativity. Her show, Hypnosis, was held in a cavernous space in the neighbourhood of Montmartre and was the result of a collaboration with artist Anthony Howe, known for his kinetic sculptures. Models walked through a spherical sculpture in the middle of the runway, and their multilayered, diaphanous dresses were pure works of art, likely destined to fill the wardrobes of passionate collectors or the galleries of costume museums.

Safe and sound

Chanel’s autumn/winter 2019 haute couture show was the big outing for Virginie Viard, Karl Lagerfeld’s long-time right-hand woman and his successor at the prestigious maison. This time the Grand Palais, where Chanel holds all its extravagant shows, was transformed into a vast library.

Chanel is definitely in safe hands after Lagerfeld’s death, but as brands such as Gucci have clearly shown, taking a risk can be much more rewarding than choosing the safe and easy path. This was a very approachable and easy-to-wear collection that will certainly please, though perhaps not wow, Chanel’s extremely loyal clients.

Grand Finale

Pierpaolo Piccioli of Valentino loves to make a dramatic statement and his couture shows are always the highlight at the end of couture week. While his poetic and rarefied approach doesn’t always translate as poignantly in his ready-to-wear creation, he’s a true couturier and the rare designer who is able to make haute couture modern and relevant, not just a relic of the past as it often feels at other houses.

Citing individuality as his main inspiration (“each look is a singular entity,” said the collection notes), Piccioli stunned his rapt guests with a series of intricately worked capes, fringed dresses and oversize coats in the most wonderful colour combinations that were nothing short of spectacular. The dreadlock-like accents and headpieces are likely to be blamed by some as “cultural appropriation” (American editors tend to be the first to cry wolf) but they were meant as a beautiful homage. This show was yet another chance for Piccioli to express his love for his craft and for sharing his inclusive vision.